Best of the Left Podcast

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The Podcasts

Original Air Date: 12-15-22

Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin, and Deon discuss:

- Why framing corporations are moral actors is a step on the path to conspiratorial thinking

- Conservative framing that doesn't make them look as good as they think it does

- Indoctrination as a scare word

- Defining political topics that are beyond the scope of civil debate

 

Connect to out Discord

 

References:

Tucker Carlson: Apple is covering for the Chinese government

Apple is willing to engage in global censorship: David Sack 

Apple CEO confronted over China protests 

Alito asks a hypothetical about a Black Santa at the mall who doesn't want to have his picture taken with a child dressed up in a KKK outfit.

Kanye STORMS OUT On Tim Pool After Claiming Jewish Cabal Is Targeting Him - The Majority Report 

MAHER: ‘Don’t Say Gay Law’ Could Have Been Called ‘Let’s Do Things the Way We Did 5 Years Ago Law’ 

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

 

Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_261_Sample_-_12-28-22_10.27.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:27am EDT

Original Air Date 10/27/2021

Today we take a look at some of the ways that 25 years of Fox News has reshaped our media and political landscape. Crucially, understanding Fox isn't just about their influence on their conservative viewers but how they manage to hack the political conversation for the rest of us.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The War On Fox Is Over - The Young Turks - Air Date 12-22-13

Archive clip from A parody of itself (Media) - Best of the Left - Archives - Air Date 2-17-14

Ch. 2: Losing Relatives to Fox News - You're Wrong About - Air Date 12-7-20

Mike tells Sarah what makes older Americans more vulnerable to misinformation — and who is delivering it to them.

Ch. 3: Kevin Drum on how Fox 'News' broke America - The Bradcast - Air Date 9-17-21

Data journalist and longtime Mother Jones columnist KEVIN DRUM explains his exhaustive analysis of the madness of this political moment, and how and why we arrived at it. The Right has seemingly gone mad due to the spread of conspiracy theories.

Ch. 4: You're watching Fox News. You just don't know it. - Vox - Air Date 5-24-19

Fox News was created to push right-wing nonsense to the mainstream, and now there’s no escape.

Ch. 5: Conspiracy Network OAN 90% Funded by AT&T - The David Pakman Show - Air Date 10-7-21

Right wing conspiracy network OAN turns out to be 90% funded by AT&T

Ch. 6: How Fox News Made Every Moment of the Last 25 Years Worse - The New Abnormal - Air Date 10-7-21

Yes, it’s been 25 years since Fox News came on the air—25 years of “refracting the absolute most absurd and destructive and deadly disinformation and misinformation from the right wing fever swamps,” Carusone tells co-hosts Molly and Jesse.

Ch. 7: What 25 Years Of Fox News Poison Have Done To America - All In - Air Date 10-8-21

Chris Hayes marks 25 years of dangerous lies from Fox News: “There is a direct pipeline from what appears on Fox News to the absolute worst manifestations, worst behavior, worst elements of our politics and society.”


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Former Fox News Reporter Tells All - David Pakman Show - Air Date 2-05-13

Archive clip from Ridiculing Fox isn't just fun, it's important (Media) - Best of the Left - Archives - Air Date 2-28-13

Ch. 9: The biggest difference between Trump and Nixon is Fox News - Impeachment, Explained - Air Date 11-8-19

Nicole Hemmer, the brilliant historian of conservative media, joins to discuss how Fox News and the larger conservative media-verse protects Trump but also lures him into disaster.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on the multi-decade victim mentality of conservatives about the media


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: A slightly distorted Fox News logo sits askew at the center of a hypnotic spiral.

Credits: “Fox News” by Johnny Silvercloud, Flickr | License | Changes: Added hypnotic swirl background, cropped, faded edges || Hypnosis Spiral via Pixabay

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1451_Fox_News_25_Years_Air_Date_10-27-21_Members_-_10-26-21_repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00pm EDT

Air Date 12/24/2022

Today, we compare the far-right religious extremists who are fighting to gain power in the US with the protests against the theocratic regime in Iran supporting women's rights in the country.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: How a new Christian right is changing US politics - BBC News - Air Date 11-28-22

A new battle of faith is being driven by some pastors and politicians in the United States. Their central message is that the country's conservative Christian way of life is under threat, and American society is moving in the wrong direction.

Ch. 2: Women's Rights Activist on Protests Sweeping Iran, the Intensifying Gov't Crackdown & Executions Part 1 - Democracy now! - Air Date 10-15-22

"Iranians voted multiple times for over two decades for some process of reform … but the state has not given in to those demands," she says. "What we're seeing now is the result." Tahmasebi is the director of FEMENA

Ch. 3: The Taliban’s Far-Right Fan Base - VICE - Air Date 10-18-21

In chat rooms and message boards on the darker corners of the web - far-right groups have been praising the Taliban’s takeover, lauding their religious fundamentalism, execution of opponents, and hatred of so-called liberalism.

Ch. 4: Complete Dissatisfaction with the Current Order - Why Protests in Iran Are Not Slowing Down - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-6-22

"Today's movement is not calling for reform. Today's movement is calling for a new vision of politics … with women at the helm of it," says Narges Bajoghli, professor of anthropology and Middle East studies at Johns Hopkins University

Ch. 5: Are We Prepared For Anti-Democratic Extremist Threats? Featuring Peter Montgomery - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 12-15-22

Far Right, Anti-Democratic Extremist groups are not slowing down. Some even have connections with ‘mainstream’ Republican politicians. Peter Montgomery joins Thom Hartmann to discuss the threat the far right still poses.

Ch. 6: Inside the Iran Protests: What You Need to Know Nahid Siamdoust - The Majority Report - Air Date 12-18-22

Sam and Emma host Nahid Siamdoust, Assistant Professor of Middle East and Media Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, to discuss the recent political protests in Iran.

Ch. 7: Republican Leader Trump's Dinner With Racist Forces Reckoning For Normal Americans - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 11-28-22

Rachel Maddow shares some of the fringe perspectives of the racist, Christian fascist who Donald Trump hosted for dinner at Mar-a-Lago

Ch. 8: Women's Rights Activist on Protests Sweeping Iran, the Intensifying Gov't Crackdown & Executions Part 2 - Democracy now! - Air Date 10-15-22


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Will SCOTUS Turn America Into A Theocracy? (w/ Rachel Laser) - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 4-18-22

Joseph Kennedy, a football coach, pressured his students to pray with him. He was asked not pressure students into religion during Public School activities. but he refused. Rachel Laser joined Thom to discuss the case and the pressure on students.

Ch. 10: Hayes: Supreme Court conservative majority is ‘high council of Fox News viewers’ - All In w/ Chris Hayes - Air Date 12-5-22

“Because the conservative majority has tossed away all pretense of being anything other than, essentially, a high council of Fox News viewers, they decided her case should be heard before the Supreme Court,” says Chris Hayes


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on why Christian Nationalists would be better off not installing a dictatorship


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1533_Christian_Nationalism_Air_Date_12-14-22_General_-_12-24-22_16.07.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:23pm EDT

What if California seceded from the United States? If it did, what would happen? Would it usher in a new era of peace and prosperity? Or plunge the US into a new civil war? This is The Last Resort, a new documentary podcast following the rise, fall, and rebirth of CAL EXIT: the campaign for Californian Independence. It’s a story about a dream for a new progressive utopia on the West Coast. It’s about the fight for America’s future. And it’s also a tale of two friends who started on the political fringe and ended up in the middle of a still-unfolding global criminal conspiracy involving the FBI and Russian Intelligence. Coming October 18th from Interval Presents and Awfully Nice. Narrated by Xiuhtezcatl.

Binge all episodes of The Last Resort available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts!

Direct download: The_Last_Resort_12.22.22_-_12-22-22_12.56.mp3
Category:MP3 -- posted at: 1:02pm EDT

Original Air Date: 12-1-22

Today, Jay!, Amanda and Deon discuss:

- That the youth are doing away with "You're welcome"

- Words Matter: Building solidarity or maintaining power structures through vocatives

- The power play of intentional misnaming

- Ye's name, ego and run for president

 

Connect our Discord Community

 

References:

A scorching hot take on why younger people say 'no problem' instead of 'you're welcome.' 

Words Matter by Sally McConnell-Ginet 

HOW TO PRONOUNCE YE AND MEANING OF KANYE’S NEW NAME EXPLAINED 

Trump faulted for dinner with white nationalist, rapper Ye 

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

 

Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_260_Sample_-_12-20-22_13.04.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:16pm EDT

Air Date 12/17/2022

Today, we take a look at the fringe philosophy of accelerationism that is having a bigger impact on society than you will likely have realized as it's been behind some of the worst terror attacks in recent years and is likely behind attacks on infrastructure targeting society as a whole.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Dystopian Philosophy You've Never Heard Of - Philion - Air Date 6-26-22

Explaining the origins of Accelerationism

Ch. 2: A Foiled Plot in Texas: The Threat of Violent Fringe Online Networks - Tech Against Terrorism - Air Date 2-22-22

Matt Kriner is an intelligence analyst with almost a decade of experience researching and analyzing US domestic violent extremists, transnational far-right extremism, and radicalization.

Ch. 3: “It only takes a few” - White Hot Hate - Air Date 11-28-21

Some members of The Base are planning deadly attacks that they hope will spark a race war. Will they be stopped, before it's too late?

Ch. 4: Proud Boys, January 6, and When a U-Haul Is a Clown Car - Angry Planet - Air Date 6-17-22

So, it’s time to look again at what this group — and related groups — did on January 6, and just how dangerous they really are. We’ll also talk about accelerationism, what it is and what accelerationists want.

Ch. 5: Right-Wing, Domestic Terror Eyed In N.C. Infrastructure Sabotage As Facts Remain Elusive - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 12-6-22

Rachel Maddow looks at a mysterious gun attack on electricity infrastructure in North Carolina and how it lines up with a past attack in California in 2013 and a DOJ case this year against white supremacists in Ohio.

Ch. 6: Accelerationism: The International Apocalyptic Doctrine That's Unifying the Far Right - World Affairs Council Monterey Bay - Air Date 5-29-21

Accelerationism is a doctrine of revolutionary violence that holds that society is irreparably broken and must be destroyed. In recent years it has caught on among a variety of disparate movements throughout the world.

Ch. 7: The seductive dangers of speed - RSA Podcasts - Air Date 7-5-17

The accelerating pace of political and economic change can be disorienting – but, for some, change isn’t happening fast enough. Matthew Taylor is joined by the journalist Andy Beckett and philosophers Benjamin Noys and Nina Power


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Why We’re All Rooting for the Apocalypse - Wisecrack - Air Date 4-8-22

The apocalypse has never been more omnipresent in the cultural zeitgeist. But why are we all so convinced that the world is going to end, and do we have a moral obligation to prevent this gnarly fate?


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Sign that union card and support striking unions! - Nick From California

UAW-UC Academic Workers Strike Support and Hardship Fund


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments giving some helpful advice to White supremacists looking to start a race war


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A young white man dressed in a black hoodie with the hood over his hat is looking away from the camera while wearing a black mask with the image of the lower half of a skull on it. A lit torch is next to him in the foreground. A lit structure and a crowd of people are visible in the background.

Credit: “Face of the streets” by spoilt.exile, Flickr | License CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1532_Accelerationism_Air_Date_12-17-22_General_-_12-17-22_18.17.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:34pm EDT

Air Date 12/13/2022

Today, we take a look at the labor dispute within our freight rail industry as well as other unionization fights that corporations are vehemently opposing while the Democrats and Biden, the "most pro-labor president ever" are doing precious little to help.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)

BestOfTheLeft.com/HOLIDAY (BOTL GIFT GUIDE!)

Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Railroaded - Bad Faith - Air Date 12-1-22

Union train engineer Ross Grooters returns to the podcast along with The Real News' Maximilian Alvarez, and Bad Faith newbie and co-host of Well There's Your Problem Justin Roczniak.

Ch. 2: The People's Guide To Power - The Power Of Labor - The Brain Lehrer Show - Air Date 10-23-22

Labor unions represent workers in conversations with their employers. Can a political party represent workers in our government? Sochie Nnaemeka talks about some of the policies and politics behind the party's agenda.

Ch. 3: Biden, Congressional Dems Partner with GOP, Media to Discipline Rail Labor - Citations Needed - Air Date 11-30-22

We are joined by Real News' Mel Buer and Max Alvarez to discuss the media campaign to obscure Biden and Congressional Dems selling out rail workers.

Ch. 4: Railroaded Part 2 - Bad Faith - Air Date 12-1-22

Union train engineer Ross Grooters returns to the podcast along with The Real News' Maximilian Alvarez, and Bad Faith newbie and co-host of Well There's Your Problem Justin Roczniak.

Ch. 5: John Logan on Amazon & Starbucks Organizing - CounterSpin - Air Date 10-7-22

With tens of thousands of workers walking out around the country, the notion that this is somehow not meaningful should be hard to maintain.

Ch. 6: Instability - Capitalism's Constant - Economic Update with Richard Wolff - Air Date 12-1-22

Prof. Wolff presents updates on the Twitter-Musk scandals, critique of profit as a return on risk, and mass European union-led strikes against inflation.

Ch. 7: How to show solidarity with railroad workers - The Real News Podcast - Air Date 11-16-22

In a special panel co-hosted by The Real News and Haymarket Books, Railroad Workers United members speak about their struggle, the situation on the rails, and how you can get involved in efforts to support them.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Wall Street is holding the supply chain hostage to stop a railroad workers' strike - The Real News Podcast - Air Date 9-15-22

Maximilian Alvarez interviews Matt Parker, a full-time locomotive engineer who’s worked on the railroads for 19 years. Parker also serves part-time as Chairman on the Nevada State Legislative Board of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on the hot mess of the fight for labor rights


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1531_Railroad_Labor_Fight_Air_Date_12-13-22_General_-_12-13-22_17.28.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:59pm EDT

Original Air Date 11/9/2021

Today we take a look at the Facebook business model that is driving hate, lies, violence, extremism, and the breakdown of democracy around the world as well as some of the regulatory ideas geared toward reigning it in and mitigating the damage.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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BestOfTheLeft.com/HOLIDAY (BOTL GIFT GUIDE!)


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Facebook Papers Docs Reveal Tech Giants Complicity in Hate, Lies & Violence Around the World Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-26-21

UCLA professor Ramesh Srinivasan, who says the papers confirm what many critics have warned about for years. “This new form of digital capitalism that I believe Facebook is trailblazing is one that is playing with our intimate emotions on every level."

Ch. 2: Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen in Conversation Part 1 - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 10-18-21

Tristan and Aza go behind the headlines with Frances herself. We go deeper into the problems she exposed, discuss potential solutions, and explore her motivations — along with why she fundamentally believes change is possible.

Ch. 3: Hate and Lies On Facebook: They're Even Worse In India Part 1 - Brian Lehrer A Daily Politics Podcast - Air Date 10-27-21

We've been hearing about revelations from the leaked 'Facebook Papers.' What has the social media giant been doing, and what they haven't been doing, around the world? Guest: Sheera Frenkel, New York Times technology reporter.

Ch. 4: Zuckerberg's Metaverse - TyskySour - Air Date 10-29-21

Facebook is now Meta, and Mark Zuckerberg says our future is in the Metaverse. Is virtual reality the future of the internet, or Zuckerberg’s latest gimmick? With Michael Walker and Aaron Bastani.

Ch. 5: The Facebook Papers Docs Reveal Tech Giants Complicity in Hate, Lies & Violence Around the World Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-26-21

Ch. 6: Hate and Lies On Facebook: They're Even Worse In India Part 2 - Brian Lehrer A Daily Politics Podcast - Air Date 10-27-21

Ch. 7: Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen in Conversation Part 2 - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 10-18-21


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen in Conversation Part 3 - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 10-18-21

Ch. 9: The Science Fiction Origins of the Metaverse - On the Media - Air Date 11-5-21

Jill Lepore, Harvard historian and New Yorker staff writer; Gene Seymour culture critic with work in Newsday, the Nation, etc; and Annalee Newitz science fiction author and science journalist, on the makings (and potential mishaps) of the metaverse.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on Facebooks treatment of nonprofits and the actions you can take to call for regulation


TAKE ACTION!

Take part in The Facebook Logout, Nov. 10th-13th via Kairos & coalition - Read the demands

Call on DOJ, SEC, and FTC to Open Criminal Investigations into Facebook Execs via American Economic Liberties Project & MoveOn.org

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A cardboard cutout of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wearing a black shirt that says "FACEBOOK" and holding a flag (referencing his infamous July 4th video where he rode a hydrofoil on a lake while holding a giant American flag). The flag is dark blue with white text that says "I know we harm kids, but i don't care." with a Facebook icon. A roadway with cars and a building with scaffolding can be seen in the background.

Credit: "Zuckerberg_Sum_Of_Us_2" by SumOfUs, Flickr | License | Changes: Cropped, enhanced brightness, contrast and saturation

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1454_Facebook_Papers_Air_Date_11-9-21_Members_-_11-9-21_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:18pm EDT

Air Date 12/6/2022

Today, we take a look at some of the factors driving hyper-partisanship in the US right now along with multiple arguments to not give up on the power of persuasion. 

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)

BestOfTheLeft.com/HOLIDAY (BOTL GIFT GUIDE!)

Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: What If We Don't Need To 'Fix' Polarization? - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 3-20-21

NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben interviews Lilliana Mason, associate professor of Government and Politics at the University of Maryland, about her book Uncivil Agreement.

Ch. 2: Getting Past Polarization: Anand Giridharadas - Ideas - Air Date 11-23-22

The extremes are extreme in U.S. politics. But Anand Giridharadas and some other progressives are convinced that there are uncompromising approaches that can move up to 60 percent of voters to value democracy and human rights.

Ch. 3: How to fix our polarized conversations (with Robb Willer) - How to Be a Better Human - Air Date 2-1-21

Is your family, community, or even your country more divided than ever? Today’s guest Robb Willer is here to share some compelling insights on how we might bridge the ideological divide and offer some intuitive advice on ways to be more persuasive.

Ch. 4: Can persuasion bridge the political divide? - Front Burner - Air Date 11-25-22

In his book, Giridharadas speaks with experts on reaching people — organizers, activists, politicians, cognitive scientists, and even a cult deprogrammer — and takes a critical look at his fellow American progressives.

Ch. 5: Why We're So Polarized - The Truth of the Matter - Air Date 10-25-21

Johns Hopkins University professor Dr. Lillianna Mason joins the podcast for a discussion of political polarization in the U.S. and how politics have become central to the identities of many Americans across racial, religious and cultural lines.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 6: An innovative polling model can move us past political polarization - The Future of Everything - Air Date 6-24-22

A Stanford professor explains how the deliberative polling model can get people to listen to one another and even compromise on some of society’s most complex policy issues.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 7: Final comments on hyper-partisanship in the ballot box


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1530_Hyper-Partisanship_Air_Date_12-6-22_General_-_12-6-22_21.00.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:26pm EDT

Air Date 12/3/2022

Today, we take a look at the mega-companies that touch all of our lives and the monopolistic practices that have been developed to keep power and wealth concentrated with the few while the rest of us get screwed. 

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Tech Monopolies - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - Air Date 6-13-22

John Oliver discusses tech monopolies, and how to address the hidden harm they can do.

Ch. 2: How Ticketmaster Is Destroying Live Music - More Perfect Union - Air Date 10-19-22

Ticketmaster is destroying live music. Their scam fees now cost as much as 78% of a ticket. They control the events, the venues, and even the artists. There’s a movement pushing the Justice Department to take on its monopoly. Cory Doctorow breaks it down.

Ch. 3: Corporate Greed Is Causing Inflation But The Rich Blame Workers - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 11-16-22

Not since the Great Depression have corporate profits soared so high. But it is not enough to satisfy them. More than 54% of the inflation America is experiencing is caused by record-setting corporate profits.

Ch. 4: Why Food Prices Could Skyrocket Thanks to This Grocery Merger - More Perfect Union - Air Date 11-14-22

Safeway, Ralphs, Smiths, Harris Teeters, Shaws, Kings, Randalls, and about 25 other brands, will all be owned by a single company if the Kroger-Albertsons merger goes through. And that’s really bad news for the prices you pay.

Ch. 5: Chokepoint Capitalism (with Cory Doctorow and Rebecca Giblin) - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 11-1-22

Novelist Cory Doctorow and intellectual property expert Rebecca Giblin discuss their new book, Chokepoint Capitalism, which documents the increasing tensions between extractive corporations and creative laborers.

Ch. 6: Making The Case For Abolishing Billionaires - MSNBC - Air Date 11-21-22

"One after another, four of our best-known billionaires laid waste to the image of benevolent saviors carefully cultivated by their class," Anand Giridharadas writes in a recent New York Times column.

Ch. 7: Elon Musk Is An Idiot (and so are Zuck and SBF) - Adam Conover - Air Date 11-23-22

Tech CEOs aren't geniuses, and here's the proof.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Chokepoint Capitalism (with Cory Doctorow and Rebecca Giblin) Part 2 - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 11-1-22


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on how regulation helps stop financial scams


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1529_Monopolies_Air_Date_12-3-22_General_-_12-3-22_16.38.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:24pm EDT

Original Air Date: 11-5-22
Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss:
- The Neverending Story
- Instilling distrust through abuse
- More on collectivist storytelling
- Joseph Campbell and the myth of the monomyth
- The politics of public toilets and potty training
 
 
References:
Leave a message at 202-999-3991
 
Produced by:
Jay! Tomlinson
Thanks for listening!
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
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Direct download: Bonus_Show_259_Sample_Holiday_-_12-2-22_17.45.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:52pm EDT

Air Date 11/30/2022

Today, we take a look at the context of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar including the labor abuses endemic in the construction of the facilities, the authoritarianism and anti-LGBTQ policies of the Qatari government, and the corruption fundamental to the inner working of FIFA that brought the tournament to Qatar in the first place.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Qatar and a World Cup controversy - Front Burner - Air Date 11-10-22

In the decade since Qatar won its bid to host this year's tournament, allegations of bribery, discrimination and human rights abuses have threatened to overshadow the game.

Ch. 2: What Does Qatar Want? - Pro Revolution Soccer - Air Date 11-25-22

Tom speaks to Lebanese writer and activist Ali Reda about why Gulf petrostates are investing billions into football – particularly in the north of England – and what the British state gets out of the deal.

Ch. 3: Qatar and the World Cup of Shame - Burn It All Down - Air Date 4-20-21

We discuss the (longstanding) controversy around the Qatar 2022 FIFA Men's World Cup including the ongoing inhumane working conditions and indentured servitude for migrant laborers building stadiums that have led to at least 6,500 deaths

Ch. 4: World Cup: Welcome to Qatar! - Today, Explained - Air Date 11-4-22

Soccer is sometimes called “the second religion of the Arab World,” and Qatar is the region’s first country to host the World Cup.

Ch. 5: Qatar World Cup: FIFA president defends tournament in extraordinary speech - Channel 4 News - Air Date 11-19-22

FIFA's President Gianni Infantino gave an extraordinary speech in which he railed against Western hypocrisy over migrant workers

Ch. 6: 'One Love' campaign hit by threat of FIFA sanctions - DW News - Air Date 11-21-22

The threat of sanctions has resulted in the seven European nations who had signed up to the One Love campaign, including England and Germany, announcing their decision to abandon plans to wear the rainbow-themed captain’s armbands.

Ch. 7: Boom in demand for 'One Love' arm bands banned by FIFA - FRANCE 24 English - Air Date 11-24-22

The "One Love" armbands that captains of some teams at the World Cup had been intending to wear to show support for the LGBTQ+ community are seeing a boom in demand among the general public after FIFA decided to ban players from wearing the armbands.

Ch. 8: Qatar World Cup - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - Air Date 11-21-22

John Oliver discusses the Qatar World Cup, the human rights violations happening in the sporting event’s host country, and what perfection really means to David Beckham.

Ch. 9: Human Rights and the Qatar World Cup - Global Dispatches -- World News That Matters - Air Date 11-16-22

In this episode, we speak with Michael Page, deputy director in the Middle East and North Africa division at Human Rights Watch We discuss how and why migrant workers were exploited in Qatar and then have a conversation about human rights


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 10: How FIFA corrupted the World Cup - Vox - Air Date 11-23-22

FIFA announced the 2022 World Cup would take place in a surprising country, Qatar. At that same meeting, they also announced that the 2018 World Cup would take place in Russia. These selections set off a new chapter in FIFA’s history


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on the propaganda master class put on by the president of FIFA

Reference: FIFA President Gianni Infantino Press conference


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1528_World_Cup_Qatar_Air_Date_11-30-22_General_-_11-30-22_20.05.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:49pm EDT

Original Air Date 11/27/2018

Today we take a look at the literal and figurative bloody messes of the history of Thanksgiving and the identities of native peoples. This episode is the second in an ongoing series focusing on Native Peoples in North America. Other episodes include #1216 on Christopher Columbus, #1252 on Westward Expansion, #1265 on native peoples adapting to the modern world, and #1283 on (mis)representation of native peoples in popular culture.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: A Code Switch Thanksgiving Feast - Code Switch - Air Date 11-21-17

Exploring the conflicting narratives of American Thanksgiving.

Ch. 2: Historian Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz on Thanksgiving: "It Has Never Been About Honoring Native Americans" - @DemocracyNow - Air Date: 11-29-16

We speak with indigenous historian and activist Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz. She is the author of "An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States" and co-author of "All the Real Indians Died Off: And 20 Other Myths About Native Americans."

Ch. 3: The stolen sisters Part 1 - In the Thick - Air Date 9-18-18

Maria and Julio speak about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls movement with Annita Lucchesi, a Southern Cheyenne cartographer who has built the largest database of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

Ch. 4: Indigenous DNA - Science for the People - Air Date 1-5-17

Kim TallBear, Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Peoples Technoscience, on her book "Native American DNA: Tribal Belonging and the False Promise of Genetic Science."

Ch. 5: The stolen sisters Part 2 - In the Thick - Air Date 9-18-18

Maria and Julio speak about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls movement with Annita Lucchesi, a Southern Cheyenne cartographer who has built the largest database of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

Ch. 6: It's not just about the blood - Code Switch - Air Date 2-6-18

If you're Native American, who or what gets to define your identity? We dive into an old system intended to measure the amount of "Indian blood" a person has.

Ch. 7: Native Americans React to Elizabeth Warren's DNA Test: Stop Making Native People "Political Fodder" - @DemocracyNow - Air Date 10-18-18

Native Americans across the country are criticizing Senator Elizabeth Warren’s decision to use a DNA test to assert her Native American heritage. We host a roundtable discussion of Native American activists and journalists to respond.

Ch. 8: Indigenous historian Nick Estes discusses the trivializing of native people - @Intercepted w @JeremyScahill - Air Date 10-23-18

Indigenous historian Nick Estes discusses the ongoing attacks on native people, voter disenfranchisement, the Red Power movement and the latest on the fight against major oil and gas pipelines.

 

VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: The dangers of over-secrecy - Abdul from DC

 

Ch. 10: Final comments on #StandWithMashpee

 

TAKE ACTION!

Tell your members of Congress to support the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Reservation Reaffirmation Act (H.R. 5244 / S. 2628)

Learn more and find out how to support the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe 

Share the tribe’s video on social media

Amplify the #StandwithMashpee hashtag

EDUCATE YOURSELF

The true story of the first Thanksgiving and what it meant (Opinion | Boston Globe)

Mashpee Wampanoag Confront 'Loss Of Self-Governance' After Interior Department Reversal (WBUR, Here & Now)

This Thanksgiving, The Trump Administration Is Taking Land From The Tribe That Welcomed The Pilgrims (Huffington Post)

Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 

 

MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

 

Direct download: 1230_Thanksgiving_and_cultural_heritage_Repost_22.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:15pm EDT

Air Date 11/22/2022

Today, we take a look at three recent incidents of celebrities using their platforms to spread antisemitic tropes all in the context of greater openness to antisemitism within the Republican Party in the age of Trumpism.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: From Kanye To Trump: The Mainstreaming Of Antisemitism On The American Right - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 10-17-22

Chris Hayes: "Right-wing politics as currently embodied by MAGAism—which is the dominant ethos of one of two of America's major parties—has always been and will always be fundamentally a threat to tolerance and pluralism that will inevitably target Jews."

Ch. 2: Anti-Semitism - This is Democracy - Air Date 11-9-22

This week, Jeremi and Zachary are joined by Peter Beinart to discuss the history of antisemitism in The United States and around the world.

Ch. 3: Legacy Media Problems - In The Thick - Air Date 10-28-22

Maria and Julio talk about the mainstream media’s coverage of the election, the consequences of Kanye West’s antisemitic and anti-Black comments, and voter intimidation efforts in Arizona.

Ch. 4: Conspiracy theories, anti-Semitism and fun - The Philosopher's Zone - Air Date 5-29-22

You don’t have to be stupid to be a conspiracy theorist. Many people who buy into paranoid fantasies about stolen Presidential elections and sinister global Jewish cabals are perfectly sane, well-educated individuals. So why do they fall for these myths?

Ch. 5: Unpacking Kyrie Irving - Edge of Sports - Air Date 11-7-22

‘Choice Words’ about Kyrie Irving, anti-Semitism, and his frightening new allies.

Ch. 6: A historic look at the ties between Black and Jewish communities - CBS Mornings - Air Date 7-22-20

Jericka Duncan took a deep dive into the history of anti-Semitism, and the rich history between the Black and Jewish communities.

Ch. 7: A word about the casual antisemitism that's growing and who it supports - jamylecannon - Air Date 10-28-22

Why "positive" stereotypes about Jewish people are promoted by White Supremacists

Ch. 8: Nick reacts to Kyrie Irving’s promotion of antisemitic film - What’s Wright? - Air Date 10-31-22

Nick weighs in on Irving’s recent promotion of antisemitic film before Jewish-owned team visited Nets. Nick reacts to Irving’s actions involving his past controversies with off-the-court issues.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Pogroms and Prejudice - Arts & Ideas - Air Date 8-24-22

New Generation Thinker Brendan McGeever traces the links between anti-Semitism now and pogroms in the former Soviet Union and the language used to describe this form of racism.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Policing gender norms - VoicedMailer John


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on Jon Stewart discussing antisemitism and Dave Chapelle

Articles: 

Jon Stewart is right about how to fight antisemitism — and should maybe be our ‘spokesjew’

Jon Stewart is not our ‘spokesjew’ — he normalized hate speech

Original Interview:

Jon Stewart On Dave Chappelle, Kyrie Irving, And Kanye West - The Late Show with Stephen Colbert - Air Date 11-15-22


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: Horizontally split image. The top half is a black and white photo of Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) performing at a concert. The bottom half is a close-up, profile photo of Kyrie Irving on the basketball court holding a basketball near his face about to shoot.

Credit 1: “Kanye West Central Hall” by Daniel Cruz Valle, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped

Credit 2: “Kyrie Irving” by Erik Frost, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1527_Antisemitism_Air_Date_11-22-22_General_-_11-22-22_17.15.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:50pm EDT

Original Air Date 4/16/2019

Today we take a look at just a few of the aspects of modern life for Native Peoples that we can see as stemming from the racism and colonialism that have been endemic in post-contact America. This episode is the fourth in an ongoing series focusing on Native Peoples in North America. Previous episodes are, in order, #1216 on Christopher Columbus, #1230 on Thanksgiving, and #1252 on Westward Expansion.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

HOLIDAY SHOPPING - BOOKS AND MORE!

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: American Indians Confront “Savage Anxieties” - Moyers and Company - Air Date 12-26-14

Bill speaks with Robert A. Williams Jr., a professor specializing in American Indian law, about how deals such as the one with Rio Tinto are a part of American Indian’s tragic history of dispossession.

Ch. 2: What we inherit: Explaining intergenerational trauma - Code Switch - Air Date 6-6-18

The story of one family's struggle to end a toxic cycle of inter-generational trauma from forced assimilation. Getting back to their Native Alaskan cultural traditions is key.

Ch. 3: Sexual Violence and Native American Genocide - @Making_Contact - Air Date 11-26-13

Andrea Smith, author of “Conquest: Sexual Violence and Native American Genocide” explains the connection between violence against women, and the colonization of native lands and bodies.

Ch. 4: The legal structures that uphold violence against Indigenous people #MMIW - Let's Talk Native... with John Kane - Air Date 2-14-19

Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women is a major issue because of racism. Acquittals for murdering Native people occur because of racism. Racism is systemic, historic and the norm in the US and Canada.

Ch. 5: End the Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women & Girls Crisis: Tell Congress to Pass #SavannasAct, #SURVIVEAct & Reauthorize #VAWA

Take action! Click the title and/or scroll down for quick links and resources from this segment.

Ch. 6: Jenni Monet on Indigenous Journalism - CounterSpin (@FAIRmediawatch) - Air Date 1-24-19

Corporate media’s lack of interest in indigenous issues, and their ahistorical, distorted view of them when they do cover them, are long overdue for a change.

Ch. 7: Beyond Tragedy: The living history of Native America - Ideas from CBC Radio - Air Date 2-20-19

This idea of history as tragedy is something that Ojibwe writer David Treuer tries to undo in The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee. He argues that Indigenous peoples have always found ways to adapt, and that's exactly what they're doing now.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 8: Disagreeing on arguments against a female presidential candidate - Stacy from San Francisco Bay Area


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments sharing some voices of Native people giving their perspective on the burning of Notre Dame cathedral


TAKE ACTION!

Tell Congress to Pass/Reauthorize:

Learn more at MontanaMMIW.com & on Twitter: #MMIW #MMIWG

EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

A missing sweater tells the story of missing Indigenous women (Indian Country Today)

Savanna's Act is Back (Splinter)

States weigh bills addressing Native deaths, disappearances (AP)

House Passes Bill Protecting Domestic Abuse Victims; GOP Split Over Gun Restrictions (NPR)

Montana Senate Betrays Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (Splinter)

Tester reintroduces “Securing Urgent Resources Vital to Indian Victim Empowerment” Act (KRTV)

Lisa Murkowski Revives Bill Targeting Missing And Murdered Native Women (Huffington Post)

Researched & written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)


Episode Image: Slowking4 via commons.wikimedia.org

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

 


Air Date 11/15/2022

Today, we take a look at our extremely steady history of political violence from the Revolution, through the Civil War, Reconstruction and Jim Crow, into the Civil Rights era, the Militia Movement and domestic terrorism, and now to our current once-again-radicalized, right-wing movement willing to use and tacitly condone violence as a political tactic.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Capitol Attack Wasn't the 1st Violent Incident in Congress - Inside Edition - Air Date 1-20-22

According to Yale historian Joanne Freeman, “The caning of Charles Sumner, which happened in 1856, is pretty much the most famous violent incident in the US Congress.”

Ch. 2: A history of US political violence Part 1 - Americast - Air Date 11-2-22

The Americast team looks at how the attack has led to the sharing of disinformation on social media and Justin and Sarah speak to author Josh Zeitz about the history of political violence in the US.

Ch. 3: Storm of White Right Wing Violence Isn't Coming... It's Here Featuring Luke Mogelson Part 1 - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 9-15-22

Right-wing violence isn't just sporadic it is a war against American values. The most startling details on right-wing militias, violence, and Trump are coming from Luke Mogelson, an award-winning war reporter.

Ch. 4: Political Violence Is No Anomaly in American History - System Check - Air Date 1-8-21

Our guest and guide this week is Hasan Kwame Jeffries, associate professor of history at The Ohio State University. He reminds us that the violence we saw at the Capitol this week is not an anomaly—in fact, political violence is what birthed this nation.

Ch. 5: Today's Republicans were made in the 1990s - The Gray Area with Sean Illing - Air Date 11-7-22

Sean Ililing talks with author Nicole Hemmer, who shows how the GOP became what it is today

Ch. 6: Storm of White Right Wing Violence Isn't Coming... It's Here Featuring Luke Mogelson Part 2 - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 9-15-22

Ch. 7: Some Democrats call on McCarthy to resign after comment 'hard not to hit' Pelosi with speaker's gavel - ABC News - Air Date 8-2-21

An aide to McCarthy said "he was obviously joking" without commenting further.

Ch. 8: Paul Pelosi attacked with hammer in his home - ABC News - Air Date 10-29-22

Officials say the suspect was targeting House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Ch. 9: A history of US political violence Part 2 - Americast - Air Date 11-2-22

Ch. 10: Political Violence - In the Thick - Air Date 11-4-22

“The political violence in our nation’s history is organized and purposeful. It is normalized by rhetoric that justifies it, and often encourages it,” writes Jeremi Suri on the attack on Paul Pelosi, in this piece for Time Magazine.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 11: Today's Republicans were made in the 1990s Part 2 - The Gray Area with Sean Illing - Air Date 11-7-22


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 12: Not just winning, defeating - V from Central New York


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the bipartisan uses of Rules for Radicals


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

Show Image:

Description: A newspaper cartoon/drawing of Senator Sumner being beaten on the floor of the Senate with a cane by Sen. Preston Brooks in 1856.

Credit: “Southern Chivalry - Argument vs. Clubs” by J.L. Magee, 1856 | Public Domain

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1526_History_of_Violence_Air_Date_11-15-22_General_-_11-15-22_17.12.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:40pm EDT

Air Date 11/12/2022

Today, we take a look at a few types of panic that regularly strike within communities or across the nation including various satanic panics, Halloween candy panics, and panic over kids being too inclusive and welcoming of all types of people.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why Satanic Panic never really ended | What's the Story? - Vox Quick Hits - Air Date 4-7-21

One of the most famous moral panics in history, the Satanic Panic, may have been at its peak in the 80s, but did it ever really go away? Vox culture writer Aja Romano walks up through the history of this fear of the occult

Ch. 2: Rainbow Fentanyl for Halloween? - The Politics of Everything - Air Date 10-19-22

Are evil-minded strangers trying to hook your kids on candy-colored fentanyl? As Halloween approaches, a dire story is making the rounds about the threat to children of so-called rainbow fentanyl.

Ch. 3: Satanic Panic: Part One - American Hysteria - Air Date 12-10-18

This episode is part one of our two-part series on perhaps the most mystifying moral panic in US history, the 1980s and early 90s 'Satanic Panic.' For this episode, Chelsey covers the rise of organized Satanism beginning in the late 60s

Ch. 4: Fentanyl In Our Halloween Candy and Liberal Messaging Failures of the Overdose Crisis - Citations Needed - Air Date 10-28-22

In this Halloween-themed News Brief, we debunk the idea drug dealers are handing out fentanyl candy to our children. But we also examine why these copaganda panics are able to take hold: namely the failure of liberals to provide an alternative

Ch. 5: Satanic Panic — Dungeons & Dragons and Harry Potter - Soul Search - Air Date 9-22-22

The Satanic Panic was a time of incredible anxiety in the United States and Australia. This feature examines how games like Dungeons and Dragons and books like Harry Potter became unlikely villains in a war over religion, politics and imagination.

Ch. 6: Deranged Parents FREAK OUT Over Mural During School Board Meeting - The Majority Report - Air Date 10-21-22

Michigan high school student defends her mural which parents called satanic and anti-Christian because it contained a Genshin Impact character and a person wearing a transgender flag t-shirt. The Majority Report crew discusses parents.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Our annual Halloween hysteria - Today, Explained - Air Date 10-28-22

This year’s fear of rainbow fentanyl in kids’ trick-or-treat bags is just the latest unfounded Halloween candy freakout. But the yearly panic has its roots in a very real crisis: the 1982 Tylenol murders.

Ch. 8: Satanic Panic: Part Two - American Hysteria - Air Date 1-7-19

Two characters, Stranger Danger’s murderous pedophile and the Satanist, blurred into a new villain and psychological archetype


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on policing gender norms through the ages

References: 

A Brief History of Men Today Are Too Feminine and Women Too Masculine

A Brief History of Nobody Wants to Work Anymore


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1525_Panic_Air_Date_11-12-22_General_-_11-12-22_23.01.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:26pm EDT

Air Date 11/8/2022

Today, we take a look at the life and times of China's president, Xi Jinping, and his rise to be China's first non-term-limited president who also, not coincidentally, has a bit of an authoritarian streak.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: China Under Xi Jinping From Human Rights Concerns to Inter-Capitalist Competition with U.S. Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-25-22

Chinese President Xi Jinping has begun a historic third term. We speak with Yaqiu Wang, senior China researcher at Human Rights Watch and Johns Hopkins University professor Ho-fung Hung.

Ch. 2: Made in China Part 1 - Today, Explained - Air Date 10-14-22

Chinese President Xi Jinping is a product of Mao Zedong’s revolution. On Sunday, he'll become the most powerful Chinese leader since the Communist Party’s founder — and maybe the most powerful person in the world.

Ch. 3: What A Third Term For Xi Jinping Could Mean For China And The World - Consider This - Air Date 10-19-22

Ailsa Chang speaks with Yun Sun, director of the China Program at the Stimson Center, about the global implications of a third term for Xi Jinping and how this signals a new era for China.

Ch. 4: China Under Xi Jinping From Human Rights Concerns to Inter-Capitalist Competition with U.S. Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-25-22

Ch. 5: Made in China Part 2 - Today, Explained - Air Date 10-14-22

Ch. 6: Chinese President Xi tightens grip on authority amid fears of a return to one-man politics - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 10-14-22

China's Communist party sees a shake-up of leadership but President Xi Jinping is set to remain at the helm. It comes amid growing fears about what a return to one-man politics might mean for the future of the country. Special correspondent Patrick Fok.

Ch. 7: Xi Jinping - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - Air Date 6-18-18

Chinese president Xi Jinping is amassing an alarming amount of political power. If only his propaganda videos made the idea of unrestricted authority seem as troubling as the concept of singing children.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Made in China Part 3 - Today, Explained - Air Date 10-14-22

Ch. 9: China Under Xi Jinping From Human Rights Concerns to Inter-Capitalist Competition with U.S. Part 3 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-25-22


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on misinformation in the mirror universe


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Graffiti portrait of Xi Jinping in profile on a concrete wall. His face is outlined in black on a red background. Weeds grow up from the ground under the portrait.

Credit: “Xi Jinping, painted portrait_DDC2205” by Thierry Ehrmann, Flickr | License: CC BY 2.0 | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1524_Xi_Jinping_Air_Date_11-8-22_General_-_11-8-22_17.06.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:07pm EDT

Original Air Date: 10-24-22

Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. We discuss:

- The rise of AI-powered therapy bots

 

Connect to our Discord community!

 

References:

My Therapist, the Robot 

Therapy for People Who Can’t Go to Therapy 

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

 

Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_258_Sample_-_11-4-22_15.25.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:57pm EDT

Air Date 11/1/2022

Today, we take a look at the corporate price-gouging and massive profits happening under the cover of widespread inflation, all in the run-up to the midterm elections in which the GOP is running cover for corporations and blaming Democrats for price hikes.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why corporations are reaping record profits with inflation on the rise - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 4-12-22

Economics correspondent Paul Solman explores whether concentrated market power is contributing to inflation.

Ch. 2: Why Gas Prices Are So High Right Now | Ft. Jessica Burbank - More Perfect Union - Air Date 10-30-22

What explains the oil industry's historically massive profits? A price gouging scheme that oil companies freely acknowledge.

Ch. 3: Variety in the price of life: inflation and the midterms - The Intelligence from The Economist - Air Date 10-19-22

How inflation—at its highest since the early Reagan era—is affecting people’s lives and their voting intentions.

Ch. 4: Katie Porter EXPOSES Corporate Greed Causing Inflation - The Majority Report w/ Sam Seder - Air Date 10-21-22

Rep Katie Porter brings attention to statistics revealing the huge role corporate greed has on inflation.

Ch. 5: Katie Porter TORCHES Corporate Oil Profits In Brilliant Lesson - The Damage Report - Air Date 10-21-22

Corporate price gouging concerning big oil companies and inflation, Jessica Burbank breaks it down on The Damage Report.

Ch. 6: AOC And Raskin On Stakes Of Midterms: We Are 'Facing An Environment Of Fascism' - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 10-28-22

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Rep. Jamie Raskin join Chris Hayes to discuss what’s at stake ahead of the midterm elections. 

Ch. 7: Ralph Nader Throws Support to Democrats Ahead of Midterms But Warns the Party's Message is Failing - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-25-22

Democrats hoping to keep control of Congress and make gains in state governments are facing significant political headwinds

Ch. 8: Liberal Redneck - Inflation and the GOP - Trae Crowder - Air Date 10-27-22

Republicans harp on and on about inflation, but what are they actually going to DO about it? Not much, prolly. I holler bout it herein.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Republicans embrace last-ditch dangerous tactic ahead of midterms - No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen - Air Date 10-30-22

Mike Levin joins to discuss what the Inflation Reduction Act actually does for climate


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: UK could well go fascist - Anonymous


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on the quickness with which anger can turn to fascism


TAKE ACTION!

MIDTERMS MINUTE 2022:

Persuade someone to vote: 

- Jay's final comments from episode #1365 (Transcript) on using your vote as a theory of change tool.

- "Ask the Experts: How to Inspire People to Vote for Their Values" (ACLU)

- "This is How to Convince Your Friends to Vote" (Lemonade.com)

Short on time? Donate once to...

- Secretary of State Races: MoveOn.org's "America for All" midterm election campaign

- Senate Races: SwingLeft Hold the Senate Fund, or SwingLeft Immediate Impact Fund (Senate & House)

- House races: SwingLeft Hold the House Fund, or SwingLeft Immediate Impact Fund (House & Senate) 

- Governors: SwingLeft Governor Fund

- State Legislative Races: SwingLeft Legislative Fund

MIDTERMS MINUTE Segments: #1 #2 , #3, #4

Researched and written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman


SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Photo of a long shopping receipt that lays across a background of various groceries.

Credit: “Shopping spending till slip” by Stevepb, Pixabay

Direct download: 1523_Inflation_Election_Air_Date_11-1-22_General_-_11-1-22_17.56.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:06pm EDT

Air Date 10/29/2022

Today, we take a look at the destruction accomplished over decades by adherents to a libertarian, neoliberal ideology in the UK which culminated recently in the tanking value of the British pound sterling and the resignation of the shortest-serving Prime Minister ever

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why The United Kingdom Is In A Big Mess - AJ+ - Air Date 1-5-22

Why is post-Brexit Britain such a mess? Rising food and energy prices, empty shelves in stores and worker shortages. But could Brexit lead to something even bigger: the breakup of the United Kingdom?

Ch. 2: What's wrong with Great Britain? - Financial Times - Air Date 4-19-22

The FT's chief economics commentator Martin Wolf says the UK is facing six interlocking crises, from stagnant living standards to a lack of political leadership

Ch. 3: Thatcherism: What We Get Wrong About Neoliberalism - Kay and Skittles - Air Date 10-1-22

Differentiating between neoliberal ideology and how it plays out in practice

Ch. 4: Liz Truss: The Oligarch's Prime Minister | George Monbiot - Double Down News - Air Date 10-4-22

What happens when libertarian ultras get everything they ever wanted all at once? Welcome to Oligarch Island

Ch. 5: “We Are a Democracy in Name Only”: George Monbiot on Truss Resignation & Who Will Be Next British PM - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-21-22

British Prime Minister Liz Truss resigned Thursday after just 45 days in office, the shortest term in the nation’s history. Her low-tax, low-regulation financial policies were widely criticized after they sent the pound plummeting

Ch. 6: James O'Brien claims trickle-down economics is as ghoulish, greedy and gross as it appears - LBC - Air Date 9-21-22

Explaining trickle-down economics for what it is and condemning the big lie that makes it palatable to the masses

Ch. 7: Does Economics Drive All Politics? - WhoWhatWhy - Air Date 10-20-22

Financial Times economic analyst Martin Wolf gives an overview of global economic forces, and looks at Britain’s economic and political chaos.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: The Brexit effect: how leaving the EU hit the UK | FT Film - Financial Times - Air Date 10-18-22

The UK's recent disastrous "mini" Budget can trace its origins back to Britain's decision to leave the European Union. The economic costs of Brexit were masked by the Covid-19 pandemic and the crisis in Ukraine.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the destabilization of neoliberalism


TAKE ACTION!

MIDTERMS MINUTE 2022:

Installment #4: The Rest of the Toss-Up House Races

Short on time? Donate once...

- Secretary of State Races: MoveOn.org's "America for All" midterm election campaign

- Senate Races: SwingLeft Hold the Senate Fund, or SwingLeft Immediate Impact Fund (Senate & House)

- House races: SwingLeft Hold the House Fund, or the SwingLeft Immediate Impact Fund (House & Senate) 

- Governors: SwingLeft Governor Fund

- State Legislative Races: SwingLeft Legislative Fund

MIDTERMS MINUTE Segments: Installment #1 Installment #2 , Installment #3

Researched and written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: The Union Jack flag of the United Kingdom with black charred edges on a black background.

Credit: Union Jack

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1522_UK_Neoliberalism_Air_Date_10-29-22_General_-_10-29-22_08.28.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:52am EDT

Air Date 10/26/2022

Today, we take a look at the 2022 election and the political dynamics at play as the GOP continues on its path of ideological anti-democracy and Democrats work to register new voters and get out the vote.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: "Democracy Demands We Participate": Black Voters Mobilize for Midterms Amid GOP Voter Suppression Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-21-22

We speak to law professor Kimberlé Crenshaw and civil rights attorney Barbara Arnwine, who are on an Arc of Voter Justice bus tour of 26 cities across the country to increase Black voter turnout at critical midterm elections in November.

Ch. 2: Battling the Big Liars with Dan Pfeiffer - How We Win - Air Date 10-19-22

Biden is making it clear that abortion rights are on the ballot, as early voting kicks off in many states. New polls are worrying Democrats, but don’t worry… keep working!

Ch. 3: Bernie Sanders Knows How Democrats Can Win Featuring Bernie Sanders - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 10-13-22

Democrats need a strategy to win the upcoming midterm election and Senator Bernie Sanders has a strategy to win.

Ch. 4: Battling the Big Liars with Dan Pfeiffer Part 2 - How We Win - Air Date 10-19-22

Ch. 5: Senate Races That Could Tip The Balance - Deconstructed - Air Date 10-14-22

Journalists Jon Ralston and George Chidi join Ryan Grim to discuss two potentially pivotal states, Nevada and Georgia, where tight races for the Senate are underway.

Ch. 6: "Democracy Demands We Participate": Black Voters Mobilize for Midterms Amid GOP Voter Suppression Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-21-22

Ch. 7: How We Vote! with Andrea Hailey - How We Win - Air Date 9-21-22

A conversation with the woman who is leading the charge for the largest nonprofit, nonpartisan voting registration and get-out-the-vote technology platform in America, the CEO of Vote.org, Andrea Hailey!

Ch. 8: Julie Hollar and Jim Naureckas on 2022 Midterms - CounterSpin - Air Date 10-21-22

This midterm is a big-picture election.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: How Midterm Campaigns are Framing Crime - The Takeaway - Air Date 10-20-22

We're joined by Rena Karefa-Johnson, Director of National programming at FWD.us, and Ames Grawert, Senior Counsel at the Justice Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU.

Ch. 10: Julie Hollar and Jim Naureckas on 2022 Midterms Part 2 - CounterSpin - Air Date 10-21-22


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: The prolonged fight - V from Central New York

Ch. 11: Doing the work - Wendy


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on doing the work to normalize all humans


TAKE ACTION!

MIDTERMS MINUTE 2022:

Short on time? Donate once...

- Secretary of State Races: MoveOn.org's "America for All" midterm election campaign

- Senate Races: SwingLeft Hold the Senate Fund, or SwingLeft Immediate Impact Fund (Senate & House)

- House races: SwingLeft Hold the House Fund, or the SwingLeft Immediate Impact Fund (House & Senate) 

- Governors: SwingLeft Governor Fund

- State Legislative Races: SwingLeft Legislative Fund

MIDTERMS MINUTE Segments: Installment #1Installment #2 , Installment #3

Researched and written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: Photo of a yellow sticker with black writing that says “Resist the NAZI-GOP Coalition” on a cross walk sign. The red hand “stop” symbol on the sign is visible below the sticker.

Credit: “Resist the NAZI-GOP Coalition Sticker” by Amanda Hoffman | License: CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1521_Election_2022_Air_Date_10-26-22_General_-_10-26-22_13.41.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:39pm EDT

Original Air Date: 10-12-22

Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. We discuss:

- The new fascist party running Italy and their love of Lord of the Rings

- "The Jay Principle" which has something to do with people liking stories they shouldn't

- How to write progressive stories

 

Join our Discord community!

 

References:

Hobbits and the Hard Right: How Fantasy Inspires Italy’s Potential New Leader 

Why liberals love "Downton Abbey" - Salon 

Downton Abbey–Why We Love Rich Aristocrats 

"50 Fantasy & Science Fiction Works That Socialists Should Read" by China Miéville

Tolkien and race 

 

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

 

Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_257_Sample_-_10-25-22_5.40_PM.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:59pm EDT

Original Air Date 9/8/2021

Today we take a look at the legacy of red-lining, the building and subsequent destruction of Black communities and the health and environmental impacts of segregation. The concept of “Structural Racism” is often a metaphor, not something physical that you can touch, but that is not the case when it comes to environmental racism.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Environmental Racism: A Hidden Threat with Dr. Dorceta Taylor - Black History Year - Air Date 4-19-21

We're making a deadly mistake if we don't talk about environmental justice when we discuss racism and Black liberation.

Ch. 2: Redlining & Climate Change: A Deadly Combination - News Beat - Air Date 4-27-21

Although the Fair Housing Act of 1968 banned redlining and housing discrimination in general, three out of four redlined communities rated "hazardous" 80 years ago are struggling economically today.

Ch. 3: Monuments to Racism - Environmental Injustice on This Week in Social Justice - News Beat - Air Date 4-8-21

Guests: Catherine Flowers founder of the Center for Rural Enterprise and Environmental Justice and Amy Stelly, a designer and board member of the Urban Conservancy.

Ch. 4: Environmental Racism is Real Part 1 - Tamarindo Podcast - Air Date 6-16-21

We talk to Environmental justice lawyer Claire Woods about how black and brown communities face the brunt of many environmental justice issues, the connection to racism, and what we can do to help.

Ch. 5: Biden Promises To Grapple With Environmental Racism - Short Wave - Air Date 2-4-21

NPR climate reporter Rebecca Hersher talks about the history of environmental racism in the United States, and what Biden's administration can do to avoid the mistakes of the past.

Ch. 6: Environmental Racism is Real Part 2 - Tamarindo Podcast - Air Date 6-16-21


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Environmental Racism: A Hidden Threat with Dr. Dorceta Taylor Part 2 - Black History Year - Air Date 4-19-21

Ch. 8: Monuments to Racism Part 2 - Environmental Injustice on This Week in Social Justice - News Beat - Air Date 4-8-21


Summary + reading from The Sum of Us on pollution in segregated cities

VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Post-Civil War Reconstruction and the occupation of Afghanistan - Dave from Olympia, WA


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on how structural racism becomes personal racism and comparing Reconstruction with the occupation of Afghanistan


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: An official, rectangular metal sign bolted to a telephone poll displays the image of a cropped city map with a red outlined area. Below, the sign reads "Portland's Historic Redline District." Smaller text below reads "In Portland's past, 'redlining' practices created exclusionary zones for 'Negroes and Orientals' by real estate, banking and insurance companies. Agents could lose their licenses for crossing this color barrier. Now, urban gentrification displaces low-income families, as the remaining affordable housing stock in this area disappears." 

Credit: "Redlining" by radcliffe dacanay, Flickr | License | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1440_Environmental_Racism_Air_Date_9-7-21_Members_-_10-21-22_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:00pm EDT

Original Air Date 8/18/2021

Today we take a look at history of white people deciding to get their way through violence and the tradition of having the government look the other way

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The KKK: History and Myth - Professor Buzzkill History Podcast - Air Date 8-24-17

Practically nothing in the history of the United States has suffered from myth-making and misunderstanding as much as the history of race relations and racist violence. The history Ku Klux Klan is no exception. This is ironic.

Ch. 2: Remembering a White Supremacist Coup - Reveal - Air Date 10-23-20

On the eve of a contentious election, Reveal looks back to the nearly forgotten election of 1898 in Wilmington, North Carolina. A coup d’etat gave birth to much of the structural racism that still plagues our nation today.

Ch. 3: Voices: Children ‘stripped of innocence’ - Cape Up - Air Date 4-11-19

A member of the Little Rock Nine and a survivor of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing both lost the illusion of safety in their young lives.

Ch. 4: Armed and Dangerous - On the Media - Air Date 9-24-20

Armed right-wingers are stoking violence in cities across the country. On this week’s On the Media, a look at the origins of the American militia movement. Plus, as things heat up, Facebook is fanning the flames.

Ch. 5: The Evolution of All-American Terrorism - Reveal - Air Date 6-27-20

The Trump years have seen an increase in domestic terrorist attacks linked by hateful ideologies that thrive online. Reveal teams up with Type Investigations to track each case and determine what the government has done to fight them.

Ch. 6: Radical Caucasian Extremism - News Beat - Air Date 1-9-21

This hugely important episode highlighted the threat posed by such extremists, even as many in the media and government engaged in Islamophobic rhetoric about Muslim Americans.

Ch. 7: "Nobody actually accounts for this violence": How the FBI fails to track white supremacist terrorism - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-5-19

Former FBI agent Mike German says "Unfortunately their policies have actually masked how they use their domestic terrorism resources to make it harder for the Congress to understand how many of those resources are going toward white supremacist violence,"


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Tucker Carlson Doubles Down on White Supremacist 'Great Replacement' Theory - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 4-13-21

The Atlantic's Adam Serwer and Mehdi discuss Carlson's history of promulgating racist rhetoric on prime time television and its real-life consequences.

Ch. 9: Southern Shame Culture & How to Fight Racism w/Jemar Tisby - The Holy Post - Air Date 1-20-21

Jemar Tisby (The Color of Compromise) rejoins Phil to discuss his new book, How to Fight Racism. Actual, real steps to be part of the solution, not part of the problem!


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Response on remix climate episode - Alan from Connecticut


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on the arguments against individual climate action


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Black and white photo taken during "Bloody Sunday" in Selma, AL on March 7th 1965. A young John Lewis has fallen on the grass, lifting one hand, while a police officer stands over him wielding a billy club. More chaos fills the background.

Credit: "12 - Civil Rights Movement" (low resolution). Original from the Library of Congress (via U.S. Embassy The Hague on Flickr) | License | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1435_White_Violence_Air_Date_8-18-21_Members_-_11-18-22_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:00pm EDT

Air Date 10/14/2022

Today, we take a look at the women-led protests roiling Iran in response to violent crackdowns from the so-called morality police that have led to the deaths of young women demanding rights and freedom.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Voices of women inside and outside Iran on the uprising after Mahsa Amini's death - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 10-7-22

For nearly three weeks, Iranians have marched in the streets to denounce the Islamic regime that has ruled for more than 40 years. What started as a response to the killing of a young woman by the "morality police," this uprising is now nationwide.

Ch. 2: What Iranian Protesters Need Now - What Next - Air Date 9-28-22

What began as a revolt in the wake of an overstep by Iran’s morality police has evolved into a mass movement calling for “death to the dictator.” Protests in Iran are nothing new, but these demonstrations strike at the heart of the repressive regime.

Ch. 3: “Complete Dissatisfaction with the Current Order”: Why Mahsa Amini Protests in Iran Are Not Slowing Down - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-6-22

Protesters in Iran are continuing to demand justice for Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died in the hands of the so-called morality police, as well as envisioning a political future beyond the Islamic Republic.

Ch. 4: 'Woman, Life, Freedom' - On the Media - Air Date 9-30-22

Large-scale protests took over the streets of Iran after twenty-two-year-old Mahsa Amini died on September 16 while in custody of the morality police. She had been arrested her for wearing her headscarf improperly.

Ch. 5: Anti-Regime Protests and the Devastating Effects of US Sanctions in Iran - theAnalysis.news - Air Date 10-5-22

Iranians protest brutal repression and why U.S. statements of solidarity are empty without a reversal of crushing sanctions. Assal Rad joins Talia Baroncelli on theAnalysis.news.

Ch. 6: What’s Happening in Iran and Why? with Reza Aslan - Factually! with Adam Conover - Air Date 9-28-22

Iran is currently being rocked by protests against the oppressive theocratic regime that rules the country. What is happening there, and what brought us to this point?


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Revolutions - Power Corrupts - Air Date 4-2-20

When revolutions happen, everything changes. In this episode, we'll look at how Teddy Roosevelt's son led a CIA-backed coup in 1953 that contributed to the Iranian revolution


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 8: Final comments on the beneficial discomfort of diversity


TAKE ACTION!

MIDTERMS MINUTE 2022 - Installment #3:

How to defend State Governor and Secretary of State races from anti-democracy MAGA extremists

Past Installments: 

Installment #2 - Toss-up Senate Races in GA, NV, PA & WI, & Senate Races Leaning D or R

Installment #1 - Toss-up House Races in CA, NY, & OH, & Open Seats Leaning D or R

Researched and written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A woman stands in the midst of a protest in London wearing full face paint in the color and pattern of the Iranian flag. She holds up both arms and in each hand is a photo of Mahsa Amini, the Iranian woman who died in the custody of the Iranian "Morality Police".

Credit: "Mahsa Amini #1" by Alisdare Hickson, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Slightly cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1520_Iran_Air_Date_10-14-22_General_-_10-12-22_21.43.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:00pm EDT

Original Air Date: 9-27-22

Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. We discuss:

- Nazis using The Amanda Principle on Uncle Tom's Cabin

- Societal instability driven by businesses always "disrupting" everything

- The anti-social nature of gratitude

 

Connect your Discord to Patreon

 

References:

Germany's strange nostalgia for the antebellum American South 

Forget Disruption. Tech Needs to Fetishize Stability 

Debt: The First 5000 Years (Affiliate link)

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

 

Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_256_Sample_-_10-11-22_19.07.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:00pm EDT

Original Air Date 10/9/2021

Today we take a look at structures and specifics of settler colonialism from around the world including the US, Caribbean, Australia, Israel and Mexico

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: History of US imperialism in Latin America: From settler colonialism to Pink Tide - Moderate Rebels - Air Date 12-12-20

Ben Norton was invited to give this talk on US imperialism in Latin America, for the Workers' Party of Ireland. He discusses the history from European settler colonialism, through the Monroe Doctrine, the first cold war, and the three revolutions.

Ch. 2: Slavery, race and capital in the sixteenth century / Gerald Horne - This Is Hell! - Air Date 7-21-20

Gerald Horne discusses the relationship between racism and expansionist foreign policies

Ch. 3: Settler Colonialism Is Behind Climate Denial - Novara Media - Air Date 1-5-20

Australia is on fire. So why do so many of its politicians seem intent on denying the cause?

Ch. 4: Pearls for empire / Molly A. Warsh - This Is Hell! - Air Date 9-20-21

Historian Molly A. Warsh on her book "American Baroque: Pearls and the Nature of Empire, 1492-1700" from UNC Press.

Ch. 5: Rewriting resistance: how Black rebellion shapes world events - People's Republic - Air Date 8-20-20

This week, we continue our commemoration of Black August with Dr. Gerald Horne, professor of history and author of over 40 books, including The Counter-Revolution of 1776.

Ch. 6: Ilan Pappé: Viewing Israel-Palestine Through the Lens of Settler-Colonialism - The East is a Podcast - Air Date 5-13-20

A 2017 lecture by Ilan Pappé titled "The Value of Viewing Israel-Palestine Through the Lens of Settler-Colonialism" hosted by the WRMEA.

Ch. 7: Crimes of Apartheid - In The Thick - Air Date 5-14-21

Maria is joined by guest co-host and ITT All-star Jamilah King to discuss the continued violence and attacks against Palestinians by Israeli settlers and forces in Gaza. We hear from Gaza-based journalist Hana Salah about what she is seeing on the ground.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Rick Perlstein: ‘I was drafted into the project of settler colonialism as a child’ - The Real News Podcast - Air Date 8-13-21

Marc talks with Rick Perlstein about growing up Jewish in Milwaukee, the process of unlearning Zionist indoctrination, and how the United States' support of an Israeli ethno-state foments continued violence.

Ch. 9: Gerald Horne: Slavery, White Supremacy, & The Roots Of Settler Colonialism - Last Born In The Wilderness - Air Date 5-25-18

Did racism and white supremacy arise as a result of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade in the 17th century, or did these concepts exist prior to the mass enslavement of Africans and the genocide of the indigenous peoples on what is now called America?

Ch. 10: So Far from God, So Close to the United States w/ Alexander Aviña - American Prestige - Air Date 9-9-21

The boys speak with Alexander Aviña, an assistant professor of history at Arizona State University, about the history of Mexico and U.S.-Mexican Relations from the 1810 Mexican War of Independence to the "drug war" of today.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 11: No velvet glove - Nick From California

Ch. 12: Followup on conspiracy theory hot take - Nick from California


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 13: Final comments on how conspiracy theorists are like timeshare sales people


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1447_Settler_Colonialism_Air_Date_10-9-21_Members_-_10-11-22_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:29am EDT

Air Date 10/8/2022

Today, we take a look at the recent elections in Italy, Brazil and Sweden where far-right parties are either taking power or looking to maintain it as well as the parallels to our own politics including moderate conservatives helping to legitimize the far right while delegitimizing elections.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Fascist Brothers of Italy Party takes power in Italy - The Mehdi Hassan Show - Air Date 10-2-22

Why the American right wing is racing to embrace Italy's next prime minister.

Ch. 2: Italian Fascism w/ David Broder - Jacobin Show - Air Date 9-30-22

Our own European editor David Broder explains what Giorgia Meloni and the Brothers of Italy's victory means for Italy.

Ch. 3: Fascist Brothers of Italy Party takes power in Italy Part 2 - The Mehdi Hassan Show - Air Date 10-2-22

Why the American right wing is racing to embrace Italy's next prime minister.

Ch. 4: Fascism scores another victory with Italian election - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 9-26-22

Conservatives in the US have been courting the extreme right on and off all along

Ch. 5: The Stakes Are High - In The Thick - Air Date 10-4-22

"The candidates and their vision for Brazil’s future could not be more different, but the trends underpinning this election are an echo of global experiences,” reports Roberta S. Braga for the ISPI.

Ch. 6: Noam Chomsky & Vijay Prashad: A Lula Victory in Brazil Could Help Save the Planet - Democracy Now! - Air Date 9-30-22

Noam Chomsky joins us from Brazil with Vijay Prashad just back from Brazil to discuss Sunday’s Brazilian election between Brazil’s far right president Jair Bolsonaro and former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Ch. 7: Brazil Votes For Democracy While SCOTUS Does Not - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 9-4-22

Co-hosts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman discuss the ramifications of the Brazilian election for president, as Bolsonaro loses by 5 points and is priming the country to reject the second round election later this month.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Rise of the Swedish far right w/ David Broder - Jacobin Show - Air Date 9-30-22

Jonas Pontusson joins us to unpack the strong electoral showing of the Swedish far right.

Ch. 9: Fascism scores another victory with Italian election - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 9-26-22

A history lesson on the rise and fall of fascism in Europe and what it says about the path we're all on today.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the big problem with small misunderstandings


TAKE ACTION!

MIDTERMS MINUTE 2022 - Installment #2: 

Today’s focus is on toss-up Senate races in GA, NV, PA, and WI, and Senate races (precariously) leaning Democrat or Republican: GET FULL DETAILS AND ACTION LINKS

Researched & Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Photo from 2014. Far-right Italian politician (and newly elected Prime Minister) Giorgia Meloni stands in front of a backdrop with the Italian tricolor flame, a symbol of the neo-fascist political party in Italy. She is a white woman with straight blond hair. She is wearing a leather jacket and smiling with her arms crossed.

Credit: “Giorgia Melone 2014” by Jose Antonio, Wikimedia Commons | License: CC Attribution 4.0 International | Changes: Black vignette

Direct download: 1519_International_Fascism_Air_Date_10-8-22_General_-_10-7-22_19.04.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00pm EDT

Air Date 10/5/2022

Today, we take a look at the life and legacy of President Ronald Reagan, the last transformational U.S. president who's regime we are still living in. Between his neoliberal economics, anti-government ideology and white supremacist appeal to authoritarians, he did more to shape the last 40 years of the politics of the country and conservative movement than anyone else.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: 40 years later, is this the end of Reaganomics? - Make Me Smart - Air Date 12-14-21

It’s been just over 40 years since newly elected President Ronald Reagan declared, “In this present crisis, government is not the solution to the problem, government is the problem.”

Ch. 2: The Democracy We Think We Live In - On the Media - Air Date 8-9-19

Adam Serwer, staff writer at The Atlantic, on the catastrophic, deadly idea that "only white people are fit for self-government."

Ch. 3: General Motors Proves Trickle Down Theory Only Works If You Shower With Gold Water - The Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 12-3-18

Reagan didn't invent trickle down economics and the original metaphor was even more demeaning.

Ch. 4: The Lasting Impact of Reagan's Firing of Air Traffic Controllers (1/2) - The Real News Network - Air Date 8-4-14

Prof. Joseph McCartin and former PATCO spokesperson Elliot Simons discuss the anniversary of the firing and Ronald Reagan's betrayal

Ch. 5: When American Presidents Go to Trial - On the Media - Air Date 9-9-22

Rick Perlstein, a journalist and author of The Invisible Bridge: The Fall of Nixon and the Rise of Reagan, explains the continuing impact of Gerald Ford's decision to pardon Richard Nixon for his crimes.

Ch. 6: Ronald Reagan “Terrifying Words - ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’” - Professor Buzzkill History Podcast - Air Date 5-13-21

We scrutinize Reagan's famous quote "the nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’”

Ch. 7: How Ronald Reagan's Regime Led To The Jan 6th Capitol Riot - The Majority Report - Air Date 7-17-21

The Capitol insurrection on January 6th was a long time coming. Back in 1980, Ronald Reagan's campaign was laying the groundwork for what would become Donald Trump's platform.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: America’s Right Turn with Rick Perlstein - Why Is This Happening? - Air Date 9-1-20

How did America’s modern conservative movement come to power? Historian and author Rick Perlstein’s prolific work has traced the arc of modern electoral politics, and specifically has laid out how modern conservatism arose.

Ch. 9: Why the "Reagan Regime" Endures - The United States of Anxiety - Air Date 3-7-22

Presidencies are rarely transformational, and neither Biden nor Trump have lived up to their supporters’ dreams. So what does it take to really change our politics? Host Kai Wright is joined by political theorist Corey Robin to confront that question.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on my first debate about Reagan


TAKE ACTION!

MIDTERMS MINUTE 2022 - Installment #1: 

Today’s focus is on toss-up House races in California, New York, and Ohio, and OPEN or NEW seats that are *leaning* Democrat or Republican: GET FULL DETAILS AND ACTION LINKS

Researched & Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A large portrait of former American President Ronald Reagan in a dark suit and red tie is framed on a wall in a dim, museum-like room. His smiling face is softly lit with a spotlight.

Credit: “President Ronald Re[a]gan” by LunchboxLarry, Flickr | License: CC BY 2.0  | Changes: Slightly cropped

Direct download: 1518_Reagan_Bad_Air_Date_10-5-22_General_-_10-5-22_11.38.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:49pm EDT

Air Date 9/30/2022

Today, we take a look at the attention-grabbing stunt of transporting asylum seekers from Texas to Martha's Vineyard and other politically-liberal destinations and the White supremacist inspirations for this policy.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: DeSantis, Fox News, and the Martha's Vineyard 'Stunt' - On the Media - Air Date 9-23-22

Philip Bump [@pbump], national correspondent The Washington Post, on the manipulative plan for 48 Venuzulean migrants sent to Martha’s Vineyard.

Ch. 2: DeSantis' kidnapping 'stunt' - The BradCast - Air Date 9-19-22

New documents show that the asylum-seekers were lured onto the flights with false promises, providing hard documentary evidence that DeSantis' obscene political stunt may have violated the law.

Ch. 3: The GOP's Martha's Vineyard Stunt Backfired And Then They Just Lied About It – SOME MORE NEWS - Air Date 9-28-22

This week, we're taking a look at the cruelty and shamelessness of when Ron DeSantis human trafficked a bunch of migrants to Martha's Vineyard. This did not go how the GOP thought it would, so they spent the last few weeks lying and pretending it did.

Ch. 4: Latest Border Updates, Martha's Vineyard Lib Owning - REDIRECT Immigration Law and Perspectives - Air Date 9-17-22

Taylor Levy talks about the situation on the border as one of the most knowledgable attorneys when it comes to what is actually happening on the U.S./Mexico border.

Ch. 5: Reverse Freedom Rides Flying Migrants North, Florida Gov. Steals Page from Segregationists Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 9-20-22

Professor Mwalim Peters, recounts the little-known story of the Reverse Freedom Rides and says the strategy to humiliate liberals is "basically identical to what's happening now in Martha's Vineyard".

Ch. 6: Immigration Defining Us and Them - Now & Then - Air Date 9-27-22

Heather and Joanne discuss the politics and prejudices surrounding the two 1790s Naturalization Laws, the Immigration Act of 1924, the 1965 Hart-Celler Act, and the current Republican rhetoric about migrants at the Southern border.

Ch. 7: Reverse Freedom Rides Flying Migrants North, Florida Gov. Steals Page from Segregationists Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 9-20-22

Professor Mwalim Peters, recounts the little-known story of the Reverse Freedom Rides and says the strategy to humiliate liberals is "basically identical to what's happening now in Martha's Vineyard".


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Immigration Defining Us and Them Part 2 - Now & Then - Air Date 9-27-22


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on how laws are used to manipulate our sense of justice to support injustice


TAKE ACTION!

National Immigrant Justice Center (specific call for donations to help those being trafficked)

National Immigration Law Center 

Immigration Equality 

Chicago: City of Chicago "Donation and Volunteer Support for New Arrivals from Texas"

New York: South Bronx Mutual Aid (Seeking lawyers, mental health professionals, etc. for migrants)

Washington, DC: Sanctuary DMV's "Texas Migrant Solidarity Donation and Volunteer Links"

Inside The Local Mutual Aid Effort Supporting The Migrants Texas Bused To D.C. (DCist, May 2022)

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: The words “The Cruelty is the Point” are overlayed on a black and white image of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ face in a black vignette.

Credit: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis” by Matt Johnson, Flickr | License CC BY 2.0 | Changes: Black and white, black vignette, text overlay

Direct download: 1517_Immigrant_Trafficking_Air_Date_9-30-22_General_-_9-30-22_21.45.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:00pm EDT

Original Air Date: 9-8-22

Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. We discuss:

- Dystopian longtermism

- Why the Man-O-Sphere won’t get you a girlfriend

- Cultural commodification

 

Join our Discord Server 

References:

Salon - Understanding "long-termism": Why this suddenly influential philosophy is so toxic 

Psychology Today - The Rise of Lonely, Single Men 

In Defense of Witches: The Legacy of the Witch Hunts and Why Women Are Still on Trial

Affiliate Links:

Book 

Audiobook 

 

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

 

Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

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Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_255_Sample_-_9-26-22_17.42.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:40am EDT

Air Date 9/24/2022

Today, we take a look at the decades-long scheme to funnel conservative activist judges into the judiciary to support Republican policy goals and the resulting legal bulwark defending Trump against prosecution and supporting his future election efforts. 

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: About half the world has prosecuted a former leader, so why doesn’t the U.S.? - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 9-4-22

About half the world has prosecuted a former leader, so why doesn’t the U.S.?

Ch. 2: FBI Seizes Mike Lindell’s Phone at Hardee’s, DOJ Issues 40 Trump Subpoenas: A Closer Look - Late Night with Seth Meyers - Air Date 9-14-22

Seth takes a closer look at the FBI seizing the phones of two Trump aides and issuing 40 subpoenas as the Justice Department intensifies its various investigations of Trump and his allies, including MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell.

Ch. 3: Trump's Remaking Of Judiciary Appears To Pay Off In Mar-A-Lago Case - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 9-6-22

You may not have heard of Judge Aileen Cannon at the start of her lifetime appointment. But Trump's court pick just ruled in favor of a special master in the Mar-a-Lago probe.

Ch. 4: The Law v Lawless Edition - Amicus - Air Date 9-10-22

A single Trump-appointed judge’s attempt to stick a fork in the Justice Department’s criminal investigation into potential mishandling of classified materials is part of a systemic story about American justice.

Ch. 5: Leonard Leo, The Most Powerful Person In America You’ve Never Heard Of - All In w/ Chris Hayes - Air Date 8-22-22

When you see the news about a 10-year-old forced to flee her state to terminate a pregnancy from her rapist, think about Leonard Leo as the man who brought that state of affairs about. He is the guy pulling the strings in the background.

Ch. 6: Elie Mystal on the Four Investigations into Trump & Why Progressives Should Push to Expand the Court - Democracy Now! - Air Date 9-7-22

A federal judge on Monday agreed with Donald Trump’s lawyers to appoint an independent arbiter known as a special master to review top-secret documents seized during an FBI raid on his Mar-a-Lago estate.

Ch. 7: The Scheme Speech 1: The Powell Report - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse - Air Date 5-27-21

Sen. Whitehouse delivers his first speech on court capture


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Right-Wing Dark Money Gets $1.6 Billion Donation From One Donor - All In w/ Chris Hayes - Air Date 8-22-22

“It was a very unusual transaction, the likes of which I have not seen in my years of covering money in politics,” says New York Times reporter Ken Vogel.

Ch. 9: Lock Him Up? - On The Media - Air Date 9-9-22

James D. Long [@prof_jameslong], associate professor of political science at the University of Washington, on the consequences of modern democracies across the globe prosecuting — or choosing not to prosecute — their former leaders


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on defeating authoritarianism with action, not news following


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com


Air Date 9/21/2022

Today, we take a look at the history and legacy of British imperialism and slavery through the lens of the divergent views on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II and the growing movement of former colonies to achieve full independence. 

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why Must Everyone Mourn The Queen’s Passing? | Between The Scenes - The Daily Show - Air Date 9-17-22

You can't expect people to show respect for something that never respected them. #BetweenTheScenes on the mixed reaction to the Queen’s death.

Ch. 2: "Racism Is as British as a Cup of Tea": Kehinde Andrews Says Many Black Brits Don't Mourn the Queen - Democracy Now - Air Date 9-19-22

Kehinde Andrews describes the brutal legacy of the British slave trade and the British Empire, which makes the monarchy a symbol of white supremacy that should not be mourned, but rather abolished.

Ch. 3: The royal family: Slavery, colonialism and race - Sky News - Air Date 6-23-22

In the Caribbean, some people are calling for the Queen to be removed as head of state, and for the royal family to pay reparations for their role in slavery.

Ch. 4: Julius Malema Tells Africans Why They Shouldn't Mourn Queen Elizabeth II - African Diaspora News Channel - Air Date 9-14-22

Wongel Zelalem reports on Julius Malema telling Africans to not mourn Queen Elizabeth II.

Ch. 5: Jeff Bezos DRAGGED On Twitter For Criticising Uju Anya's Queen Elizabeth Tweet - Roland Martin Unfiltered - Air Date 9-11-22

Breaking down the legacy of British colonialism through the lens of controversy over online reactions

Ch. 6: Slavery, Colonisation and the Crown - TRT World

In 2022, Britain celebrated 70 years of Queen Elizabeth II’s rule with street parties and festivities. But many critics say that the British monarchy should not be celebrated because of its legacy of slavery, looting and colonialism.

Ch. 7: Who needs the monarchy? - It's Been a Minute - Air Date 8-16-22

Guest host Elise Hu talks to Dr. Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, lawyer, activist and author of This Is Why I Resist about this new era for the British royals, the power they hold and the potential opportunities for the new monarch.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Dismantle the Commonwealth Queen Elizabeth's Death Prompts Reckoning with Colonial Past in Africa - Democracy Now! - Air Date 9-12-22

"There's a degree of psychosis that you can go to another people's land, colonize them, and then expect them to honor you at the same time," says Kenyan American author Mukoma Wa Ngugi. We also speak with Harvard historian Caroline Elkins.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: An old postage stamp depicts a 3-mast schooner ship on the water and an airplane above it with a young Queen Elizabeth II to the right wearing a crown and a crown symbol over her head. The text at the edges reads “JAMAICA” “West Indies” “2d Postal Centenary, 1860-1960”.

Credit: “Jamaica Postal Centenary” by Bill Smith, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped and added pieces of image to top and bottom of stamp.

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1515_British_Empire_Air_Date_9-21-22_General_-_9-21-22_17.05.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:23pm EDT

Air Date 9/17/2022

Today, we take a look at the way terrible patterns of the past like colonialism, racism, propaganda, feudalism, and abuse of corporate monopoly power are recreating and re-entrenching themselves in the digital world

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Rise Of Digital Oligarchy w/ Jillian York - The Majority Report - Air Date 8-4-22

Emma hosts Jillian York, Director of International Freedom of Expression at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, to discuss her recent book Silicon Values: The Future of Free Speech Under Surveillance Capitalism.

Ch. 2: How Social Media Profits Off Your Anger - Wisecrack - Air Date 8-26-22

Does the internet run on rage? If you’ve spent any time online, you know that anger is to the internet as cake is to a birthday party. But why have the interwebs become a place of such division and rage? It’s complicated, but we’ll explain

Ch. 3: Using AI to Say the Word - This Machine Kills - Air Date 9-2-22

We discuss a new startup doing the rounds called Sanas that uses AI “accent translation” to make "non-white" call center workers speak English with a white American accent. This is some real retro throwback tech solutionism

Ch. 4: Addressing the TikTok Threat - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 9-8-22

This week on Your Undivided Attention, we bring you a bonus episode about TikTok. Co-hosts Tristan Harris and Aza Raskin explore the nature of the TikTok threat, and how we might address it.

Ch. 5: Edward Ongweso Jr: Peter Thiel & The Post-Capitalism of Tech's Far Right - The Arts of Travel - Air Date 6-27-21

We conclude our conversation with Vice's Edward Ongweso Jr. by looking at Peter Thiel's role in bankrolling Uber as the 'Tip of the Spear' for rolling back labor laws, workers' rights and Unions.

Ch. 6: Break Up Monopolies: Zephyr Teachout - Future Hindsight - Air Date 8-11-22

Zephyr Teachout is Senior Counsel for Economic Justice for the New York AG and law professor at Fordham University. We revisit our conversation with her about her book, Break 'Em Up: Recovering Our Freedom from Big Ag, Big Tech, and Big Money.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: The Digital Self, Web3 and reclaiming your online identity - Future Tense - Air Date 7-23-22

How is our sense of identity changing as our online and offline experiences increasingly merge? What grounds a person’s online persona (or personas) to the physical world? And is such a tie important?

Ch. 8: Refusing the Everyday Fascism of Artificial Intelligence (ft. Dan McQuillan) - This Machine Kills - Air Date 8-25-22

We are joined by Dan McQuillan to discuss his great new book Resisting AI. “With analytical and moral clarity, McQuillan makes the case for recognizing the radical politics of AI and meeting its goose step march head-on.”


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on how to fix the internet for yourself


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1514_Digital_Dystopia_Air_Date_9-17-22_General_-_9-16-22_20.12.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:00pm EDT

Air Date 9/14/2022

Today, we take a look at the history and hysteria behind debt and debt forgiveness while Biden is canceling student debt and opponents of the idea are reacting in the most predictable way possible because they misunderstand the relationship between debt and morality.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Cancel It All: Debt Collective's Astra Taylor on Biden Plan & Need for Full Student Debt Relief - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-25-22

We speak to Astra Taylor, writer, filmmaker, and co-director of the Debt Collective, a union for debtors and one of the original advocates for a debt jubilee that would cancel all student debt.

Ch. 2: Freedom Dreams: Black Women and the Student Debt Crisis - The Intercept - Air Date 8-22-22

The Intercept’s new documentary, “Freedom Dreams: Black Women and the Student Debt Crisis,” profiles Black women educators and activists struggling under the weight of tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, in student loan debt.

Ch. 3: Hidden History of Student Debt - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 8-25-22

Many woke up to find news that $10k of their student debt would be forgiven, Thom Hartmann and Jefferson Smith break down what this means and what happens next.

Ch. 4: Bidens Big Student Debt Announcement: PITOTWIU for the Indebted Masses - Unf*cking The Republic - Air Date 8-28-22

Max breaks down the politics, the details, and biggest misses of the Biden student debt relief plan and why it’s in danger of being PITOTWIU

Ch. 5: Republican Veteran Concerned By Negative Military Recruitment Amidst Student Loan Forgiveness - The Majority Report - Air Date 8-29-22

Florida Representative Michael Waltz believes the military recruiting crisis will worsen with President Biden’s student loan forgiveness. He also believes it is unfair to those who have not incurred debt.

Ch. 6: Forgiving (and Unforgiving) Debts - Now & Then - Air Date 9-6-22

Heather and Joanne discuss the history of debtors’ prisons in early America, the rise of bankruptcy laws after the Civil War, and the Cold War origins of federal student loans.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Bidens Big Student Debt Announcement: PITOTWIU for the Indebted Masses Part 2 - Unf*cking The Republic - Air Date 8-28-22

Ch. 10: Forgiving (and Unforgiving) Debts Part 2 - Now & Then - Air Date 9-6-22


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on morality and money


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE

Description: A dark gray, 3D image of the word "DEBT" sits in a white void, a connected chain and open shackle with an open padlock lie in front of it.

Credit: "3D Shackled Debt" by Chris Potter, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Enlarged with more white background

 

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1513_Cancel_Student_Debt_Air_Date_9-14-22_General_-_9-14-22_21.52.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:35pm EDT

Air Date 9/9/2022

Today, we take a look at platforms, goods, and business models in the modern landscape of the digital marketplace. We start by questioning the morality of engaging in given platforms that cause harm - cryptocurrencies' role in crime and Facebook's role in destabilizing society, for instance - and then examine virtual products and virtual talents, the movement demanding the right to repair, and the coming world of digital art produced by artificial intelligence.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Digital Life Is a Moral Mess - The United States of Anxiety - Air Date 8-22-22

Then, Shirin Ghaffary, senior reporter at Recode and co-host of the podcast Land of The Giants, shares the story of Facebook, and why it has been so hard of them to respond to the damage their technology has created.

Ch. 2: Digital rapper FN Meka and the new era of digital Blackface - There Are No Girls on the Internet - Air Date 8-30-22

"AI rapper" FN Meka isn't human - he's a digital creation of a company. But that didn't stop him from getting a record deal! He briefly became the first digital rapper to sign a deal with a major recording company.

Ch. 3: The Right to Repair with Aaron Perzanowski - Factually! with Adam Conover - Air Date 5-10-22

Do we really own the devices we buy? ‘The Right to Repair’ author Aaron Perzanowki joins Adam to explain how companies are using their power to control the products we buy from them, even after they’ve left the store, and prevent us from repairing them.

Ch. 4: The Streaming TV Bloodbath - What Next - Air Date 8-28-22

Shows are disappearing. Staff are getting axed. Is It greed, or necessary for the networks' survival?

Ch. 5: CAN THEY DO THAT? | PlayStation to Remove "Owned" Movies - Hoeg Law - Air Date 7-7-22

Buying digital content has never been easier. Between Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo and more, your favorite game, song, or movie is just a click (and charge) away.

Ch. 6: Rethinking ownership in the digital age | Siân Lindley - TEDxEastEnd - Air Date 2-20-15

When George Orwell wrote 1984, there was nothing simpler than the idea of owning a paperback book. The more the digital world he foreshadowed becomes real, the more complex the idea of ownership becomes. Do you own your digital books? Your photographs?


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: The AI that creates any picture you want, explained - Vox - Air Date 6-1-22

How programmers turned the internet into a paintbrush. DALL-E 2, Midjourney, Imagen, explained.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 8: Final comments on how the world was lost and the Dream Machine


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1512_Digital_Ownership_Air_Date_9-9-22_General_-_9-9-22_19.04.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:54pm EDT

Air Date 9/6/2022

Today, we take a look at the precarious state of our immigration and asylum system, the legacy of neoliberalism and imperialism in South and Central America, the inhumanity practiced by both of our political parties (though not equally), and the ever-present possibility that things could get worse.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Biden to End Trump-Era "Remain in Mexico" Border Policy; Immigrants Face Ongoing Trauma, Separation - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-10-22

We speak to attorney and activist Efrén Olivares with the Southern Poverty Law Center's Immigrant Justice Project about the impact of this policy, as well as ongoing efforts to reunite families separated at the U.S.-Mexico border

Ch. 2: The Lasting Impacts of Family Separation - The Takeaway - Air Date 8-18-22

Caitlin Dickerson whose latest investigative piece “The Secret History of Family Separation,” chronicles the full scope of the policy, its legacy, and how similar, future iterations may be adopted.

Ch. 3: Political Pawns: Immigrant Activists Decry Texas Gov. Abbott for Busing Asylum Seekers to NYC - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-11-22

“What we’re seeing happening right now is Governor Abbott using asylum seekers as political pawns to merely help increase his polling numbers down in Texas,” says Murad Awawdeh, executive director of the ​​New York Immigration Coalition

Ch. 4: Capital's migration policy: Daniel Melo Part 1 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 2-28-22

Immigration lawyer Daniel Melo on his article "The Capitalist Imperative Driving Cruel and Bipartisan US Migration Policies" for Black Agenda Report.

Ch. 5: Azadeh Shahshahani on Central America Plan, Jon Lloyd on Facebook Disinformation - CounterSpin - Air Date 8-19-22

Azadeh Shahshahani is legal and advocacy director at Project South. She joins us to raise some questions about the US government’s claim that this time, they’re really bringing stability and security to northern Central America.

Ch. 6: The Democrats Long War on Immigrants - Intercepted - Air Date 2-17-21

The activist and writer Harsha Walia joins Intercepted to discuss the Democratic Party’s fundamental role in shaping the long arc of U.S. border policy

Ch. 7: Capital's migration policy: Daniel Melo Part 2 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 2-28-22


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: The Democrats Long War on Immigrants Part 2 - Intercepted - Air Date 2-17-21

The activist and writer Harsha Walia joins Intercepted to discuss the Democratic Party’s fundamental role in shaping the long arc of U.S. border policy


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on the amorality of economics


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A sign with a red background and white lettering is taped to a piece of cardboard and lies on the concrete ground; it reads “Seeking Asylum is a Human Right”.

Credit: “Advocates disrupt transfer of asylum seekers from Villawood” by Kate Ausburn, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1511_Immigration_Air_Date_9-6-22_General_-_9-6-22_19.37.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:06pm EDT

Original Air Date 8/21/2021

Today we take a look at the history of bipartisanship and appeasement in the US dating back to before the Civil War and tracking it all the way up to the current negotiations over the infrastructure bill.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Unnatural Endurance of Bipartisanship Part 1 - The Politics of Everything - Air Date 3-4-21

Joe Biden ran for president promising to “revive” the spirit of bipartisanship, put an end to factional battles, and bring Americans together after an era of painful division.

Ch. 2: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren - The New Yorker: Politics and More - Air Date 10-19-20

Biden often speaks about bipartisanship as a cherished value that he would restore to Washington, but Ocasio-Cortez is dubious.

Ch. 3: The Unnatural Endurance of Bipartisanship Part 2 - The Politics of Everything - Air Date 3-4-21

Ch. 4: Exhaustion of Bipartisanship - In The Thick - Air Date 6-25-21

Maria and Julio discuss remarks from President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the 38th annual NALEO Conference, and they get into the vice president’s visit to El Paso and the US-Mexico border.

Ch. 5: Behind the Infrastructure of the Infrastructure Bill & The Real American Oligarchy - The Majority Report with Sam Seder - Air Date 7-23-21

Sam and Emma host Ari Rabin-Havt, the former Legislative Director and Chief Policy Advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders, to discuss the prospects of the Senate bipartisan infrastructure bill.

Ch. 6: Manchin Capitol Riots Made Me MORE Bipartisan - The Young Turks - Air Date 4-9-21

In a recent interview, Senator Joe Manchin claimed that the Capitol Riots changed him, and made him double down on bipartisanship.

Ch. 7: Why Appeasement Won't Work This Time Around - On the Media - Air Date 1-8-21

White southerners called it “redemption.” To Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, founder and executive director of the African American Policy Forum, it was a catastrophe of appeasement and an object lesson in the politics of reconciliation.

Ch. 8: Keri Leigh Merritt on the New Lost Cause - CounterSpin - Air Date 1-15-21

Historians are shaking their heads as media talk about January 6 as "unprecedented"; while shocking and dispiriting, it has layers and layers of precedent that need to be learned and engaged, if we are ever to actually have a racial reckoning.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Frances Lee on why bipartisanship is irrational - Vox Conversations - Air Date 1-21-19

For most of American history, American politics has been under one-party rule. For decades, that party was the Republican Party. Then, for decades more, it was the Democratic Party.

Ch. 10: What a More Responsible Republican Party Would Look Like - The Ezra Klein Show - Air Date 3-2-21

This is the modern G.O.P.: a post-policy party obsessed with symbolic fights and curiously uninterested in the actual work of governing. But does it have to be that way?


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on the merits of taking liars at face value


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com


Air Date 8/31/2022

Today, as we wait to see if Trump will ever be indicted for any of his many, many, many crimes, we take a look at the long and illustrious history of powerful people avoiding prosecution in the United States.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Welcome to the golden age of white collar crime (with Michael Hobbes) - Pitchfork Economics - Air Date 3-10-20

HuffPost reporter and fellow Seattleite Michael Hobbes join Zach in the studio for a deep dive into his most recent article about white-collar crime.

Ch. 2: Flint Residents Outraged as Charges Dropped in Fatal Water Scandal That Poisoned Majority-Black City - Democracy Now - Air Date 5-30-22

Eight years after the deadly Flint water crisis began, the state’s Supreme Court has thrown out charges against former Governor Rick Snyder and eight other former officials for their complicity in the public health emergency.

Ch. 3: Obama Requests Immunity for War Criminal George W. Bush - The Majority Report - Air Date 8-22-13

Obama's DOJ has requested that George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, and Paul Wolfowitz be granted immunity in a case that is alleging that they violated international law with the Iraq War...

Ch. 4: Obama on Investigating Bush Crimes: "Need to Look Forward" - This Week - Air Date 1-11-09

Barack Obama on This Week, January 11, 2009

Ch. 5: How George H.W. Bush's Pardons for Iran-Contra Conspirators Set the Stage for Trump's Impunity - Democracy Now - Air Date 12-4-18

In 1992, when Bush Sr. was president, he pardoned several Iran-Contra defendants, including Caspar Weinberger, Robert McFarlane, and Elliott Abrams. We speak with Greg Grandin.

Ch. 6: Pardon Me - Reveal - Air Date 7-6-19

We tell the untold story of a pardon system that is completely broken and a pardon attorney’s office that is being ignored by the White House.

Ch. 7: Bryan Stevenson on the racial terrorism of lynching - Cape Up - Air Date 4-24-18

Bryan Stevenson wants us to confront our country’s racial terrorism and then say, ‘Never again’

Ch. 8: Justice Department Weighs Whether Or Not To Prosecute Trump - MSNBC - Air Date 8-29-22

New York Times Justice Department Reporter Katie Benner and former U.S. Attorney Harry Litman discuss how the inquiry into Trump’s handling of classified documents poses an unparalleled test for DOJ


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Restoring the Brotherhood of Union: Confederate Pardon and Amnesty Records, 1865-1877 - US National Archives - Air Date 5-21-15

Archives specialist John Deeben provides a brief legislative history of amnesty activity during and after the Civil War.

Ch. 10: The power of presidential pardons - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 12-25-20

Pardons are among the most powerful tools a president has. While pardons can be politically motivated, drawing criticism, they can also change lives.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on the nature of pardons, accountability and hurt feelings


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: The word “Accountability” is in all caps in white, cracked marblized text above a long rectangle of a computer “loading” bar. The white lines in the loading bar are being drawn in by a hand holding a marker and only fill the bar half-way. Two caution symbols fill in the rest of the bar.

Credit: “Handwriting Text Accountability Loading. Concept meaning Forecasting the future event” by Jernej Furman, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Enlarged, addition of yellow and black caution symbols and “sleeve” to the arm of the hand.

Direct download: 1510_Accountability_Air_Date_8-31-22_General_-_8-31-22_21.45.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:57pm EDT

Air Date 8/27/2022

Today, we take a look at the tensions between China and Taiwan, the tensions between China and the U.S. vis-a-vis Taiwan, the tensions between Russia, Europe and the U.S. vis-a-vis China and Taiwan and the tension between these small-minded struggles for global power and the dangers posed to the human race by nuclear weapons. 

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why China and the US are at odds over Taiwan Start Here - Al Jazeera - Air Date 11-8-21

Taiwan is caught in the middle of a tug-of-war between China and the US. What’s it all about? And where could it end up? #AJStartHere with Sandra Gathmann explains.

Ch. 2: Pelosi in Taiwan - Today, Explained - Air Date 8-2-22

China didn’t want Speaker Nancy Pelosi to visit Taiwan. Neither did the White House. Politico’s Alex Ward explains why she went anyway.

Ch. 3: U.S.-China Tensions Rise as Pelosi Vows "Ironclad" Support for Taiwan During Controversial Trip - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-3-22

The Quincy Institute's Michael Swaine and Taiwanese American journalist Brian Hioe join to discuss Pelosi's visit to Taiwan and the growing tensions between China and the US.

Ch. 4: Pelosi in Taiwan Part 2 - Today, Explained - Air Date 8-2-22

China didn’t want Speaker Nancy Pelosi to visit Taiwan. Neither did the White House. Politico’s Alex Ward explains why she went anyway.

Ch. 5: George Beebe of the Quincy Institute on the Russia-Ukraine war - The BradCast - Air Date 8-2-22

George Beebe on the impact of the tensions between the U.S. and China on Russia and the war in Ukraine.

Ch. 6: Fallout From Nancy Pelosi's Taiwan Visit - The Majority Report - Air Date 8-4-22

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi reacts to the aftermath of her visit to Taiwan, saying a big fuss was made. The Majority Report crew discusses how the United States is escalating conflict with China.

Ch. 7: U.S.-China Tensions Rise as Pelosi Vows "Ironclad" Support for Taiwan During Controversial Trip Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-3-22

The Quincy Institute's Michael Swaine and Taiwanese American journalist Brian Hioe join to discuss Pelosi's visit to Taiwan and the growing tensions between China and the US.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Hong Kong's Rewritten Histories - On the Media - Air Date 7-6-22

This fall, students in Hong Kong will learn a new version of history — one that erases the fact the region was ever a British colony. Guest Louisa Lim, author of the new book Indelible City: Dispossession and Defiance in Hong Kong,

Ch. 9: Warnings Grow over Nuclear Annihilation as Tensions Escalate Between U.S., Russia & China - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-4-22

The U.N. warned this week that humanity is "one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation" as tensions escalate globally. We speak with Ira Helfand and Zia Mian.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1509_Taiwan_Air_Date_8-26-22_General_-_8-27-22_10.46.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:20am EDT

Become a member to hear the full show and support our work!

Original Air Date: 7-8-22
Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. 

We discuss:
- Collections of Guns
- Identity and Consumerism
- Educating Worker Drones
- The Amanda Principle Revisited
- George Carlin vs Bill Maher

VoicedMails:
We define what we wear - Zach the Theologian

Passion is exploited by capital - Heather

References:
The Strange Afterlife of George Carlin

George Carlin's American Dream - HBO

BecomLeave a message at 202-999-3991

Produced by:
Jay! Tomlinson
Thanks for listening!
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft
Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft
Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com
Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_253_Sample_-_8-24-22_14.03.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:28am EDT

Air Date 8/20/2022

Today, we take a look at the history of NATO and its role in the world after the fall of the Soviet Union which has come back into focus due to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, sparking previously neutral countries to request NATO membership, all while an eye to a future causes speculation on how NATO should respond to the growing geopolitical influence of China. You got all that?

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Nato and China: A new rivalry? Part 1 - The Real Story - Air Date 10-22-21

This week in an interview with a British newspaper the Secretary General of Nato repeated his desire to widen its mandate to include China. His comments coincide with reports that Beijing has tested a hypersonic missile.

Ch. 2: The History of NATO Expansion w/ Joshua Shifrinson - American Prestige - Air Date 3-18-22

Danny and Derek speak with Joshua R. Itzkowitz Shifrinson, associate professor of international relations at Boston University, about the history of NATO expansion from 1989 until 2008.

Ch. 3: German Peace Activist Warns Finland Joining NATO Could Be Step Toward Nuclear War with Russia - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-13-22

Finland's president and prime minister say they plan to end decades of neutrality and join NATO. Sweden is also expected to seek NATO membership. The Kremlin says Russia sees the expansion of NATO on its borders as a threat.

Ch. 4: How Nato can protect Ukraine, with Anders Fogh Rasmussen - World Review from the New Statesman - Air Date 6-20-22

With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine heading towards its fifth month, Europe correspondent Ido Vock speaks to the former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

Ch. 5: Anatol Lieven on NATO Expansion & What a Ukraine Peace Settlement Could Look Like - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-30-22

The United States announced at a NATO summit in Madrid plans to build a permanent military base in Poland, as it formally invited Sweden and Finland to join the military alliance after they applied for membership.

Ch. 6: NATO and China: A new rivalry? Part 2 - The Real Story - Air Date 10-22-21

This week in an interview with a British newspaper the Secretary General of Nato repeated his desire to widen its mandate to include China. His comments coincide with reports that Beijing has tested a hypersonic missile.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Why is China supporting Russia on NATO? - The Real Story - Air Date 2-18-22

This month President Putin of Russia was the star guest at the opening of the Winter Olympics in Beijing. But his trip to China was not just about showing support for the host country.

Ch. 8: Finland and Sweden have entered the chat - Today, Explained - Air Date 5-23-22

Their admission to NATO would further isolate Russia, leaving it the only Arctic country outside the alliance.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on the systemic reasons that NATO still exists and how we should replace it


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1508_NATO_Air_Date_8-20-22_General_-_8-19-22_19.32.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:33pm EDT

Air Date 8/16/2022

Today, we take a look at the strategies underway to systematically dismantle democracy in the United States including installing Big-Lie™ believers in elected and poll-working positions, preventing state-level Supreme Courts from holding GOP-dominated state legislators to the state constitutions, and wiping out tens of thousands of career civil servants from the federal government to be replaced by right-wing extremists. 

Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Republicans Caught Planning MASSIVE Voter Fraud - David Pakman Show - Air Date 6-2-22

A mindblowing new report from Politico

Ch. 2: Republican plans to use political operatives as poll workers alarm voting rights activists - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 6-1-22

Now, reporting by POLITICO details GOP efforts on the local level to challenge and potentially overturn elections. Rick Hasen, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine and the author of "Cheap Speech" joins William Brangham to discuss.

Ch. 3: Inside Trump's Stealth Purge Plan with the Congressman Leading the Fight Against It - Beyond Politics - Air Date 7-28-22

Trump’s top allies are prepping a plan to purge the federal government. They want to remove thousands of key decision-makers and replace them with MAGA loyalists, all through an Executive Order called "Schedule F."

Ch. 4: 2024 Republican Hopefuls Support Trump Allies' Plan To Purge Government Workers - Ring of Fire - Air Date 8-4-22

Many of the possible 2024 Republican contenders have told Axios that they support the plan being put together by Trump's allies to purge career government workers and replace them with their own loyalists.

Ch. 5: Fake Electors, Real Crimes and Much More - The Bradcast - Air Date 7-26-22

Explaining the plan to elect 2020 election deniers into positions of power to influence the 2024 election.

Ch. 6: Dark Money Is Fueling Election Deniers In Secretary Of State Races - The Ring of Fire - Air Date 8-6-22

Across the country, dark money is pouring into Secretary of State races to promote election-denying candidates.

Ch. 7: Judicial Coup SCOTUS Gerrymandering Case May Let GOP State Legislatures Control Federal Elections - Democracy Now! - Air Date 7-6-22

Carolyn Shapiro says a ruling in favor of North Carolina Republicans would be "extremely problematic from the perspective of democracy."

Ch. 8: The Supreme Court Case That Could Upend U.S. Elections - All In w/ Chris Hayes - Air Date 7-5-22

"I always counsel against assuming that any one court decision is going to dramatically change the landscape. But this case is different," says Marc Elias on the Supreme Court taking up a case on state legislatures' authority over elections.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Fake Electors, Real Crimes and Much More Part 2 - The Bradcast - Air Date 7-26-22

Previously undisclosed emails between top associates and aides of Donald Trump expose how they coordinated their plot to present 'fake' electors in seven states to steal the 2020 election.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Power is the ability to act - Pat from Chicago


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on building movement power


Become a Poll/Election Worker: 

How to Be A Poll Worker Where you Live (US Election Assistance Commission)

WorkElections.org (Fair Elections Center)

Defeat MAGA Secretaries of State in Midterms:

MoveOn "US v. MAGA" Campaign

Help People Get Voter IDs:

VoteRiders


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: A voter crouches by a folding table, his head is obscured by the white voter privacy box decorated with an American flag on each side. Other tables and privacy boxes can be seen in the large building foyer. Glass entrance doors can be seen in the distance.

Credit: “Election Day 2020” by Phil Roeder, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped

Direct download: 1507_Loyalists_Air_Date_8-16-22_General_-_8-16-22_18.57.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:51pm EDT

Original Air Date 8/10/2021

Today we take a look at the mechanisms by which the legacy of White Supremacy is harmful to the health and wellbeing of individuals and society as a whole.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why Is Our Economy So … White (with Heather McGhee) - How To Citizen with Baratunde - Air Date 4-8-21

This week, author Heather McGhee breaks down the driving force of American economic exclusion via the swimming pool. Baratunde asks Heather about all she has learned traveling across the country to write her book, The Sum of Us.

Ch. 2: The Role 'Nice White Parents' Play in School Segregation - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 9-9-20

Chana Joffe-Walt, producer for This American Life and host of the new podcast Nice White Parents, and Dr. Rachel Lissy, senior Program Officer at Ramapo for Children, talk about investigating the relationship between white parents and segregation

Ch. 3: The NFL's Race-Norming Problem Is All Over Medicine - What Next - Air Date 6-7-21

The NFL recently announced it would stop using “race norming” when assessing who would receive a share of their recent $1 billing settlement for former players. The practice assumes Black players started with lower cognitive function.

Ch. 4: One Bad Algorithm Advocates Say Facial Recognition Reveals Systemic Racism in AI Technology - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-26-20

Researchers say facial recognition software is up to 100 times more likely to misidentify people of color than white people. This week, Boston voted to end its use in the city.

Ch. 5: People Like Us, Education - Hidden Brain - Air Date 6-3-19

Generations of Americans have struggled against segregation. Most of us believe in the ideal of a colorblind society. But what happens when that ideal come up against research that finds colorblindness sometimes leads to worse outcomes?


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 6: Can We Finally End School Segregation? - The New Yorker Radio Hour - Air Date 5-21-21

By many accounts, American schools are as segregated today as they were in the nineteen-sixties, in the years after Brown v. Board of Education. WNYC’s podcast “The United States of Anxiety” chronicled the efforts of one small school district.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 7: Patriotism and the culture wars - Dave from Olympia, WA


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 8: Final comments on the nature of airing dirty laundry


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Color photograph of a corner of an old public pool that has been filled in. Where there was once water is now green grass. The railing of a metal ladder is still intact, but a weed grows around its base. Blue square tiles still edge the concrete corner. 

Photo Credit: "The Memorial Pool in Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, MD, by artist Joyce J. Scott" by Graham Coreil-Allen (Pool/Park History) | License | Changes: Slightly cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1433_Structural_Racism_Air_Date_8-9-21_Members_-_8-9-21_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:03pm EDT

Air Date 8/10/2022

Today, we take a look at the origins of the European colonial land-grab, the need for the #Landback movement,  and the benefits to society and the environment in the context of the climate crisis to return stewardship of the land to native peoples.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why It’s Time To Give Native Americans Their Land Back - AJ+ - Air Date 10-9-20

For some reason, Oct. 12th is still Columbus Day in a lot of the United States. Fortunately, more and more cities and states are adopting that day as Indigenous Peoples Day

Ch. 2: Canada, it's time for Land Back - The Breach - Air Date 6-2-21

Since its inception, Canada has been stealing Indigenous lands — by the barrel of a gun, by starvation tactics & by tearing children from their families.

Ch. 3: Mark Charles: An Indigenous Liberation Theology - A People's Theology - Air Date 7-7-21

Mason chats with Mark Charles about his book, Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing, Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery. We chat all about the Doctrine of Discovery, Mark's theology of land and water, and much more.

Ch. 4: Can Indigenous People Lead the Fight Against Climate Change? - Above the Noise - Air Date 4-20-22

Indigenous communities across the globe are experts at managing and protecting land. Is it time the U.S. finally returned STOLEN parklands back to them?

Ch. 5: LandBack: The Indigenous Liberation Movement - Andrewism - Air Date 1-6-21

LandBack isn’t about deporting white people. It’s a path to a better future.

Ch. 6: What We Can Learn About #LandBack From These Native American Comedies - PBS Origins - Air Date 6-13-22

Native American representation in film and TV used to be confined to Westerns and storylines of defeat. Today, a new wave of Native American comedies, written and created by Native peoples, are taking back their narratives.

Bonus: Landback cold open - Reservation Dogs S1 E3 Uncle Brownie - Air Date 8-16-21


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Meet the native Hawaiians fighting U.S. occupation - AJ+ - Air Date 3-3-17

In 1893, armed U.S. naval forces helped American sugar plantation owners illegally overthrow Hawaii’s constitutional monarchy. 100 years later, the U.S. apologized and admitted in a resolution that Native Hawaiians had never relinquished their sovereignty

Ch. 8: Why Native Americans are buying back land that was stolen from them - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 10-16-21

From 1877 to 1934, under a range of laws and reneged-upon treaties, the U.S. government appropriated tens of millions of acres of Native American land. In recent years there has been a growing movement known as “land back” to reclaim their lands.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Definition of power and organizing - Pat from Chicago


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on why the left doesn't fight hard enough for political power


TAKE ACTION / EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

Yellowhead Institute (@Yellowhead_): "Land Back - A Yellowhead Institute Red Paper" (Includes tools and resources. Canadian-based, but broadly applicable.)

NDN Collective (@ndncollective): LandBack.org (U.S.-based)

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A red "Land Back" flag waves outside the front of a courthouse. An American flag flies above it against a blue sky at the top of the courthouse.

Credit: "A Land Back flag flies under the US Flag outside Aitkin County Courthouse in Aitkin, Minnesota" by Lorie Shaull | License CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped, increased contrast, decreased brightness

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1506_Landback_Air_Date_8-10-22_General_-_8-10-22_14.52.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:21am EDT

Air Date 8/5/2022

Today, we take a look at the politics of energy and climate in a world addicted to fossil fuels but full of people striving to push us past the tipping point toward a clean energy future

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Biden Fist Bumps A Pariah - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 7-19-22

Co-hosts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman discuss the hypocrisy of President Joe Biden's visit to Saudi Arabia, and how the Saudis are trying to buy their legitimacy through sports.

Ch. 2: This is a Big (Climate) Deal: What's in the Inflation Reduction Act Part 1 - A Matter of Degrees - Air Date 8-3-22

This episode features a live conversation co-hosted by Evergreen Action, featuring Senator Ed Markey, Representative Pramila Jayapal, and Reverend Lennox Yearwood, Jr.

Ch. 3: With Congress Unwilling to Act, Pressure Grows on Biden to Declare National Climate Emergency - Democracy Now! - Air Date 7-21-22

We speak with Jean Su, energy justice director and senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, who co-wrote a report detailing how the president can use emergency powers to address the climate crisis.

Ch. 4: Did Joe Manchin just save the planet? - Today, Explained - Air Date 8-3-22

Probably not, but he did finally compromise on the Inflation Reduction Act (née Build Back Better), which could be the most significant climate spending bill in US history. Vox’s Li Zhou and Rebecca Leber explain.

Ch. 5: This is a Big (Climate) Deal: What's in the Inflation Reduction Act Part 2 - A Matter of Degrees - Air Date 8-3-22

Ch. 6: Vivek Shandas on Climate Disruption & Heat Waves, Jamie Kalven on Laquan McDonald Coverup - Counterspin - Air Date 7-29-22

There’s a way to tell the story that connects to policy and planning, but that centers human beings. We talked about that during last year’s heat wave with Portland State University professor Vivek Shandas.

Ch. 7: What If The Fed Bought Out The Oil Industry - Ralph Nader Radio Hour - Air Date 7-18-22

Progressive economist, Robert Pollin, gives us his take on the causes and remedies of the current inflationary spiral, and what both the Fed and the Biden Administration can do about it.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Dirty World - Gaslit Nation with Andrea Chalupa and Sarah Kendzior - Air Date 7-19-22

This week we take on shady internal affairs (the enormous number of people in the Trump crime cult circle who died violent or mysterious deaths) and burning external affairs (the horrors of climate change and Joe Manchin’s role in destroying the planet).

Ch. 9: 12 Ways Biden Is Fighting Climate Change That You Haven't Heard - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 7-26-22

Progressives care about climate change and we care about the environment. So it is great to know that with Democratic leadership action is being taken to move us forward in the effort to protect ourselves from the consequences of global warming.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Response to neurodivergence episode - Bill from St. Petersburg, FL

Ch. 11: Neurodiversity - Larry


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the range of normal


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: Among a crowd of protestors, a man holds up a sign that reads “DECLARE CLIMATE EMERGENCY” in hand-painted black letters on a red background.

Credit: “United Climate Rally - Melbourne” by Matt Hrkac, Flickr | License: CC BY 2.0) | Changes: Cropped, slight increase in brightness, contrast and saturation

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1505_Climate_bill_Air_Date_8-5-22_General_-_8-5-22_19.05.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:17pm EDT

Air Date 8/2/2022

Today, we take a look at what neurodiversity is and why it should be seen as a strength and benefit to society when accommodated properly rather than a problem to be solved or, worse, ignored.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: What Exactly is Neurodiversity? - How to ADHD - Air Date 1-18-22

The neurodiversity movement has been around for some time, but what exactly is it? In this video, we talk about what the neurodiversity movement is and how it's linked to the autistic community.

Ch. 2: Adriana White - Autism and Neurodiversity: Different Does Not Mean Broken - TEDx Talks - Air Date 11-11-21

In this talk, Adriana discusses the idea of neurodiversity. Many people are labeled incorrectly because their brains are wired differently. Adriana offers awareness and an alternative way to see people as unique and valuable.

Ch. 3: Giftedness is Not Achievement with Aurora Remember Holtzman - ADHD Essentials - Air Date 12-11-21

Today, we’re talking to Aurora Remember Holtzman. Aurora is a school psychologist, neurodivergence coach, and host of the Embracing Intensity podcast. And her focus is giftedness and twice exceptionality.

Ch. 4: Creating a Neurodiversity-Affirming World - Neurodiversity Podcast - Air Date 8-10-21

Emily Kircher-Morris and Joel Schwartz talk about what it would take to create a neurodiversity-affirming world where old stereotypes and perceptions are shed.

Ch. 5: Elaine Halligan: Neurodiversity is a superpower, not a problem - TEDx Talks - Air Date 11-25-19

We have to break the stigma around mental health and children. Most of the times the signals are quite subtle and can be often overlooked by parents, so many children may be suffering behind closed doors.

Ch. 6: The Utility (or Futility) of Labels - The Neurodiversity Podcast - Air Date 7-7-22

The reality of working within a system in flux. The meaning or usefulness of the term “gifted.” The utility (or futility) of labels. The confusion of overlapping diagnoses.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Neurodivergence and Queerness with Leela Sinha - Embracing Intensity - Air Date 5-23-22

Today’s episode is a recording of our talk with Leela Sinha on the intersection of neurodivergence and gender. This is definitely not an “inside-the-box” topic.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the hyper-focus ability of ADHD


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: The neurodiversity awareness symbol - an infinity symbol (a horizontal elongated number 8) in a rainbow of overlapping colors - is against a white background.

Image Credit: “Neurodiversity Symbol” by MissLunaRose12, Wikimedia Commons | License: CC by-SA 4.0 | Changes: White background added

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1504_Neurodivergency_Air_Date_8-2-22_General_-_8-2-22_20.24.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:41pm EDT

Original Air Date 6/9/2021

Today we take a look at the motivations behind legislation being introduced in statehouses around the country to ban the teaching of Critical Race Theory, criminalize the right to protest and limit the right to vote. Now if only there were some theory we could look to to understand the complicated interconnectedness of these subtly racist ideas...

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The War Over Teaching America's Racist History in Schools - The Daily Show with Trevor Noah - Air Date 5-5-21

Most students in America are only taught about a handful of important Black Americans in history class. Here’s a look at why schools should teach students about race and why certain parents are opposed to that shift.

Ch. 2: Critical Race Theory - Past Present - Air Date 5-25-21

In this episode, Niki, Neil, and Natalia discuss the current controversy over critical race theory.

Ch. 3: Elly Page on Anti-Protest Bills - CounterSpin - Air Date 4-23-21

If the Chauvin verdict is testament to the power of protest, so too are the vigorous efforts to squelch that power. Plus: Right-wing legislators target trans kids at the state level.

Ch. 4: Not Ready For That Conversation - On The Media - Air Date 4-23-21

Tami Abdollah [@latams], national correspondent for USA Today, on how Republican-controlled legislatures across the country have been introducing bills to criminalize protests — or as they put it, to stop the rioting.

Ch. 5: GOP States Are Pushing for Stricter Penalties for Protesters - The Takeaway - Air Date 4-27-21

The Takeaway spoke with Nora Benavidez, the director of U.S. Free Expression Programs at PEN America, and Elly Page, senior legal advisor at the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, working with the U.S. Protest Law Tracker.

Ch. 6: Weaponizing Trump's Big Lie: Ari Berman on GOP's War on Democracy & Voting Rights - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-10-21

Extreme voting restrictions have advanced in several Republican-led states across the U.S., including in Florida. Mother Jones reporter Ari Berman says these efforts are an extension of former President Trump’s “big lie” about voter fraud.

Ch. 7: Is the GOP Insanity Being Driven By Trump or 40 Years of Madness? - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 6-4-21

This “Trump grip” narrative is nonsense and it needs to stop —the Republican Party has made it crystal clear with their voter suppression efforts that they no longer believe in democracy. They are doing this because they want to.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Walk Out: Texas Democrats Block Passage of Voter Suppression Bill by Leaving Capitol Ahead of Vote - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-1-21

Trey Martinez Fischer says the legislation would have “a tremendous impact” on ballot access in the state. “Just like every bad policy, Hispanics, Latinos and Asian Americans will be disproportionately impacted," "the time for a national response is now."

Ch. 9: How Corporate Media Protects Violent Cops - Carlos Maza - Air Date 6-4-20

Police departments across America have declared war on unarmed protesters. They get away with it thanks to a corporate media ecosystem that helps shield cops from criticism and discredit the people protesting police brutality.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Lesson #3 The Value Proposition


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Iconography of a person speaking into a bullhorn with an arm up and other people icons listening to represent "protesting" with a red circle with a line through it over the image.

Credit: "No protesting" by David Pursehouse | Flickr | License | Changes: Cropped, enhanced contrast, saturation and brightness

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1422_CRT_Protest_Voting_Air_Date_6-9-21_Members_-_6-9-21_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:03am EDT

Air Date 7/26/2022

Today, we take a look at recent Supreme Court rulings aside from overturning abortion rights and how all signals are that they are going full steam ahead on a conservative authoritarian deconstruction of the past 100 years of progress

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: A Supreme Court Term Like No Other - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 7-9-22

Dahlia L​​ithwick hosts Amicus’ annual term-ending breakfast table conversation, featuring Slate’s own Mark Joseph Stern, Professor Katherine Franke and Professor Nikolas Bowie. They dig into the biggest decisions of the term

Ch. 2: Judicial Coup: SCOTUS Gerrymandering Case May Let GOP State Legislatures Control Federal Elections - Democracy Now! - Air Date 7-6-22

The U.S. Supreme Court announced Thursday it will hear oral arguments in a case experts warn could be one of the greatest threats to U.S. democracy since the deadly January 6 insurrection at the Capitol. In October, the court will hear Moore v. Harper.

Ch. 3: Just how bad is the Supreme Court's EPA decision - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 6-30-22

Kate and Leah break down the "free-wheeling, free association analysis" of the Supreme Court's opinion in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency. Basically, it's bad! And not just because of the impending climate apocalypse!

Ch. 4: The Supreme Court Needs an Upgrade - What Next - Air Date 7-6-22

The Supreme Court treated its most recent term like the opening salvo in a conservative revolution, approving prayer in schools, establishing a constitutional right to conceal and carry a firearm, and eliminating the constitutional right to abortion.

Ch. 5: The Outrage Continues - In The Thick - Air Date 7-19-22

Julio is joined by Errin Haines, editor at large for The 19th, and Elie Mystal, justice correspondent and columnist for The Nation. They discuss the Supreme Court and the impact of their decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: SCOTUS Religious Extremists Rapidly Eroding Separation Of Church And State In USA - The Majority Report - Air Date 7-1-22

Writer Mark Joseph Stern joins the MR crew to talk about the recent SCOTUS opinions and rulings on Carson v Makin and Kennedy v Bremerton which continue to blur the lines between church and state.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the political philosophy that increases suffering

Bonus clip: Because of Texas abortion law, her wanted pregnancy became a medical nightmare - NPR - Air Date 7-26-22

New, untested abortion bans have made doctors unsure about treating some pregnancy complications, which has led to life-threatening delays and trapped families in a limbo of grief and helplessness.


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1503_Extreme_SCOTUS_Air_Date_7-26-22_General_-_7-26-22_18.31.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:20pm EDT

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Global Food Prices Are at A Record High - The Takeaway - Air Date 6-22-22

We speak with Ukrainian-American Anna Nagurney, Chair in Integrative Studies at the Isenberg School of Management at The University of Massachusetts - Amherst about the latest on Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian food exports.

Ch. 2: Why War in Ukraine is Causing Apocalyptic Famine - RealLifeLore - Air Date 6-30-22

Explaining why the geopolitical destabilization of the war in Ukraine may be part of Russia's plan and what actions the world can take to reduce the famine

Ch. 3: The Famine Is Coming: War in Ukraine & Climate Crisis Contribute to Food Insecurity in Somalia - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-23-22

Joining us from Mogadishu, Somalia, Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, says poorer countries in Africa aren't able to financially compete with richer countries to afford basic staples like wheat.

Ch. 4: For Bread: On capitalism's global food crisis - Prolekult - Air Date 7-2-22

An overview of the fundamental factors driving the global food crisis. The piece looks at the way fertilizer has shaped agriculture, the composition of agricultural capital, and the environmental crisis' impact on agriculture globally.

Ch. 5: Food Shortage or Economic Crisis Experts Say Poverty & Capitalism Are Real Drivers of Global Hunger - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-23-22

We speak with food systems experts Sofía Monsalve Suárez and Rachel Bezner Kerr about how to prevent a looming global food shortage.

Ch. 6: Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli: The future of the food ecosystem -- and the power of your plate - TED Talks Daily - Air Date 5-9-22

Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli lays out what it would take to build a more equitable, sustainable food system that nourishes all people and asks us to widen our perspectives before eating our next meal.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Are Food Shortages Coming to the United States? - David Pakman Show - Air Date 4-20-22

Are food shortages really coming to the United States, as some are claiming?

Ch. 8: Why War in Ukraine is Causing Apocalyptic Famine Part 2 - RealLifeLore - Air Date 6-30-22

Explaining the slow-moving famine already underway before the start of the war in Ukraine


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Requesting a Culture Wars episode - Phil from California


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on our coverage of the culture wars

Referenced:

#1479 Torturing Children and Families in the Name of Protecting Them (Trans Rights)

#1498 Pride and Prejudice

#1470 Distorting History and Banning Books is a Power Play of Exclusion

#1453 The Tea Party Too (School Board Backlash and the Dark Money Behind It)

#1501 Navigating Post-Roe America

#1374 Tell Stories, Not Myths - Columbus and the Centrality of Colonialism

#1431 Stealing Native Children and Their Future

#1492 The Great Replacements (Conspiracy vs Reality)


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Photograph of a cluster of golden wheat grains on a white surface. A small, colorful figurine of a globe rests on top of the grains.

Credit: "Globe and wheat. Global wheat shortage." by Jernej Furman, Flickr | License: CC BY 2.0 | Changes: Slightly cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1502_Famine_Air_Date_7-22-22_General_-_7-22-22_19.26.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:56pm EDT

Original Air Date 4/16/2020

Today, Amanda and I discuss a few of the aspects of life during a pandemic that's causing mental fog and affecting our work.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

MEMBERSHIP (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content)


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: We all make mistakes but we’re making a lot more of them right now

Ch. 2: The Burnout Generation

Ch. 3: Survival Mode

Ch. 4: Hidden Mental Health Toll of Coronavirus with Alisa Kriegel - WhoWhatWhy - Air Date 3-22-20

The COVID-19 pandemic is going to have a huge toll on mental health, what can we do to mitigate the damage?

Ch. 5: Soft Launch of my secret project

Ch. 6: Showing the ShowSharer™


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Support the show via Patreon

Listen on Apple Podcasts | Google PodcastsSpotify | +more

Check out the BotL iOS/Android App in the App Stores!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Review the show on Apple PodcastsStitcher and Facebook!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_203_-_4-16-20_Repost_2022.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:25am EDT

Air Date 7/13/2022

Today, we take a look at how the Supreme Court stripped abortion rights for half the country, what life will look like for those seeking abortions and what we can do both personally and politically to fight back.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Nominate us for the Podcast Awards by July 31st!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Aimee Arrambide of Avow Texas with Abortion Resources - Burn It All Down - Air Date 6-29-22

Jessica Luther talks with Aimee Arrambide who provides information and abortion resources related to the overturning of Roe V. Wade.

Ch. 2: Looking for an abortion online? Listen to this first. - There Are No Girls on the Internet - Air Date 6-28-22

Computer scientist and social media expert Dr. Jen Golbeck has been running a popular TikTok series educating people on how to be more secure while navigating abortion online.

Ch. 3: The Day 'Roe' Died - Boom! Lawyered - Air Date 6-24-22

For the first time in this country's history, an unelected majority of Supreme Court justices have taken away a fundamental constitutional right.

Ch. 4: When Pregnancy becomes Crime - This Is Hell! - Air Date 7-5-22

Writer and philosophy scholar at Cornell University, Kate Manne talks about her Substack article "Criminalizing Pregnant People: A Brief Retrospective."

Ch. 5: “A Devastating Ruling”: Law Prof. Michele Goodwin & SCOTUS Attorney Kitty Kolbert on Overturning Roe - Democracy Now! - Air Date 7-4-22

We speak with two leading legal scholars. Kathryn "Kitty" Kolbert is co-founder of the Center for Reproductive Rights

Ch. 6: Just Doing The Job They Were Put On The Court To Do - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 6-25-22

Roe v Wade has been swept away and Dahlia Lithwick is joined by Mary Ziegler, a law professor at the University of California, Davis.

Ch. 7: Rep. Ocasio-Cortez: Pres. Biden Should Forcefully Support Ending The Filibuster & Expanding SCOTUS - The Late Show with Stephen Colbert - Air Date 6-29-22

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez lays out the case for what Democrats need to do in response to the Dobbs decision


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: How The Supreme Court Killed Roe v. Wade - LegalEagle - Air Date 6-29-22

This is a sea change at the Supreme Court


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the importance of state judicial elections


TAKE ACTION!

Start Paying Attention to State Judicial Elections:

Ballotpedia: ALL State Judicial Elections 2022 (scroll down for state links & maps)

Quick Links: Texas (18 appellate | 6 supreme); Florida (28 appellate | 5 supreme); Ohio (28 appellate | 3 supreme); Lousiana (22 appellate | 1 supreme); Tennesee (24 appellate | 5 supreme) ...and more.

Your State-by-State Guide to the 2022 Supreme Court Elections (via Bolts Magazine)

Share BOTL's Twitter Thread on this Subject

EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

State Judge Elections Are About to Become Decisive for Abortion Rights (via Slate - July 6, 2022)

We Need to Reclaim State Courts From Big Money and Hateful Agendas (via TRUTHOUT - May 2019)

The Politics of Judicial Elections, 2019–20 (via Brennan Center - Jan. 25, 2022)

Gerrymandering or Creating New Courts (Dec 2021)

Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A black and white photo showing a large crowd of people protesting in front of the U.S. Supreme Court building on the day Roe v. Wade was overturned, amidst ominous dark clouds in the sky.

Credit: "2022.06.24 Roe v Wade Overturned - SCOTUS, Washington, DC USA 175 143207" by Ted Eytan, Flickr | CC BY-SA 2.0 | Changes: Slightly cropped

Direct download: 1501_Post-Roe_Air_Date_7-13-22_General_-_7-13-22_12.16.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:39am EDT

Original Air Date: 6-6-22
Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. We discuss:
- The Dawn of Everything
- Capitalism Culture
- Hit and Run Work Ethic
- Necropolitics
- W.E.B. DuBois on Colonialism
- Sacrifices of Cultural Assumptions

 

References:
The Dawn of Everything (Affiliate Link!)

Capitalism Culture

Daycare late fees no deterrent, study finds

Prosecutor: Driver In Hit-And-Run Death Left For Job Interview

What Is Necropolitics? The Political Calculation of Life and Death

We Are Not This Map

When W. E. B. Du Bois Was Un-American

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

Produced by:
Jay! Tomlinson
Thanks for listening!
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft
Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft
Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com
Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_252_Sample_-_7-8-22_20.11.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:26pm EDT

Air Date 7/4/2022

Today, for this milestone episode, I attempted to squeeze in as many clever and interesting ideas as I could and ended up writing a starter guide to understand the United States. Plus, there are jingles!

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Political Structures of Our Country

Tracking the political eras that proceeded our current situation and looking at what may come next.

Jingle 1: Strawman

Ch. 2: Progressives and Progress

Looking at a progressive perspective of the last 20 years and the process of progress itself

Jingle 2: Defer to Authority

Ch. 3: Understanding Race, Gender, Privilege and Power

Understanding why our understanding of the world is often insufficiently complicated

Jingle 3: Just Asking Questions

Ch. 4: Progressives in Politics

Tracing the fissures on the political left from Bush to Biden

Jingle 4: Manipulating Data

Ch. 5: Republican Transformation

Tracing conservatism from mid-century Republicans to 21st-century insurrectionists

Jingle 5: Appeal to Emotion

Ch. 6: Foreign/Power

Looking at various forms of power and how they play out on the international stage

Jingle 6: Passive Voice

Ch. 7: The Progress Trap

The progress traps of new technology and why we're not defending against them

Jingle 7: Clickbait

Ch. 8: Structural Thinking and the Alternative

What happens when an individualist thinker is faced with problems that only structural thinking can handle?

Jingle 8: Conspiracy Theories


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Conclusion


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

Jingles: Concept and Some Lyrics by Jay Tomlinson, Music and Most Lyrics by Jonathan Mann

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1500_Everything_Air_Date_7-4-22_General_-_7-4-22_22.10.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:46pm EDT

Original Air Date 6/19/2021

Today we take a look at the politics of obstruction in service to big donors' interests while sacrificing the ability to run a functioning democracy in the process.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: West Virginia's Robyn Kincaid on the maddening Joe Manchin - The BradCast - Air Date 6-9-21

Robyn Kincaid explains the mysteries of Manchin, the history of his family's political dynasty in the state, and key factors that may be at work in Manchin's inexplicable obstruction of Biden and the Democrats' agenda.

Ch. 2: How Kyrsten Sinema Sold Out w/ Aída Chávez - Start Making Sense - Air Date 3-31-21

The political transformation of Kyrsten Sinema, the new senator from Arizona: She’s one of the two most conservative Democrats in the Senate—but Aida Chavez explains that she started out to the left of the Party.

Ch. 3: Filibuster Helps Manchin Hide In Plain Sight w/ David Sirota - The Majority Report - Air Date 6-12-21

Breaking down the conflict-averse nature of the Democratic Party.

Ch. 4: Breaking Down President Biden's $6 Trillion 2022 Budget - The Takeaway - Air Date 5-28-21

The president's budget attempts to incorporate plans on infrastructure, housing, and healthcare, and is likely to receive conservative backlash for raising the federal deficit.

Ch. 5: What Does Joe Manchin Want? John Nichols on Filibuster Reform - Start Making Sense - Air Date 6-9-21

Congressional action could block voter law changes—but that requires filibuster reform, and Joe Manchin says he won’t vote for filibuster reform. What does Joe Manchin want? John Nichols comments.

Ch. 6: Joe Manchin Gets Candid With Billionaire Donors in Leaked Audio - Deconstructed - Air Date 6-16-21

Sen. Joe Manchin reveals his thoughts on the filibuster in a leaked Zoom call with fundraisers.

Ch. 7: Does America Have a Chance At Democracy? - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 6-12-21

When a political party is more obsessed with identity than issues - America is in trouble. Can America function as a multi-racial, ethnic, religious democracy?


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: How Kyrsten Sinema Sold Out w/ Aída Chávez Part 2 - Start Making Sense - Air Date 3-31-21

The political transformation of Kyrsten Sinema, the new senator from Arizona: She’s one of the two most conservative Democrats in the Senate—but Aida Chavez explains that she started out to the left of the Party.

Ch. 9: Filibuster Helps Manchin Hide In Plain Sight w/ David Sirota Part 2 - The Majority Report - Air Date 6-12-21

Explaining Manchin's love of being the center of attention and those who love to use him as a shield against criticism


BONUS

Ch. 10: Curation Lesson #4

FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on Bo Burnham's "Inside"


TAKE ACTION!

Pressure Manchin & Sinema via No Excuses PAC | TW: NoExcuses_PAC

Pressure Manchin via West Virginia Can’t Wait |TW: @WVCantWait

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Composite image. Photo of Sen. Kristen Sinema (D-AZ) on the left and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) on the right. More than half of their images are overlaid with red, the rest with blue. A vector image of the U.S. Capitol is in the foreground, a rope is coiled around the dome being pulled at each end out of view.

Credit: Composite image designed by Amanda Hoffman

Image 1: "Kyrsten Sinema" by Gage Skidmore, Flickr | License | Changes: Cropped with overlays

Image 2: "FAA REAUTHORIZATION LEGISLATION" by Senate Democrats, Flickr | License | Changes: Cropped with overlays

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson


Original Air Date 7/5/2019

Today we take an unflinching look at Mitch McConnell and what a bad, bad man he is for basically all of the reasons.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Money Money Money Part 1 - Embedded with Kelly McEvers and Tom Dreisbach - Air Date 6-6-19

Mitch fully embraces the 'evil' of raising money in politics, and truly believes money is free speech.

Ch. 2: Voting Machine Lobbyists Pay Mitch McConnell - The David Pakman Show - Air Date 6-13-19

Lobbyists for both major voting machine companies have started contributing to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's re-election campaign as McConnell is blocking election security bills.

Ch. 3: McConnell Admits Defeat with Cenk Uygur, John Iadarola, and Ana Kasparian - The Young Turks - Air Date 3-8-19

McConnell, a longtime opponent of campaign finance reform who battled the late Sen. McCain over the issue, made clear in December that the House proposal would never see floor time in the Senate.

Ch. 4: Money Money Money Part 2 - Embedded with Kelly McEvers and Tom Dreisbach - Air Date 6-6-19

McCain and Mitch fought each other over money in politics for years. Mitch wasn't ever going to lose, McCain saw the corruption and tried to call it out.

Ch. 5: Mitch Is the Biggest Monster In Politics - The Majority Report with Sam Seder - Air Date 3-8-19

Mitch has been packing the courts, it is monopolization of our judiciary by far right extremists / conservatives.

Ch. 6: McConnell Makes Obstruction Pledge with Cenk Uygur, Jayar Jackson, and John Iadarola - The Young Turks - Air Date 4-24-19

McConnell sees what the progressives are doing, and is dedicated to stopping them at all costs.

Ch. 7: Darth Vader Has Arrived - Embedded with Kelly McEvers and Tom Dreisbach - Air Date 6-13-19

Mitch fought endlessly to ensure corporate money in politics. Citizens United and Mitch McConnell completely overturned democracy and legalized corruption.

Ch. 8: Is Mitch McConnell the Most Evil Politician in US History with Alex Pareene - The Majority Report with Sam Seder - Air Date 4-5-19

Mitch is manipulating our judicial system - Trumps court appointments are pushing terrorism on the people. Mitch is the most productive and destructive GOP in modern history.

Ch. 9: Mitch McConnell Gets Cornered By Question with Cenk Uygur, Ira Madison and John Iadarola - The Young Turks - Air Date 5-29-19

Mitch blocked Merrick Garland under Obama, and now will indiscriminately fill any SCOTUS opening.

Ch. 10: Not A Happy Choice - Embedded with Kelly McEvers and Eric Mennel - Air Date 6-20-19

Mitch rose to fame during the Obama administration, for refusing to work with Obama on anything, which paved the way for Trump


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 11: Christians thrive on oppression - (Another) Heather

Ch. 12: The Christian Right's Persecution Boner - Ani from Florida


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 13: Final comments on why it’s safe to say that Mitch McConnell is an extortionist


TAKE ACTION! (Cut for time)

SEGMENT: Support the Fight to Oust McConnell in 2020 - Best of the Left Activism

Support End Citizens United

Support Indivisible Kentucky

Support the Ditch Mitch Fund

Support Steven Cox

Support Amy McGrath (if she announces)

Support Matt Jones (if he announces)

Researched & written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Banjo - Grey River
  • Heather - Migration
  • Lord Weasel - Molerider
  • Chrome and Wax - Ray Catcher
  • Inessential - Bayou Birds
  • Vibrant Canopy - Origami
  • Moon Bicycle Theme - American Moon Bicycle
  • Waterbourne - Algea Fields
  • Surly Bonds - Aeronaut
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Review the show on iTunes and Stitcher!

 

Direct download: 1287_Mitch_McConnel_Air_Date_7-5-19_Ad_Free_-_7-4-19_21.28_Repost2022.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:37pm EDT

Air Date 6/25/2022

Today we take a look at some of the takeaways from the hearings investigating the January 6th insurrection. Most notably: they knew, they knew, they knew, they knew from the very beginning that their fraud claims were nonsense and they pushed ahead anyway.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Jan. 6 Insurrection Understanding The Big Picture Part 1 - Fresh Air - Air Date 6-9-22

New York Times Congressional reporter Luke Broadwater says the effort to overturn the 2020 election results was a "sprawling and diffuse" one that involved local governments as well as White House insiders.

Ch. 2: January 6th Goes Primetime Part 1 - Straight White American Jesus - Air Date 6-10-22

Brad is joined by guest co-host Dr. Leah Payne. They begin by discussing the first primetime hearing of the J6 Select Committee. They then focus on Tucker Carlson's response to hearings.

Ch. 3: Special coverage of House J6 Hearing, Day 3 Part 1 - The BradCast - Air Date 6-16-22

HEATHER DIGBY offers important insights into today's hearing

Ch. 4: The Jan. 6 Insurrection Understanding The Big Picture Part 2 - Fresh Air - Air Date 6-9-22

Ch. 5: January 6th Goes Primetime Part 2 - Straight White American Jesus - Air Date 6-10-22

Ch. 6: Special coverage of House J6 Hearing, Day 3 Part 2 - The BradCast - Air Date 6-16-22

Ch. 7: Jan. 6 Hearings Point Finger at Donald Trump. But Federal Prosecutors Haven't Gone That Far. - The Intercept - Air Date 6-15-22

Investigative reporter Trevor Aaronson is joined by Margot Williams, research editor for The Intercept, and Michael Loadenthal, founder and executive director of the Prosecution Project.

Ch. 8: Generals Warn America's Democracy Is in Danger From the Inside - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 6-23-22

These retired Generals fought to defend Democracy abroad, now they are warning that America's Democracy needs to be defended from threats inside the country.

Ch. 9: Guess Which Republican Congressmembers Sought Pardons After Trying to Help Trump Subvert Vote - Democracy Now - Air Date 6-24-22

Six Republican members of Congress who supported Donald Trump's lies sought broad presidential pardons for their involvement in the campaign to discredit the election results


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 10: Top Arizona Republican Testifies He Rejected Trump Plot to Overturn Vote, Then Faced Violent Threats - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-22-22

Republican Speaker of the Arizona House "Rusty" Bowers described how he was pushed by Trump, John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani to call the Arizona Legislature back into session to investigate claimed illegal votes.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on turning anger into election action


TAKE ACTION:

Become a Poll Worker Where you Live

2022 Midterms Lay of the Land:

Remaining Midterm Primaries and Runoff Elections by Date (270toWin)

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Find SwingLeft Races in a Target State Near You

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Volunteer:

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Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 

Direct download: 1499_Jan_6_Hearings_Air_Date_6-25-22_General_-_6-25-22_20.58.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:52pm EDT

Air Date 6/22/2022

Today we take a look at the complicated evolution of Pride Month in an era of much greater LGBTQ acceptance and the simultaneous resurgence of anti-LGBTQ energy that, in many ways, mirrors the arguments of 40 years ago.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Rainbow capitalism raises questions about corporate commitments and Pride Month's purpose - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 6-30-21

Throughout the month of June, LGBTQ communities in the U.S. have been celebrating Pride in cities and states around the country. And corporate America has made itself a part of that, too, by increasingly tapping into Pride Month

Ch. 2: Anti-trans legislation - It's Been a Minute - Air Date 4-29-22

Ari discusses how this wave of law-making differs from so-called "moral panics" of past decades — and why that matters — with historian Jules Gill-Peterson, of Johns Hopkins University.

Ch. 3: Is Pride Too Commercialized? - The Takeaway - Air Date 6-15-22

Today, Pride Month gatherings are more likely to be described as parades than marches. And with rainbow flags adorning the storefronts of big corporations, it might be easy to think the struggle is over.

Ch. 4: Disney vs. Itself vs. The Right - Recode Media - Air Date 4-13-22

Within the past few months, Disney CEO Bob Chapek managed to piss off his shareholders, the LGBT community, and right-wing conservatives. Today we talk about how he did it, why it happened, and what’s next.

Ch. 5: Don't Rainbow-Wash On My Parade - What A Day - Air Date 6-2-22

June is Pride Month, the unfortunate time when many corporations claim they support LGBTQ+ people, but also support politicians who actively work against LGBTQ+ rights. It’s not a new phenomenon – even before June, for example, activists called out Disney

Ch. 6: Florida to Michigan to Missouri Hear Speeches of Gay Legislators & Allies Fighting Anti-LGBTQ Bills - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-25-22

Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law is part of a nationwide push by Republicans to score political points by attacking gay and transgender students.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Chris Southcote-Want: It’ll all come out in the rainbow wash - TEDx Talks - Air Date 11-18-21

The impact of rainbow washing and why creating inclusive and equitable cultures is the responsibility of us all.

Ch. 8: State Farm Gives Up on LGBTQ Rights - Charlotte's Web Thoughts - Air Date 5-24-22

You may have been doom-scrolling yesterday and caught the latest hysteria of anti-LGBTQ extremists in the conservative movement.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on the lessons we must relearn generation after generation


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1498_Pride_and_Prejudice_Air_Date_6-22-22_General_-_6-22-22_19.56.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:00pm EDT

Air Date 6/17/2022

Today we take a look at many intertwining realizations that are beginning to permeate society which include but are not limited to the dead-end mentality of infinite growth, the uselessness of growth past a certain point for wellbeing, and the deepening alienation being felt in response to consumerism in place of community. 

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Capitalism is the Planet’s Cancer: Operate Before it’s too Late George Monbiot - Double Down News - Air Date 1-30-20

“Infinite growth on a finite planet is a recipe for catastrophe”

Ch. 2: Degrowth: why some economists think abandoning growth is the only way to save the planet Part 1 - The Conversation Weekly - Air Date 10-28-21

Some economists have long argued that to really save ourselves from the climate crisis, we need a fundamental overhaul of the way our economies work.

Ch. 3: Degrowth: liberation from growthism - The Taxcast - Air Date 9-23-21

Naomi Fowler explores degrowth and how we liberate ourselves from ‘growthism’ with economic anthropologist Jason Hickel.

Ch. 4: Our Struggles are Your Struggles: Stories of Indigenous Resistance & Regeneration - Upstream - Air Date 3-21-22

Standing Rock was just one in a long line of battles that Indigenous peoples have been fighting against the twin forces of colonialism and capitalism since first contact.

Ch. 5: Eco-Socialist Degrowth? w/ Paul Murphy - Rupture Radio - Air Date 5-2-22

Capitalist growth is destroying our life support systems. 

Ch. 6: Jason Hickel on how degrowth will save the world (part two) - Politics Theory Other - Air Date 12-19-21

We talked about why the notion of decoupling growth from intensive resource use is ultimately unconvincing.

Ch. 7: Infinite Growth on a Finite Planet? (Tim Jackson Interview) - The David Pakman Show - Air Date 9-19-21

Tim Jackson joins David to discuss consumption, growth, macroeconomics, the modern economy, and more.

Ch. 8: Degrowth: why some economists think abandoning growth is the only way to save the planet Part 2 - The Conversation Weekly - Air Date 10-28-21


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: How We End Consumerism - Our Changing Climate - Air Date 6-4-21

How we end consumerism, explained.

Ch. 10: Jason Hickel on International Development and Post-capitalism (In Conversation) - Upstream - Air Date 5-28-20

We spoke with him about international capitalism during the pandemic and how to fundamentally move to a post-capitalist world

Ch. 11: Post Growth - Life after Capitalism (Podcast with Prof. Tim Jackson - CUSP) - Circular Metabolism Podcast - Air Date 4-28-21

We continue our quest by looking into post-growth.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the climate legislation currently in negotiations and how to win a Rivian EV


TAKE ACTION!

LAST CHANCE FOR BOLD CLIMATE LEGISLATION: Demand the Full $555 Billion in Climate Investments in the Budget Reconciliation Package and get it passed ASAP!

  • Call 202-318-1885 (the #Call4Climate number) to automatically contact both of your senators, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
  • What to say: CCAN’s email form also includes a call script.
  • Learn more about what’s in the current reconciliation bill, what we need to fight for during negotiations, and download state-by-state fact sheets on how the bill would benefit the state you live in.

SUPPORT Grassroots Climate Action: Enter the CCAN fundraiser raffle and win a Rivian Electric Truck (or a Tesla up to a Plaid Model S)!

Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: An illustration of a green Earth, with a small plant sprout growing out of it. Green arrows encircle the earth against a pale green abstract background.

Credit: Nature-Earth-Sustainability | License

Direct download: 1497_Wellness_Economy_Air_Date_6-18-22_General_-_6-17-22_17.52.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:04pm EDT

Air Date 6/15/2022

Today we take a look at the many reasons why we are experiencing a housing crisis in the US and beyond but it mostly comes down to treating housing as a commodity to be profited from rather than a basic human need or, if you're feeling radical, a basic human right.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Housing Market - If You Don't Know, Now You Know - The Daily Show - Air Date 12-8-21

Why has it become so hard to buy a home in America? If you don’t know, now you know.

Ch. 2: How Foreign Companies Are Raising Housing Prices - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 12-27-21

Should corporations be allowed to buy houses and raise the housing price in your neighborhood?

Ch. 3: John and Ana React to Bonkers Housing Story - The Damage Report - Air Date 3-12-22

The housing market has reached frightening heights which has people looking elsewhere for home buying.

Ch. 4: How Socialists Solved The Housing Crisis - The Gravel Institute - Air Date 1-29-21

Zohran Mamdani, New York State assemblyman, talks about how Austrian socialists in the 1920s and ‘30s pioneered an approach that offered better, cheaper, and safer homes for everyone.

Ch. 5: Is the Housing Bubble About to Burst Featuring Prof. Richard Wolff - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 6-1-22

What happens when the housing bubble bursts? It is easy to see when it has happened but spotting a collapse ahead of time is difficult.

Ch. 6: Eviction Rates Are Rising - The Takeaway - Air Date 5-13-22

Discussing the need for tenants to have a right to counsel in eviction proceedings

Ch. 7: Why Dems Have Abandoned Public Housing - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-9-22

The Democratic Party has no plan to address the homeless crisis the United States is facing today. One way to fix it would be to provide public housing to people. 


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Does Vienna Have the World's Best Council Housing? Swimming Pools, Private TV Channels & More - Channel 4 Documentaries - Air Date 8-8-19

George Clarke visits a council estate in Vienna and is shocked by what he finds.

Ch. 9: Short-term rental housing is hurting Ouray residents - Rocky Mountain PBS - Air Date 7-19-21

Increasing housing prices, rent, construction costs, and short-term rental (STR) properties have created an environment that fewer and fewer people are able to thrive in.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on supporting affordable housing through the Build Back Better bill


TAKE ACTION!

Demand Targeted Affordable Housing Investments Stay in Any Reconciliation Package!

- Call your Senators and Reps at 202-224-3121 and use the NLIHC Call Script (and email them)

- Use NLIHC's Advocacy Toolkit to help spread the word

- Read and share the NLIHC's Inflation Fact Sheet

- Follow @NLIHC

EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

Resurrected budget package no slam dunk as negotiations heat up (June 6th via RollCall)

Affordable housing in the US is increasingly scarce, making renters ask: Where do we go? (March 14th via The Conversation)

Housing Investments in Build Back Better Would Address Pressing Unmet Needs (Feb. 10th via Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)

A growing share of Americans say affordable housing is a major problem where they live (Jan. 18th via Pew Research Center)

Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: An illustration of a simple green house with a "$" symbol incorporated into it. The vertical line of the symbol is also the shape of the chimney and the front door. Small dollar signs flow out of the chimney, getting smaller as they go up.

Credit: Household | License

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1496_Housing_Crisis_Air_Date_6-15-22_General_-_6-15-22_11.34.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:59am EDT

Air Date 6/11/2022

Today we take a look at the reasons why Democrats lost rural America and why it's important to make gains outside urban centers through working-class coalitions and a focus on the policy failures of unchecked Republicanism.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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Check out the American Prestige podcast!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: How can Democrats win back rural America? (with Bill Hogseth) - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 1-26-21

Democrats used to win elections in rural areas, but that seems like a distant memory now. This week, Zach is joined by Bill Hogseth, a political organizer from rural Wisconsin, to talk about the difference between making promises and delivering change

Ch. 2: Can Democrats Win in Rural America? - Deconstructed - Air Date 6-4-22

Maine state Sen. Chloe Maxmin tackles one of the most pressing problems confronting the modern Democratic Party: how to reverse its decades-long backslide in rural support. Maxmin and her co-author and campaign manager Canyon Woodward join Ryan Grim

Ch. 3: How Democrats Lost Rural America w/ Anthony Flaccavento Part 1 - Jacobin Radio - Air Date 3-24-22

Anthony Flaccavento, Virginia-based farmer, author, and co-founder of the Rural-Urban Bridge Initiative, joins the Jacobin Show to discuss rural America—and why the Democrats lose so consistently in rural elections.

Ch. 4: Joe Shepherd of United Rural Democrats - The Rick Smith Show - Air Date 5-9-22

By working people. For working people. Welcome to The Rick Smith Show.

Ch. 5: How Democrats Lost Rural America w/ Anthony Flaccavento Part 2 - Jacobin Radio - Air Date 3-24-22

Anthony Flaccavento, Virginia-based farmer, author, and co-founder of the Rural-Urban Bridge Initiative, joins the Jacobin Show to discuss rural America—and why the Democrats lose so consistently in rural elections.

Ch. 6: David Pepper On Why We Need to Focus on State Capitols to Save Democracy - The Tennessee Holler Podcast - Air Date 2-9-22

Former OHIO Democratic party chair David Pepper On Why We Need to Focus on State Capitols to Save Democracy, and why we all need to do our part to lift it up.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Corporate Democrats Have a Vested Interest in Not Listening to Workers – RAI with Thomas Frank - The Real News - Air Date 9-5-17

On Reality Asserts Itself, Thomas Frank, author of “What’s the Matter with Kansas” and “Listen, Liberal”, tells host Paul Jay that the Democratic Party serves the professional class and the top 10% and no longer cares about the poor or working class.

Ch. 8: The New Democrats w/ Lily Geismer - The Dig - Air Date 6-5-22

Dan’s second episode with historian Lily Geismer, who he interviewed in 2019 about Don’t Blame Us: Suburban Liberals and the Transformation of the Democratic Party. This interview is on Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on the ignoring the middle class and poor open the door to right-wing populism of the worst sort


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: Photo of a blue, dented, and rusted mailbox on a spike leaning against an old wooden fence. Its flag is down, indicating no mail. Thick, golden tall grass grows behind it against a blue sky. 

Credit: "Rural America" by Kris Notaro, Flickr | License CC by 2.0 | Changes: Cropped, slight increase in brightness and saturation

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com


Air Date 6/8/2022

Today we take a look at progressive victories in primary elections around the country and explain why moderates are not much more than allies of conservatism.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: David Sirota: Progressives Win Key Primary Races Despite Millions Spent to Back Corporate Democrats - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-18-22

“What you’ve seen is a surprising backlash at the voter level to all of the money that flooded in,” says investigative journalist David Sirota of The Lever. “It’s been a pretty good night for progressive candidates, despite all that money.”

Ch. 2: Howie Klein of 'Down With Tyranny' on midterm primaries - The Bradcast - Air Date 5-27-22

Howie Klein delivers lively analysis on primary victories (and losses) for progressive Democrats so far in the 2022 midterm election cycle, and a preview of important races coming up in seven states in the Super Tuesday primary on June 7.

Ch. 3: Voting, Primaries and Redistricting in the South Part 1 - The Takeaway - Air Date 5-28-22

We take a look at the latest primary election results from this past week. We’re joined by Maya King, politics reporter for The New York Times, and Stephen Fowler, state and local politics reporter for Georgia Public Radio.

Ch. 4: Monday Morning Politics: Midterm Concerns and Foreign Policy - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 5-24-22

Susan Page, USA Today Washington bureau chief, talks about the latest in national politics, including recent polling on midterm issues and President Biden's statement on Taiwan.

Ch. 5: Voting, Primaries and Redistricting in the South Part 2 - The Takeaway - Air Date 5-28-22

We take a look at the latest primary election results from this past week. We’re joined by Maya King, politics reporter for The New York Times, and Stephen Fowler, state and local politics reporter for Georgia Public Radio.

Ch. 6: How "Moderates" Serve The Right - Second Thought - Air Date 12-17-21

This week we're talking about everyone's favorite grillpilled neighbor - the American "centrist" or "moderate". As much as they like to see themselves as enlightened arbiters of progress, centrists are little more than spoilers for actual progress.

Ch. 7: Progressive's Path To Victory Is Clear...If They Decide To Follow It - The Majority Report - Air Date 3-29-22

What progressives should be focusing on in the 2022 midterm elections is clear. It's economics. That's what people are worried about the most and that is what they should run on. Whether they focus on that or not is a different story.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Nina Turner: Democrats Must Decide If They Are “Party of the Corporatists or Party of the People” - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-18-22

Turner says the corporate wing of the Democratic Party seeks to consolidate the existing leadership’s power while shutting down champions of progressive policies like Medicare for All.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Should Justice Sotomayor retire this year? - Woody from Washington DC


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on the extreme measures needed to stabilize our political system


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1494_Election_primaries_Air_Date_6-8-22_General_-_6-8-22_15.48.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:03pm EDT

Original Air Date: 5-16-22

Become a member!

Connect with our Discord community!

 

Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. We discuss:

- The power of Indigenous stories

- Elite panic

- Panic at the dinner table

- Quantification and who counts

- Stoking civil war

- Fear is the heart of love

 

References:

Reddit, Ask a Historian 

Southern Living: Why Is It Rude to Eat with Your Elbows on the Table? 

Beware Prophecies of Civil War 

I will Follow You Into the Dark - Death Cab for Cutie 

 

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

 

Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_251_Sample_-_6-7-22_14.05.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:13am EDT

Air Date 6/4/2022

Today we take a look at some of the obvious steps we need to take to reduce gun violence in the United States, debunk some of the favored propaganda supporting unfettered gun ownership and explore the origins of how Gun Culture™ was invented by corporations as the frontier era need for guns began to vanish pushing them to convert guns from tools that were needed but not loved into items that were loved though no longer needed.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Igor Volsky on Ending Gun Violence - CounterSpin - Air Date 5-27-22

We revisit some conversations about gun violence and gun culture this week on the show. In March of last year we spoke with Igor Volsky, executive director of Guns Down America

Ch. 2: NRA's "Good Guy With A Gun" Theory Failed In Real Time In Uvalde - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 5-27-22

In addition to the police response being an unfathomable failure, it is also proof that the ‘good guy with a gun’ theory doesn't work.

Ch. 3: Jordan Klepper Debunks The "Good Guy with a Gun" Argument - The Daily Show - Air Date 12-11-15

Jordan Klepper sets out to determine the likelihood of another gun owner stopping an active shooter.

Ch. 4: The Second Amendment Isn't About Killing Politicians or Overthrowing Democracy - The Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 5-31-22

The far-right wants you to think the Second Amendment is about average Americans taking up arms against a tyrannical government. But none of that is true... The real history of the second amendment is far more interesting and unsettling.

Ch. 5: Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger speaking to Charlayne Hunter-Gault - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 12-16-1991

Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger speaking to Charlayne Hunter-Gault, PBS News Hours, 12/16/1991

Ch. 6: How the Gun Industry Used Marketing to Change a Culture - Letters and Politics - Air Date 8-7-19

Today, we are in conversation with Pamela Haag about American gun culture and its influence on policy and gun market. Guest: Pamela Haag is an award-winning nonfiction writer, essayist, cultural commentator, and historian.

Ch. 7: Mass Shootings: American Exceptionalism of the Worst Kind - Breaking the Sound Barrier by Amy Goodman - Air Date 5-26-22

“Together we rise,” reads the motto on a wall of the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The school serves about 600 students in the second thru fourth grades. Over ninety percent are Latinx.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Rightwing Media's Increasingly Goofy, Hyper-Militarized Non-Solutions to Mass Shootings - Citations Needed - Air Date 5-27-22

In this public News Brief, we discuss the phoned-in, cynical response by Republicans to mass shooting and how they've devolved into a dark, meta self-parody.

Ch. 9: A History of the 2nd Amendment, Gun Control, & the Rise of the NRA - Letters and Politics - Air Date 5-25-22

Guest: Robert J. Spitzer is Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Political Science Department at the State University of New York, College at Cortland. He is the author of 15 books including Guns across America: Reconciling Gun Rules and Rights.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on the bonus episode in which we explain the cultural foundations of capitalism, guns and beyond


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A pencil sketch of a larger-than-life hand gun on the shoulders of a weary man, in the image of Jesus carrying the cross. He stands in a pool of red blood.

Credit:Gun Culture” by Christopher Dombres, Flickr | Public Domain | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1493_Mass_Shootings_Air_Date_6-4-22_General_-_6-4-22_10.03.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:44am EDT

Air Date 6/1/2022

Today we take a look at the current conspiracy theory known as "The Great Replacement" which posits that a cabal of elites is conspiring to eradicate Whiteness as a culture and as a people in Europe, North America and other countries colonized by White Europeans. We also look at the history of the cabal of elites that conspired to eradicate Native peoples and culture from colonized lands in a pattern of genocide and dispossession.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Boarding Schools from Hell: Indian Residential Schools in America - Unf*cking The Republic - Air Date 5-17-22

Imagine for a moment a breaking news story that more than 500 bodies of white children were found buried in unmarked graves at some of the most prestigious boarding schools in New England…That we discovered a federal plot to steal children

Ch. 2: The “Great Replacement” Conspiracy Theory - Past Present - Air Date 5-24-22

In this episode, Neil, Niki, and Natalia discuss the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory.

Ch. 3: Nick Estes: Indian Boarding Schools Were Part of "Horrific Genocidal Process" by the U.S. - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-13-22

Nick Estes says the institutions were part of a “genocidal process” of “dispossession and theft of Indigenous people’s lands and resources.”

Ch. 4: No Lone Wolves - What Next | Daily News and Analysis - Air Date 5-18-22

A shooting Saturday at a supermarket in a predominantly-Black neighborhood in Buffalo left at least 10 people dead and three more injured. The suspected shooter left a manifesto riddled with racist ideology

Ch. 5: Haaland's Boarding School Report - Let's Talk Native with John Kane - Air Date 5-12-22

Discussing native residential schools as textbook genocide and the new, insufficient report on them.

Ch. 6: ‘Why Are We Feeding Illegal Babies?’: The Right's Response To The Formula Shortage - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 5-13-22

What’s the right-wing answer to the complicated governing issue of the nationwide baby formula shortage? Just stop feeding migrant babies.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Confronting The Raw Truth About The White Supremacist Terrorist Attack on The Black Community in Buffalo - The Chauncey DeVega Show - Air Date 5-18-22

Tim Wise counsels that we must remain persistent in the anti-racism struggle and not surrender to exhaustion or otherwise be worn down by repetition.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on those who see themselves in a demographic war for White superiority

Bonus clip: John Gibson: “Make more babies” because in "[t]wenty-five years ... the majority of the population is Hispanic" - Fox News via Media Matters - Air Date 5-12-06


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: An historic photograph from 1922 North West Territories, Canada of four Indigenous children in front of a schoolhouse holding paper letters and wearing Western formal dress - including dresses, suits, and top hats. All have serious and sad expressions.

Credit: "Children at Fort Simpson Indian Residential School holding letters that spell 'Goodbye'" by Libraries and Archives Canada, Flickr | License | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1492_Great_Replacements_Air_Date_6-1-22_General_-_6-1-22_20.00.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:17pm EDT

Air Date 5/27/2022

Today we take a look at the disruptions to society that can unfold in times of economic distress such as high inflation, price gouging, wage stagnation and income inequality as well as some policy ideas for turning things around.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript


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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Will America's Capitalists Pull Us Into War & Fascism? Featuring Richard Wolff - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 5-18-22

"Germany's capitalists drove it into WW1" Warns Richard Wolff. Could America's capitalist lead us into fascism? "Learn from history"

Ch. 2: You Are Being Lied to About Inflation - Robert Reich - Air Date 2-28-22

The underlying problem is not inflation. It’s corporate power. The entire American economy is concentrated into the hands of a few greedy, corporate giants with the power to raise prices.

Ch. 3: Prices Soar as Corporate Profiteers & Speculators Drive Inflation; It Hurts the Developing World - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-13-22

Jayati Ghosh, who says prices of essentials are soaring much higher than can be explained by oil prices and supply shortages alone, because of what she calls "feverish speculation" in financial markets and corporate profiteering.

Ch. 4: Prof. Richard Wolff Do Workers Have It Too Good Nowadays - The Zero Hour w RJ Eskow - Air Date 5-14-22

Professor Wolff joins to discuss the situation for workers in the US today.

Ch. 5: Omar Ocampo of Inequality.org on corporate billionaire greed Part 1 - The BradCast - Air Date 5-11-22

OMAR OCAMPO of the Institute for Policy Studies Program on Inequality and the Common Good explains how it happened, and what actions can and must be taken to reverse this obscene trend.

Ch. 6: David Dayen on the Baby Formula Shortage & Monopolies in the Age of Corporate Power - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-17-22

An overhaul to the system where the government subsidizes only a few formula brands can help combat the monopolization that has caused this crisis, says David Dayen, executive editor of The American Prospect.

Ch. 7: Omar Ocampo of Inequality.org on corporate billionaire greed Part 2 - The BradCast - Air Date 5-11-22

Ch. 8: How Biden’s budget proposal takes on corporate power (with Niko Lusiani) - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 5-10-22

The Biden Administration’s 2023 budget proposal includes a Billionaire Minimum Income Tax and a rewrite of stock buyback practices. Will these changes actually take effect? Niko Lusiani is the Director of Corporate Power at the Roosevelt Institute.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Elon Musk’s Billionaire Games - The Daily Show with Trevor Noah - Air Date 5-7-22

Trevor’s no finance expert, but the details of Elon Musk’s Twitter buy seem a little weird.

Ch. 10: Prof. Richard Wolff Do Workers Have It Too Good Nowadays Part 2 - The Zero Hour w RJ Eskow - Air Date 5-14-22


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on the culture of distrust of the poor


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

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Direct download: 1491_Inflation_Economics_Air_Date_5-28-22_General_-_5-27-22_15.34.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:06pm EDT

Original Air Date: 4-26-22
Today, I am talking with Amanda, Deon and Erin. We discuss:
- Libertarians proving themselves wrong
- All we ever do is tell stories
- The benefits of forgetting some stories
- The stories society tells hide the form of community that we prefer

References:
Seder DEBATES Ayn Rand Institute Libertarian Yaron Brook - The Majority Report - Air Date 7-8-21

Very Intelligent Libertarian Caller Tries To Justify Slavery - The Majority Report - Air Date 7-10-21

Excerpt from interview, MARK FERRARI interview (Behind The Scenes) - The Making of Monkey Island

Forgetting, not memory, moves us forward - Future Tense - Air Date 3-27-22

A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster by Rebecca Solnit

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

Produced by:
Jay! Tomlinson
Thanks for listening!
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft
Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 
Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 
Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_250_Sample_-_5-25-22_22.36.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:33pm EDT

Original Air Date 5/8/2021

Today we take a look at the culture that Disney has helped create and how they did it, using cuteness as a weapon to push ideas from racist stereotypes and segregation to the masterful use of hollow nods toward progressivism while reinforcing the ethics of individualism in order to give systemic injustice a pass.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Racial Politics of Disney Animals Part 1 - Popaganda from @BitchMedia - Air Date 8-28-15

Scholar, writer, and activist Walidah Imarisha is someone who’s been thinking hard about what stories Disney tells and why. She teaches a class on race and Disney films at Portland State University.

Ch. 2: 40 Acres and a Movie - Still Processing - Air Date 4-8-21

Disney owns a piece of every living person’s childhood. Now it owns Marvel Studios, too. Jenna and Wesley look at depictions of racist tropes and stereotypes in Disney’s ever-expanding catalog. The company has made recent attempts to atone for its past.

Ch. 3: The Racial Politics of Disney Animals Part 2 - Popaganda from @BitchMedia - Air Date 8-28-15

Ch. 4: Woke Disney - Lindsay Ellis - Air Date 9-30-21

Nodding to progressive ideas while just proping up capitalism is just marketing.

Ch. 5: Disneyfication of American History - American Hysteria - Air Date 1-25-21

Disney has been presenting a fairytale reality within a reality since the 1920s, a far cuter reality that mimics our reality until reality is no longer reality at all. Make sense?

Ch. 6: How Disney Ruined Culture - Wisecrack - Air Date 11-9-20

It's no surprise that Disney has an absolute stranglehold on the culture we consume today. But the joys of the Magic Kingdom aside, what if it's actually kind of really bad for art? We'll explain in this Wisecrack Edition: How Disney Ruined Culture.

Ch. 7: The (Not So) Wonderful World of Disney - It's Been a Minute with Sam Sanders - Air Date 2-16-18

Sam talks to filmmaker and activist Abigail Disney, daughter of Roy E. Disney, about her views on inequality in the U.S., corporate greed and why, despite her last name, she's become one of the more vocal and prominent critics of The Walt Disney empire.

Ch. 8: DED Talks: Why Walt Disney is Nothing Like You Think He Was - Cracked - Air Date 1-19-15

Disney tell's his story


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Disneyfication Of Cuteness - American Hysteria - Air Date 1-25-21

Disney has been presenting a fairytale reality within a reality since the 1920s, a far cuter reality that mimics our reality until reality is no longer reality at all. Make sense?

Ch. 10: Copyright: Why We Can't Have Nice Things - Wisecrack - Air Date 4-23-21

This video, like everything else in the world, is copyrighted. But what does that really mean? Copyright laws started out as a way to protect creators from having their hard work stolen, but it's turned into something else entirely.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 11: Ableism in the show - Alyson from Colorado


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on Woke Disney and Ableist language


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

SUPPORT THE SHOW

Listen Anywhere!

Check out the BotL iOS/Android App in the App Stores!

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Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1416_Disney_Air_Date_5-8-21_Members_-_5-8-21_12_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00pm EDT

Original Air Date 4/14/2021

Today we take a look at the one element of our government that, above all others, has contributed to the absolute disfunction of our democracy. The filibuster was never intended by the founders, always anti-democratic, often used for racist ends and is now being abused at a rate never before seen.

202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

MEMBERSHIP (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content)

SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Filibuster - Last Week Tonight - Air Date 9-9-19

John Oliver explains why filibusters exist, why they shouldn't, and why it's stupid to drink coffee like a cat.

Ch. 2: End the Filibuster: Calls Grow to Retire Relic of Slavery & Jim Crow to Make Senate More Democratic - Democracy Now! Air Date 1-25-21 New

President Joe Biden has promised swift action on the pandemic, the economic crisis and more, but much of his agenda hinges on whether he can get enough support in the Senate.

Ch. 3: Count How Many Lies Mitch McConnell Spews In This 1 Minute Clip - The Majority Report - Air Date 3-24-21

Mitch McConnell is on a warpath, and he's getting all his favorite lies lined up.

Ch. 4: Will Democrats Finally Kill the Filibuster Once and for All - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 1-21-21

Adam Jentleson, who served as a former senior aide to Sen. Harry Reid, joins Mehdi Hasan to explain the history of the filibuster and how, according to Jentleson, it helps conservatives override the nation's democratic system.

Ch. 5: Is Filibuster Reform Mitch McConnell's 'Kryptonite?' - Zerlina. - Air Date 3-16-21

Rep. John Yarmuth explains to Zerlina Maxwell why the rule is so important to the Senate Minority Leader, and why McConnell is “scared to death” about the possibility that Democrats will abolish it.

Ch. 6: What Is Manchin's Real Agenda w/ David Sirota - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-11-21

David Sirota explains the motivations and unseen pressures playing on Joe Manchin as he continuously pivots his position on the filibuster.

Ch. 7: Activism: Support No Excuses PAC and W.V. Cant Wait - Best of the Left - 4-14-21

Ch. 8: Now Is the Time to End the Filibuster - Breaking the Sound Barrier by Amy Goodman - Air Date 3-18-21

Amy Goodman gives a commentary explaining the need to end the filibuster.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: 'What Are We Waiting For?': Why Filibuster Reform Should Happen Sooner Than Later - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 3-19-21

Adam Jentleson, talks about why it's a good idea for Senate Democrats to reform the filibuster and pass popular legislation

Ch. 10: Reid Calls for Filibuster Reform to End Gridlock - Nevada Senator Harry Reid - Air Date 11-22-13

On the Senate floor, Senator Reid laid out why we need to reform the rules to ensure qualified presidential nominees get up-or-down votes.

Ch. 11: What Is Manchin's Real Agenda w/ David Sirota Part 2 - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-11-21


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 12: Wading into the discussion on the child tax credit - Dave from Olympia, WA


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 13: Final comments on racism and population


EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

Inside the West Virginian Movement to Push Joe Manchin to the Left (The New Republic)

Progressive PAC kick-starts search for challengers to Manchin, Sinema (Politico)

Researched & Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Cartoon version of Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell holding a chart that says "Republican Filibusters." The horizontal bar graph below the title shows an X axis starting with "88th term 1963-64" and ending with "110th term 2007-2008." The bar values range from 3 at the beginning of the time-line to "153 Projected for end of term" at the end.

Credits: "Mitch McConnell, Filibuster King" by DonkeyHotey, Flickr | License | Changes: Increased white background to make vertical image square, smudged existing shadow to extend farther, dark blue border added

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

 

Direct download: 1411_Filibuster_Air_Date_4-14-21_Members_-_4-14-21_20_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00pm EDT

Air Date 5/14/2022

Today we take a look at the options and actions still available after the Supreme Court overturns Roe for those seeking abortions and Reproductive Justice more widely. Plus, an obligatory explanation of how we got to now.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Learning from Pre-Roe to Navigate Post-Roe - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 5-5-22

Law professor and podcast host Melissa Murray, journalist and bestselling author Jessica Bruder, and Slate’s news director Susan Matthews—host of the upcoming Season 7 of Slow Burn focusing on the road to Roe v Wade

Ch. 2: Producer Sebastian on the anti-abortion right in the United States - This is Hell! - Air Date 5-5-22

Sebastian gets on his soapbox and lectures about the history of abortion rights and the anti-abortion right in the United States.

Ch. 3: Activists leap to action as expected Supreme Court attack on abortion rights comes to bear - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 5-3-22

Looking at the intertwining fights for reproductive and voting rights.

Ch. 4: Why this former anti-abortion activist regrets the movement he helped build - CNN Amanpour - Air Date 5-4-22

Frank Schaeffer once produced propaganda films that helped launch the Christian right. Now he feels regret for what he calls an 'anti-family' movement.

Ch. 5: Lindsey Shares Her Abortion Story - Serious Inquiries Only - Air Date 5-5-22

Our own Dr. Lindsey Osterman has had an abortion, does not regret it, and wants to tell us why this basic healthcare right matters not just for those in extreme circumstances. 

Ch. 6: Amy Littlefield on the fight for Abortion Rights - Start Making Sense - Air Date 5-12-22

Progressive faith communities are learning how to support reproductive justice

Ch. 7: Resisting attacks on abortion rights in the US with Emma Norton - Red Flag Radio - Air Date 5-9-22

Roz talks to socialist activist Emma Norton about the history of abortion rights, the limitations of looking to the Democrats to protect the right to choose, and the struggles that are needed to win.

Ch. 8: Roe v Wade Can't Be Saved By Your Vote Featuring David Daley - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 5-9-22

David Daley writing for the Boston Globe writes the thought-provoking article "Your Vote Won't Help Restore Abortion Rights"


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: The Turnaway Study What The Research Says About Abortion - Short Wave - Air Date 5-9-22

We turned to Dr. Diana Greene Foster, the lead researcher on the interdisciplinary team behind The Turnaway Study. For over a decade, she and her fellow researchers followed just under a thousand women who sought an abortion across 21 states.

Ch. 9: Lindsey Shares Her Abortion Story Part 2 - Serious Inquiries Only - Air Date 5-5-22

Dr. Lindsey Osterman discusses the idea of being made to carry a pregnancy to term before offering the baby for adoption.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on how to make sure your efforts to support abortion access are well spent


Get Involved/Support/Volunteer for Abortion Funds & Learn State Laws:

Twitter thread - Getting Involved with Local Abortion Funds (Read on Thread Reader)

Find your local Practical Support Organization

Abortion Access in Your State: A Quiz (with resources) (Lilith.org)

Check out the hashtag #FundAbortionBuildPower

Abortion Pills Stand to be Next Battleground in a Post-Roe America (NY Times)

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: The words "WHAT NOW?" in white are overlayed on a faded image of the U.S. Supreme Court. Below the words, is a faded portion of the top of Justice Alito's leaked draft majority opinion indicating Roe v. Wade will be struck down.

Credit: Composite design by Amanda Hoffman using images in the public domain.

 

Direct download: 1490_SCOTUS_Roe_Air_Date_5-14-22_General_-_5-13-22_18.47.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:15am EDT

Air Date 5/10/2022

Today we take a look at the impacts of media ownership on society including legacy newspapers and social media platforms owned by billionaires and the consolidation of our news and entertainment corporations through mega mergers.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Who Rules America: The Power of The Media | Propaganda - ENDEVR Documentary - Air Date 1-3-21

Who Rules America? takes a comprehensive look into the governing system of the United States of America and reveals the behind-the-scene powers that rule the nation.

Ch. 2: Billionaires Control The Media - and Its Destroying Democracy - Novara Media - Air Date 11-20-19

Billionaires control the media, and it's undermining our democracy.
The broadcast media amplify the right-wing print media meaning the political agenda is always set by, you guessed it, billionaires.

Ch. 3: How The Washington Post's New Owner Aided the CIA, Blocked WikiLeaks & Decimated Book Industry - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-7-13

The Washington Post announced on Monday the paper had been sold to Amazon.com founder and CEO Jeff Bezos for $250 million. Bezos, one of the world’s wealthiest men, now controls one of the most powerful newspapers in the country.

Ch. 4: Elon Musk, Twitter, and the History of Media Oligarchs - Past Present - Air Date 5-2-22

Niki referred to this Los Angeles Times article about the limits of Elon Musk’s “free speech absolutism.” Natalia referenced this New York Times article about billionaire investors in the press.

Ch. 5: Adam Conover's Statement to the FTC and DOJ on Harmful Media Mergers - Adam Conover - Air Date 4-28-22

I spoke before FTC Chair Lina Khan and Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust Jonathan Kanter this week about how corporate mergers are devastating working conditions, access to diverse voices, and artistic freedom in media.

Ch. 6: A Future Of Equitable Speech Terrifies Those Like Elon Musk Says Giridharadas - The ReidOut - Air Date 4-25-22

Elon Musk reaching a deal to buy Twitter for $44 billion is discussed by Anand Giridharadas. "This future in which there would actually be more abundant and equitable speech terrifies the crap out of people like Elon Musk,” Giridharadas tells Joy Reid.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: How William Randolph Hearst Made The Media - KERA's Think - Air Date 9-27-21

He was one of the wealthiest men in America – and his media empire granted him unprecedented influence. Stephen Ives joins host Krys Boyd to tell the story of William Randolph Hearst and the template he created for the media business.

Ch. 8: Is Free Speech Online Just a Myth? - What Next: TBD | Tech, power, and the future - Air Date 5-8-22

A conversation with one of the smartest First Amendment lawyers in the country.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on the propaganda of building faulty assumptions into questions


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: The front page of a newspaper is held up by a reader. The newspaper is called “The Media” and the large text headline is a quotation that reads “We Own This, Too" above black and white photos of Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Rupert Murdoch.

Credit: Composite design by Amanda Hoffman. Images include: “newspaper, world is changing”; "Jeff Bezos" by NASA Robotics Competition, Flickr (Public Domain); "Elon Musk" by Tesla Owners Club Belgium, Flickr (CC BY 2.0); "Rupert Murdoch" by Eva Rinaldi, Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0) | Changes: Cropped and black and white

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1489_Media_Ownership_Air_Date_5-10-22_General_-_5-10-22_16.59.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:08pm EDT

Air Date 5/7/2022

Today we take a look at the jockeying for position that is happening among GOP politicians, both incumbents and hopefuls, in this murky Trump/post-Trump political era in which the path to victory for Republicans is to support Trump unquestioningly while also keeping an eye on the long game for which one should attempt to out-Trump Trump to gain the support of his cultish masses.

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Local Republicans compromising voting systems in pursuit of Trump's Big Lie - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 4-29-22

GOP politicians who formerly rejected QAnon and Trumpism are now joining the choir in pursuit of power

Ch. 2: Will Trump help Ohio's Vance Advance (w/ Tom LoBianco and Kyle Kondik) - Skullduggery - Air Date 4-25-22

Next month starts a wave of primaries in Ohio, Georgia, and Pennsylvania that will provide the strongest clues yet on just how much of a hold on Republican voters that Trump still has.

Ch. 3: Greg Abbott's Border Shutdown Backfires Spectacularly - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-16-22

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has effectively shut down the US/Mexico border in his state. He did this in the name of stopping the flow of drugs and migrants into the US, but really it was a theatrical stunt to appeal to the far-right.

Ch. 4: The Trump Variants Part 1 - Some More News - Air Date 11-9-21

Here's a video about Ron DeSantis, Marjorie Taylor Green, and Matt Gaetz and how they all want to be the next Donald Trump.

Ch. 5: The Fight Between Florida and Disney - The Takeaway - Air Date 4-25-22

We speak with Carlos Ball, law professor at Rutgers University, and Nadine Smith, executive director of Equality Florida, about how what’s happening with Disney connects to other recent examples of corporations weighing in on LGBTQ issues.

Ch. 6: The Trump Variants Part 2 - Some More News - Air Date 11-9-21

How fascism starts and what happens to the masses when the authoritarian leader goes away.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: David Frum: It's Not DeSantis v Disney, it's DeSantis v Trump - The Bulwark Podcast - Air Date 4-27-22

DeSantis' anti-gay agenda is all about winning over the conservative entertainment wing


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 8: The down side of fulfilling jobs - VoicedMail from Discord Community Member


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on creating workplaces that are conducive to human needs


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Against a black background, an illustration of Donald Trump’s head, and one hand pointing straight ahead, hovers over the shape of the United States filled in with the American flag. Three large, illustrated coronavirus molecules float out in front of Trump, each one encompassing the image of a Republican politician. Smallest to largest: J.D. Vance (Senate nominee in Ohio), Marjorie Taylor Green (Congressperson in Georgia), and Ron DeSanits (Governor of Florida).

 

Credit: Composite design by Amanda Hoffman. Image layers used include: “Trump and U.S. Image”, Images of politicians all by Gage Skidmore, Flickr and Wikimedia Commons: “J.D. Vance”, “Marjorie Taylor Greene", "Ron DeSanits” | Changes: Cropped and orange filter added

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1488_GOP_Hopefulls_Post_Trump_Air_Date_5-7-22_General_-_5-7-22_16.13.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:17pm EDT

Air Date 5/4/2022

Today we take a look at the tectonic shifts in the geopolitics happening under our feet; the long, slow decline of the US empire and the neoliberal order, the role of the war in Ukraine in hastening the end of globalization, and the rise of both China in the east and of the oceans around us all.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Ukraine and an Empire's Decline - Economic Update - Air Date 4-16-22

Wolff talks with host and journalist Chris Hedges about Ukraine and the end of the US empire.

Ch. 2: A World to Win Imperialism and the Energy Crisis w/ David Wearing - Jacobin Radio - Air Date 4-1-22

Grace chats to David Wearing, post-doctoral researcher at SOAS and author of AngloArabia: Why Gulf Wealth Matters to Britain.

Ch. 3: Is the war in Ukraine ushering in a new world order? - Inside Story Al Jazeera English - Air Date 3-27-22

The new war in Europe has been described as a turning point in human history.
It's been more than a month since Russia invaded Ukraine - causing death and destruction across much of the country.

Ch. 4: “Russia & China, Together at Last”: Historian Al McCoy Predicts Ukraine War to Birth New World Order - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-21-22

President Biden reportedly warned Chinese President Xi Jinping via video call Friday that China would face “consequences” if it provided material support to Russia amid the war in Ukraine.

Ch. 5: U.S. vs. China vs. Climate Change: Alfred McCoy, plus Kristina Wong on Mutual Aid - Start Making Sense - Air Date 12-8-21

Alfred McCoy argues that American global hegemony will end around 2030 replaced by China as world leader but Chinese hegemony will last only for about 20 years and that by 2050, climate change will have brought environmental catastrophe to both countries.

Ch. 6: Climate Catastrophe, the Fall of America, and a New World Order - WhoWhatWhy - Air Date 1-14-22

A bleak but fascinating look across five continents and seven centuries points to climate and political destruction ahead.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: Oil & Disorder ft. Helen Thompson - Bungcast - Air Date 3-29-22

Helen Thompson, podcaster and professor of political economy at Cambridge and author of Disorder: Hard Times in the 21st Century, joins us to talk about the geopolitics of oil, stretching from the 1956 Suez Crisis to the Fracking Revolution of today.

Ch. 8: Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon on the End of American Hegemony - Democracy Paradox - Air Date 7-13-20

Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon are the authors of Exit from Hegemony: The Unraveling of the American Global Order. We had a 90-minute conversation on some important topics for the study of international relations.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Pyramid scheme sticker club - Alan from Connecticut


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on how people find math so hard that many pyramid schemes likely get started by accident


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1487_New_World_Order_Air_Date_5-4-22_General_-_5-4-22_16.53.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:40pm EDT

Air Date 4/29/2022

Today we take a look at the rising wave of successful unionization efforts and the corporate tactics being leveled against them, including the propaganda that surrounds the culture of labor. 

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Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: From Amazon to Starbucks, workers are rising up—and progressives need to support them at all costs Part 1 - The Real News - Air Date 4-8-22

Around the country, workers are rising up, demanding more, and winning important victories, even though the deck is stacked against them. The question is: Where will the reinforcements come from?

Ch. 2: Apple Store employee explains why he's fighting to unionize - ABC News - Air Date 4-26-22

Genius Bar technician Derrick Bowles explains why he and his coworkers are making the move to unionize their Apple Store

Ch. 3: “We Just Unionized Amazon”: How Two Best Friends Beat the Retail Giant’s Union-Busting Campaign - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-4-22

We speak with the two best friends who led a drive to organize workers at Amazon's warehouse in Staten Island, New York, and made history Friday after a majority voted to form the first Amazon union in the U.S.

Ch. 4: Unions And Strikes Are Good - Some More News - Air Date 3-30-22

Hi. In today’s episode, Cody, who is still on strike against the News Lord, discusses the importance of Unions, Co-Ops, and the future of work.

Ch. 5: Why Work Won't Love You Back - On The Media - Air Date 4-22-22

In 2021, a record-breaking number of workers quit their jobs, leading to the phenomenon deemed the "Great Resignation." To understand how that happened, it helps to unpack how work has shifted over the past several decades

Ch. 6: From Amazon to Starbucks, workers are rising up—and progressives need to support them at all costs Part 2 - The Real News - Air Date 4-8-22

Around the country, workers are rising up, demanding more, and winning important victories, even though the deck is stacked against them.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: The Holiday You May Have Missed - On The Media - Air Date 4-20-22

International Workers' Day is celebrated with rallies and protests all over the world on May 1, but it's not a big deal in the United States. Back in 2018, Brooke spoke with Donna Haverty-Stacke of Hunter College, CUNY about the American origin of May Day


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 8: Final comments on the intrinsic human needs that, when fulfilled, give meaning to any work


TAKE ACTION!

Call your members of Congress today and demand the $94 million increase in funds to The National Labor Relations Board: US Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Find Your Senator and Representative 

Learn about the NLRB

House Lawmakers Demand More Labor Board Funds As Workplace Organizing Spreads (Huffington Post)

Lawmakers Urge NLRB Budget Boost Amid 'Dramatic Increase' in Unionization (Common Dreams)

The Labor Board Is Withering Away, And That's Bad News For The Labor Movement (Huffington Post)

EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

Bernie Sanders Wants Democrats to Make Unions Their Biggest Message (Vanity Fair)

Sanders pressures Biden on Amazon unions: ‘The time for talk is over’ (Politico)

Starbucks May Soon Face Legal Consequences for Union Busting (Truthout)

The Revolt of the College-Educated Working Class (NY Times)

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE: 

Description: Amazon Labor Union logo - a black outline of an open box with three fists coming out of the top - against Amazon corporate orange. A heart encircles the logo and is surrounded by black.

Credit: Amazon Labor Union logo (artist not found upon search). Additional heart border design by Amanda Hoffman.

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1486_Labor_Organizing_Air_Date_4-29-22_General_-_4-29-22_21.04.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:28pm EDT

From critically acclaimed podcast studios Pineapple Street and Wondery comes a new 8-part series called Will Be Wild that shines a light on the human stories left out of the headlines. It goes deep into the lives of people who took part in that day, people who saw it coming, and people who fear that January 6th was just the beginning of something, not the end.

 

Follow Will Be Wild wherever you get your podcasts, or you can listen early on Amazon Music or early and ad-free by subscribing to Wondery Plus in Apple Podcasts or the Wondery app.

 

Listen Here: wondery.fm/BotL_WillBeWild

Direct download: Will_Be_Wild_Feed_Drop_4-26-22.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Air Date 4/23/2022

Today we take a look at how we got to the form of toothless liberalism we are living with today and begin to reimagine what a more muscular state apparatus could do in the face of the climate crisis.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Liberalism Revolution & The End Of History w/ Luke Savage & Rana Abdelhamid - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-7-22

Emma hosts Luke Savage, staff writer at Jacobin Magazine, to discuss his new book The Dead Center: Reflections On Liberalism And Democracy After the End Of History.

Ch. 2: Nationalizing Oil It's About Saving the World - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 4-11-22

Squeals of “socialism!” aside, we know how to do this and have done it before, repeatedly - This time it’s not just about saving our banks or fighting a war. This time, it’s about saving the world.

Ch. 3: What Happened to Our Politics After the End of History with Luke Savage Part 1 - Citations Needed - Air Date 4-13-22

Luke Savage on his collection of essays about the abandoned hopes of the Obama era, the rise of Trumpism and the inability—or unwillingness—of Liberalism to offer a moral and more just vision for the world.

Ch. 4: Should We NATIONALIZE the Oil Industry w/ Matt Bruenig & Johanna Bozuwa Part 1 - Bad Faith - Air Date 3-21-22

Matt Bruenig, returning to the podcast, is the founder of the People's Policy Project think tank. Johanna Bozuwa, Executive Director at the Climate and Community Project, has written a detailed paper on how we can actually "nationalize this."

Ch. 5: What Happened to Our Politics After the End of History with Luke Savage Part 2 - Citations Needed - Air Date 4-13-22

Ch. 6: Climate Incrementalism is the New Denial w/ Kate Aronoff - Bad Faith - Air Date 5-15-21

Tired of defeatist, nihilistic conversations about climate change? Same. That's why this week, we invited climate journalist and author of Overheated: How Capitalism Broke the Planet, Kate Aronoff.

Ch. 7: Should We NATIONALIZE the Oil Industry w/ Matt Bruenig & Johanna Bozuwa Part 2 - Bad Faith - Air Date 3-21-22


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: The Liberalism Revolution & The End Of History w/ Luke Savage & Rana Abdelhamid Part 2 - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-7-22

Emma hosts Luke Savage, staff writer at Jacobin Magazine, to discuss his new book The Dead Center: Reflections On Liberalism And Democracy After the End Of History.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Thoughts on doing psychology right - Nick from California


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on talking about psychology done wrongly... wrongly


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com


Air Date 4/20/2022

Today we take a look at the bizarre halo effect that seems to surround Elon Musk and then thoroughly puncture it by just explaining a few things about him and his companies.

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Transcript

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Check out The Politics of Everything wherever you get podcasts!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Myth Of The "Self-Made" Billionaire - Second Thought - Air Date 9-10-21

It’s no secret that Americans love to hear about billionaires. You’ll find them everywhere. They’re on the news [Bezos space launch], have their own TV shows, movies, and even make their way to elected office.

Ch. 2: Is Elon Musk a Fraud - Deconstructed - Air Date 5-14-20

Over the weekend, Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to voice his frustrations about the ongoing Covid-19 lockdown in Alameda County, California. The billionaire entrepreneur threatened that he would take his auto factory to another state

Ch. 3: Tesla SUED Over Racial Discrimination In The Workplace - The Young Turks - Air Date 2-12-22

Elon Musk and Tesla are coming under fire as the state of California is suing the company for allegedly running a “racially segregated” workplace. Black workers are reportedly concentrated in certain parts of the factory and are constantly berated

Ch. 4: Elon Musk Is Not Your Friend - Some More News - Air Date 5-10-21

Hi. Elon Musk will not save us. Sorry.

Ch. 5: Elon Musk’s Childlike Libertarian Fantasy That Government Is The Biggest Corporation - The Majority Report - Air Date 12-9-21

Billionaire memelord Elon Musk has dropped yet another batcrap Libertarian rant for his adoring fans, this time regarding the bloodthirsty government and how he hates the pesky electric vehicle subsidies that he would (and already does) benefit from.

Ch. 6: Elon Trolls the SEC - What Next: TBD | Tech, power, and the future - Air Date 4-8-22

With 9.1% ownership of Twitter—and a board seat—Elon Musk is the new master of Twitter's future. Why did the wealthiest man in the world just take over the world's most influential platform?

Ch. 7: Elon, Segregationist & Culture War in Colorado w/ Chase Woodruff - Left Reckoning - Air Date 2-23-22

The real reason Elon Musk fleed California: incredible racism and animal cruelty charges. Also, how he's giving marching orders to Texas cops.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Elon Musk Isn’t Saving Humanity w/ Manu Saadia - Tech Won't Save Us - Air Date 3-25-21

Paris Marx is joined by Manu Saadia to discuss the roots of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos’ visions for space, and why they serve the billionaires’ need for control, not the betterment of humanity.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Back on the path - Dave from Olympia, WA


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on foundational ideas that help explain politics


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1484_Elon_Musk_Billionaires_Air_Date_4-20-22_General_-_4-20-22_20.45.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:38pm EDT

Air Date 4/16/2022

Today we take a look at the coming wave of attacks on abortion and the foundational concept of privacy more broadly that are making their way to the Supreme Court for likely rubber-stamping by at least 5 of the deeply conservative current justices. Undermining the established precedent of privacy that abortion rests on can, and likely will, have ramifications far beyond reproductive rights.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Conservatives on Supreme Court Prepare to Gut Roe v. Wade as State Abortion Bans Multiply - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-24-22

“Abortion rights don’t fall within that framework of constitutional rights that the Supreme Court feels that it has an obligation to uphold,” says Imani Gandy, senior editor of law and policy for Rewire News Group.

Ch. 2: The GOP Is Now Coming For Birth Control - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 3-21-22

The more Republicans come out against the Supreme Court’s Griswold v. Connecticut ruling on contraception access, the more the public should be worried that they will lose the legal right to birth control.

Ch. 3: Fundamental Rights Doublespeak Part 1 - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 4-9-22

History proves that “unenumerated” does not equal “invented” rights. Joined by David Gans, director of the Human Rights, Civil Rights, and Citizenship Program at the Constitutional Accountability Center.

Ch. 4: Law Professor Michele Goodwin Condemns Wave of "Unprecedented & Unfathomable" Anti-Abortion Laws - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-8-22

Michele Goodwin speaks on about the links between current conflicts between state and federal law and their historic precedents, such as Brown v. Board of Education and the Fugitive Slave Acts.

Ch. 5: Legal journalist Mark Joseph Stern on SCOTUS, corruption, gerrymandering - The Bradcast - Air Date 3-30-22

MARK JOSEPH STERN, legal journalist from Slate, explains the latest news out of the US Supreme Court, beginning with the Senate confirmation hearings last week for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Joe Biden's nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ch. 6: Fundamental Rights Doublespeak Part 2 - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 4-9-22

History proves that “unenumerated” does not equal “invented” rights. Joined by David Gans, director of the Human Rights, Civil Rights, and Citizenship Program at the Constitutional Accountability Center.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: GOP Forced To Amend Bill That Would Have Legalized Child Marriage In Tennessee - All In w/ Chris Hayes - Air Date 4-6-22

“The very party that claims to be very concerned with protecting children—that’s accusing their enemies of being literal pedophiles—wrote a bill that apparently would have allowed children to get married,” says Chris Hayes.

Ch. 8: The Latest Battles over Marriage - Past Present - Air Date 4-12-22

In this episode, Neil, Niki, and Natalia discuss recent developments in the politics of sex and marriage.

Ch. 9: Fundamental Rights Doublespeak Part 3 - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 4-9-22

History proves that “unenumerated” does not equal “invented” rights. Joined by David Gans, director of the Human Rights, Civil Rights, and Citizenship Program at the Constitutional Accountability Center.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on the upcoming milestone for the show


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1483_SCOTUS_Abortion_and_More_Air_Date_4-13-22_General_-_4-16-22_21.50.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:43pm EDT

Air Date 4/13/2022

Today we take a look at the mainstreaming of crypto and NFTs by celebrity endorsements, why they're terrible by nearly any metric and why they are emblematic of our broken culture.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Line Goes Up – The Problem With NFTs - Folding Ideas - Air Date 1-21-22

If someone pitches you on a "great" Web3 project, ask them if it requires buying or selling crypto to do what they say it does.

Ch. 2: NFTS and Celebrities: A Match Made in Hell? - Wisecrack - Air Date 4-4-22

How did NFTs become the new Coca-Cola? NFTs are everywhere, nowhere more so than on the lips of celebrities. But why are celebrities getting into the world of crypto? And what can the rise of celebrities endorsing NFTs tell us about our society?

Ch. 3: Celebrities Love Cryptocurrencies - and it's lame (Feat. Ben McKenzie and Jacob Silverman) - Crypto Critics' Corner - Air Date 2-16-22

Bennett and Cas are joined by Ben McKenzie and Jacob Silverman who discuss the ideas behind their upcoming book about cryptocurrency, their issues with celebrity shilling of speculative assets, and how it really feels like corporate greed

Ch. 4: Why Scams Are Inherent To Cryptocurrency - The Majority Report w/ Sam Seder - Air Date 3-27-22

Explaining the systemic reasons why the features of crypto are so amenable to scams

Ch. 5: Can Our Climate Survive Bitcoin? - Reveal - Air Date 3-25-22

Bitcoin’s demand for electricity is so great that it’s giving new life to the dirtiest type of power plants: ones that burn coal. In Hardin, Montana, the coal-fired power plant was on the verge of shutting down until bitcoin came to town.

Ch. 6: Line Goes Up Creator Breaks Down The Problem with NFTs and Cryptocurrency - The Damage Report - Air Date 3-6-22

Crypto specialist, Dan Olson, shares his takes on NFTs and explains pieces from his insanely popular video, "Line Goes Up – The Problem With NFTs." John Iadarola and Dan Olson break it down on The Damage Report.

Ch. 7: The Crypto Grift Descends on Ukraine - Scam Economy - Air Date 3-17-22

Matt Binder breaks down how grifting cryptocurrency founders, entrepreneurs, investors, and hustlers are trying to pump their money-making schemes for a profit and generate good PR for the crypto industry under the guise of charity for Ukraine.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on how people, myself included, get scammed


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1482_Crypto_and_NFT_Air_Date_4-13-22_General_-_4-13-22_18.51.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:18pm EDT

Original Air Date: 3-15-22
Today, I am talking with Erin (not from Philly), Deon and Erin from Philly. We discuss:
- Whether or not to capitalize the B in black
- What it means when the B is capitalized
- How all of this relates to the rapid expansion of identity labels
- Why the solution to segregation and stereotypes is more segregation
- And why we think it's worth spending time talking about things like this 
 
CONNECT ON DISCORD
 
References:
 
Leave a message at 202-999-3991
 
Produced by:
Jay! Tomlinson
Thanks for listening!
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft
Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 
Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 
Review the show on Apple Podcasts!
Direct download: Bonus_Show_248_Sample_-_4-10-22_12.00.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:07pm EDT

Air Date 4/6/2022

Today we take a look at the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, what her confirmation would mean for representation on the court and what the hearing tells us about the state of our politics. 

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)

Check out Democracy Decoded where you get your podcasts!

Join our Discord community

What is Discord?


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: By Any Measure, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is Qualified - David Pakman Show - Air Date 3-24-22

By any objective measure, Joe Biden's Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, is eminently qualified to be a Supreme Court Justice

Ch. 2: Anita Hill on the Supreme Court’s Future Part 1 - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 3-12-22

The upcoming confirmation, and what it means for the court’s future​​—and for America’s future.

Ch. 3: Legal journalist Mark Joseph Stern on SCOTUS, corruption, gerrymandering - The Bradcast - Air Date 3-30-22

MARK JOSEPH STERN, legal journalist from Slate, explains the latest news out of the US Supreme Court, beginning with the Senate confirmation hearings last week for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Joe Biden's nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ch. 4: Ketanji Brown Jackson Hearing, Day Three—Celebrating Joy Amid the Nonsense - Boom! Lawyered - Air Date 3-23-22

Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy are following the lead of Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and celebrating joy in this historic nomination.

Ch. 5: You Are My Harbinger of Hope Sen. Cory Booker Defends Ketanji Brown Jackson Amid GOP Attacks - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-24-22

Speaking with legal analysts Imani Gandy and Dahlia Lithwick about Republican embrace of disinformation.

Ch. 6: Anita Hill on the Supreme Court’s Future Part 2 - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 3-12-22

The upcoming confirmation, and what it means for the court’s future​​—and for America’s future.

Ch. 7: ITT Sound Off: Saving the Supreme Court - In The Thick - Air Date 3-25-22

Elie Mystal writes in The Nation: “It was emotionally affecting to watch Jackson, a ridiculously accomplished Black woman, be forced to dance to the tune of these mediocre white senators who were trying to reduce her to a caricature.”


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: You Are My Harbinger of Hope Sen. Cory Booker Defends Ketanji Brown Jackson Amid GOP Attacks Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-24-22

Cory Booker speaks out about the hope he feels about Ketanji Brown Jackson joining the Supreme Court

Ch. 9: What It Means to See Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson This Close to the Supreme Court - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 3-26-22

Black listeners call in to talk about what it meant to see the judge up there, and react to more of Sen. Booker's words and Judge Brown Jackson's tearful reaction.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Response to Maria on puberty blockers - Sophia from Texas


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on motivated reasoning, wild guesses and edge cases


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1481_SCOTUS_Confirmation_Air_Date_4-6-22_General_-_4-6-22_19.41.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:05pm EDT

Air Date 4/2/2022

Today we take a look at the current iteration of the cynical culture wars being waged by conservative Republicans against LGBTQ kids for political gain. The current wave of anti-trans and anti-gay legislation sprouting across the country is not about protecting kids and is absolutely nothing new.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

Join our Discord community!

(What's Discord?)

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)

Check out Democracy Decoded where you get your podcasts!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Andy Greenberg - Longform - Air Date 12-11-19

Andy Greenberg is a senior writer for Wired. His new book is Sandworm. “I kind of knew I was never going to get access to Sandworm, which is the title of the book - so it was all about drawing a picture around this invisible monster.”

Ch. 2: How America’s gas got hacked - Today, Explained - Air Date 5-12-21

The largest-known ransomware attack on American energy infrastructure is driving up gas prices and creating shortages. Wired's Lily Hay Newman says Colonial Pipeline might be a turning point for cybersecurity.

Ch. 3: Is Russia at War with the West? Part 1 - The Inquiry - Air Date 11-21-18

There are currently a number of serious allegations made in the West against Russia. They include the attempted murder of the former spy Sergei Skripal on British soil; interference in the 2016 US election; the hacking of the American electricity grid.

Ch. 4: How prepared is the U.S. to fend off cyber warfare? Better at offense than defense, author says - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 8-6-18

Sanger joins Judy Woodruff to discuss the threats and realities, how the U.S. wages cyber warfare, and how prepared the U.S. is to stop attacks.

Ch. 5: Is Russia at War with the West? Part 2 - The Inquiry - Air Date 11-21-18

Ch. 6: Russia Perfected Its Cyberwarfare In Ukraine — America Could Pay The Price - Think | NBC News - Air Date 11-23-19

Russia has been practicing cyberwar in a real-life test lab — Ukraine. Andy Greenberg, author of 'Sandworm', recounts how Russia went from repeatedly shutting down Ukraine's infrastructure to unleashing worms that caused billions of dollars in damage.

Ch. 7: Is World War III Already Here? - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 1-3-22

Warfare has changed so fundamentally, that we're currently in a war we don't even recognize. It's the war that Russia, China, and other hostile foreign actors are fighting against us — weaponizing social media to undermine our faith in each other


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: The Hackers Who Took Down the Colonial Pipeline - What Next: TBD | Tech, power, and the future - Air Date 5-21-21

Last week, a hacker group called DarkSide shut down the Colonial Pipeline, which supplies 45 percent of the fuel consumed on the East Coast. Gas prices skyrocketed, people started hoarding gas, and DarkSide walked away with over $4 million in Bitcoin.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Puberty blockers experimental? - Maria in Pennsylvania


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on the deception and logical fallacies at the heart of critiques of gender affirming care


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1480_Cyber_War_Air_Date_4-1-22_General_-_4-2-22_12.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:01am EDT

Air Date 3/29/2022

Today we take a look at the current iteration of the cynical culture wars being waged by conservative Republicans against LGBTQ kids for political gain. The current wave of anti-trans and anti-gay legislation sprouting across the country is not about protecting kids and is absolutely nothing new.

Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)

Check out Democracy Decoded!

Join our Discord server!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Protecting Women and Children Is a Shield for Transphobia - At Liberty - Air Date 3-17-22

This weaponization of white womanhood and femininity has deep roots in this country’s history, and is prompting unprecedented consequences for the trans community. Nikita Shepard joins to discuss the history and what we can do about it.

Ch. 2: Andy Marra on Trans Youth Rights - CounterSpin - Air Date 3-4-22

Texas state leadership is staking a position on that, but humans everywhere are pushing back, and we talk about that with Andy Marra.

Ch. 3: The Anti-Trans Agenda (w/ Gillian Branstetter) - Know Your Enemy - Air Date 3-20-22

Matt and Sam talk to Gillian Branstetter, press secretary for the National Women’s Law Center, about the spate of anti-trans laws sweeping the country.

Ch. 4: Chase Strangio on the GOPs Push in Florida, Texas, Idaho to Eradicate Trans Youth & Trans Lives - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-9-22

We speak with Chase Strangio of the ACLU about recent anti-LGBTQ legislation in Florida, Texas, and Idaho, and pending bills in other states.

Ch. 5: Protecting Women and Children Is a Shield for Transphobia Part 2 - At Liberty - Air Date 3-17-22

Ch. 6: Don't Say Gay - Today, Explained - Air Date 3-17-22

The furor over Florida’s latest culture-war legislation has Disney, among the state’s largest employers, turning red.

Ch. 7: Behind the Transphobic Hate Campaigns (and Steven Crowder) on College Campuses in Texas (w/ Steven Monacelli) Part 1 - DOOMED - Air Date 3-23-22

Journalist Steven Monacelli joins to discuss how he actually debated Steven Crowder earlier in the day on a college campus in Texas. Why was Crowder there? Because trans people are playing sports.

Ch. 8: Protecting Women and Children Is a Shield for Transphobia Part 3 - At Liberty - Air Date 3-17-22

Ch. 9: Behind the Transphobic Hate Campaigns (and Steven Crowder) on College Campuses in Texas (w/ Steven Monacelli) Part 2 - DOOMED - Air Date 3-23-22

Ch. 10: Andy Marra on Trans Youth Rights Part 2 - CounterSpin - Air Date 3-4-22


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 11: Protecting Women and Children Is a Shield for Transphobia Part 4 - At Liberty - Air Date 3-17-22

Ch. 12: The Anti-Trans Agenda (w/ Gillian Branstetter) Part 2 - Know Your Enemy - Air Date 3-20-22


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 13: Dynamics of our political parties - Craig from Ohio


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 14: Final comments on the divides within American political parties


TAKE ACTION!

Contact your Senators to pass the Equality Act via passtheequalityact.com/act

Join Lambda Legal's #DontEraseUs campaign to fight anti-LGBTQ+ curriculum (especially if you’re a student or teacher).

EDUCATE YOURSELF

Read BOTL’s activism segment on the Equality Act from last March (*2021*) for more context 

Lambda Legal Transgender Rights Toolkit (Lambda Legal)

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


Image Description: A white protest sign is held in the air with the words “YOU WILL NOT ERASE OUR KIDS” drawn on it. The word “NOT” is underlined and colored in red. Each letter in the word “KIDS” is colored in with red, blue, yellow, and orange, respectively. A small blue sticker in the top right corner says “I [heart sign] My Trans Child”.

Credit:2018.10.22 We Won't Be Erased - Rally for Trans Rights, Washington, DC USA 06817” by Ted Eytan, Flickr | CC BY-SA 2.0 License | Changes: Cropped, slightly increased brightness, contrast, and saturation

Direct download: 1479_Anti-Trans_wave_Air_Date_3-29-22_General_-_3-29-22_20.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:16pm EDT

Air Date 3/24/2022

Today we take a look at the desperate state of refugees fleeing war, strife and climate disruption as well as the response of governments around the world that espouse liberal platitudes of humanitarianism while hardening their borders against those seeking refuge.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)

Check out Democracy Decoded wherever you get your podcasts!

Join our Discord server!

What is Discord?


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Fortress Europe: Who gets to come in? - The Real Story - Air Date 11-9-21

The European Union is at loggerheads with Belarus over the arrival of thousands of migrants. It alleges that President Lukashenko has created a deliberate crisis by facilitating the migrants' travel into Belarus and onwards to the country's borders

Ch. 2: War in Ukraine - Humane Ukrainians & A Major Refugee Crisis - The Daily Show - Air Date 3-4-22

As Russia's war on Ukraine continues, compassionate Ukrainians come to the aid of Russian soldiers, and Trevor weighs in on the implications of how European countries are welcoming refugees.

Ch. 3: Afghanistan in Freefall: Deadly U.S. Sanctions Blamed for Shocking Humanitarian Crisis - Democracy Now! - Air Date 1-14-22

As Afghanistan faces a dire humanitarian crisis, we look at how more Afghans may die from U.S. sanctions than at the hands of the Taliban. The U.S.'s attempts to block support for the new de facto government have prevented vital funding from flowing

Ch. 4: Resettlement Support and Legislative Challenges Facing Afghan Refugees - The Takeaway - Air Date 2-18-22

It’s been more than six months since the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Since the withdrawal, more than 76,000 Afghans have resettled across the U.S. We check in on resettlement efforts, the challenges facing Afghan refugees, and more

Ch. 5: Fortress Europe - Declarations: The Human Rights Podcast - Air Date 2-2-22

In this week’s episode, host Maryam Tanwir and panelist Yasmin Homer discuss the role of technology in the securitization of European borders with MEP Patrick Breyer and researcher Ainhoa Ruiz.

Ch. 6: Border walls and the climate crisis w/ Nick Buxton - This Is Hell! - Air Date 11-3-21

The Transnational Institute's Nick Buxton on the report "Global Climate Wall"

Ch. 7: Ilhan Omar on Ending War, Global Refugees, Russia Sanctions & Why More Saudi Oil Is Not the Answer - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-8-22

As the U.S. considers a ban on importing Russian oil as part of sanctions for its invasion of Ukraine, senior advisers to President Biden are reportedly planning to visit Saudi Arabia to secure more oil to make up the shortfall.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Border walls and the climate crisis w/ Nick Buxton Part 2 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 11-3-21

Discussing the connection between climate policy and the entities who stand to profit the most by fortifying against climate refugees


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on small-government conservatives' authoritarian tendencies


TAKE ACTION!

New way to help defeat fossil fuel allied politicians, no matter their party: Jane Fonda PAC

Help Refugees Around the World: 

Global Empowerment Mission

International Rescue Committee

Refugees International 

Anera (Middle East focus)

UN Refugee Agency

Doctors Without Borders

House Refugees in Your Home:

Room for Refugees (US, UK, Canada)

Refugees at Home (UK only)

EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

8 Ways to Solve the World's Refugee Crisis (Amnesty International)

The Great Climate Migration Has Begun (NYTimes, 2020)

Climate Change Refugees - the world's forgotten victims (World Economic Forum)

#AfricansinUkraine (Twitter hashtag)

Climate Change and Disaster Displacement (UNHCR)

Refugee Environmental Protection Fund (UNHCR)

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1478_Refugees_Air_Date_3-24-22_General_-_3-24-22_12.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:23am EDT

Air Date 3/19/2022

Today we take a look at the details of the planned coup that had its culmination in the form of a violent insurrection at the US Capitol Building on January 6th, 2021 as well as the ongoing efforts to undermine and dismantle the structures of our election system. 

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)

Discord Explained

Join our Discord community!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: January 6th Planning Was WAY More Detailed Than We Thought - The Majority Report - Air Date 2-5-22

In some ways, the attack on the Capitol looked haphazard but the answer is far scarier. There was much more planning by the group involved.

Ch. 2: Columnist Will Bunch: Trump Came Much Closer to Pulling Off a January 6 Coup Than People Realize - Democracy Now! - Air Date 1-5-22

National columnist Will Bunch says there is growing evidence that links Trump and his inner circle to the Capitol attack.

Ch. 3: Pence lawyer at center of Trump pressure tactic spends hours with January 6th Committee - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 2-2-22

Michael Schmidt, Washington correspondent for the New York Times; David Wilson.

Ch. 4: Reform the Insurrection Act: Former Pentagon Adviser Says Trump Almost Used It to Subvert Election - Democracy Now! - Air Date 1-6-22

Former Pentagon adviser Ryan Goodman says former President Trump could have used the Insurrection Act to hold onto power onJanuary 6, 2021.

Ch. 5: Fake Trump electors, Trump White House official receive January 6th Committee subpoenas - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 1-29-22

Rep. Pete Aguilar, member of the January 6th Committee

Ch. 6: Former FL county election chief Ion Sancho on MAGA threats to election officials - The BradCast - Air Date 3-15-22

It took decades to build our system of non-partisan, professional election administration, but the entire system is now under persistent attack by Trump's MAGA Mob.

Ch. 7: Trump flouting of Presidential Records Act leaves National Archives scrambling - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 2-7-22

Michael Schmidt, Washington correspondent for the New York Times

Ch. 8: Trump Facing CRIMINAL Charges Per Trump Riot Committee - David Pakman Show - Air Date 3-3-22

The January 6 Trump riot committee has released a list of possible criminal charges committed by former President Donald Trump.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Trump flouting of Presidential Records Act leaves National Archives scrambling Part 2 - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 2-7-22

Ch. 10: Former FL county election chief Ion Sancho on MAGA threats to election officials Part 2 - The BradCast - Air Date 3-15-22


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 11: Thoughts on the Ukraine context episode - Alan from Connecticut


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on our new Discord community server and how to join


TAKE ACTION!

Become a Poll Worker or Election Official: WorkElections.org

EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

Expert fears partisan actors may replace election workers who quit over threats (PBS News Hour)

1 in 5 local election officials say they're likely to quit before 2024 (NPR)

Researchers warn that Christian nationalists are becoming more radical and are targeting voting (Washington Post)

One in five U.S. election workers may quit amid threats, politics (Reuters)

Local election officials are exhausted, under threat and thinking about quitting (Politico)

Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Black and white photo from a rally. A hand holds up a sign that says "Remember Jan. 6th, Senators. Protect Our Democracy Now".

Credit: "January 6th Vigil for Democracy" by Becker1999, Wikimedia Commons | License | Changes: Cropped

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1477_Jan_6_Coup_Air_Date_3-19-22_General_-_3-19-22_14.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:18am EDT

Air Date 3/16/2022

Today we take a look at the dynamics of mis- and disinformation as well as the history of those, primarily Russia, who are actively using it as a weapon of information warfare against the US, The West, and democracies around the world.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content)


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Are you Disinformed or Misinformed? - Harvard Data Science Review Podcast - Air Date 6-17-21

Harvard Data Science Review digs into the world of disinformation and misinformation, and the difference between them.

Ch. 2: Moving beyond news deserts and misinformation - Democracy Works - Air Date 2-14-22

Victor Pickard is the C. Edwin Baker Professor of Media Policy and Political Economy at the University of Pennsylvania and author of Democracy Without Journalism? 

Ch. 3: Why "Cheap Speech" Threatens Democracy - Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick - Air Date 3-5-22

Dahlia talks to Rick Hasen about his new book Cheap Speech: How Disinformation Poisons Our Politics–and How to Cure It.

Ch. 4: The Firehose of Falsehood Effect - The Propwatch Project - Air Date 4-4-21

Dr. Christopher Paul, senior social scientist of the Pardee RAND Graduate School, discusses his seminal work on the "Firehose of Falsehood" propaganda model.

Ch. 5: The long history of Russian disinformation targeting the U.S. - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 11-22-18

From Pizzagate to George Soros conspiracies, “fake news” has become a noxious presence in public discourse, especially since the 2016 presidential election.

Ch. 6: Post-Truth: Lee C. McIntyre - Future Hindsight - Air Date 5-14-20

Authoritarians use post-truth to corrupt our faith in the truth. The end goal is not to make citizens believe lies, but to make them so cynical and uncertain, they think they can never know the truth.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: Inside Estonia's approach in combating Russian disinformation - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 1-15-22

Russian disinformation is rife in countries formerly ruled from Moscow. Some ex-Soviet states have tried to suppress it altogether by banning Russian television stations and even limiting the use of the Russian language on their own domestic channels.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Seeking power from the right and left - Alex from Maryland Old


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on avoiding the nihilism strategy of the Underpants Gnomes


TAKE ACTION!

Media Literacy Now - Advocate for U.S. Media Literacy Bills at State Level (See Existing Media Literacy Bills and Laws)

Tools to Fight Disinformation:

FactCheck.Org

List: Tools That Fight Disinformation Online (RAND.org)

InVID - Browser plug in to help identify and verify shared videos and images

Hamilton 2.0 Dashboard - War in Ukraine (Disinformation tracker)

Orgs Fighting Disinformation:

Project Origin

Content Authenticity Initiative

Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity

News Literacy Project

Alliance for Securing Democracy

EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

Short Docuseries: Operation InfeKtion (New York Times)

Book: “The Misinformation Age: How False Beliefs Spread” by Calin O’Connor and James Owen Weatherall

Video Series: Crash Course Media Literacy

Training: First Draft News - Training

Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: In graphic form, the word "TRUTH" is angled and textured in red. A magnifying glass hovers over most of the letter "U" and the word "LIES" can be seen repeated in rows through the circular glass.

Credit: Original design on Pixabay / Changes: angled, text color, background color / Final by Amanda Hoffman

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1476_Disinformation_Air_Date_3-16-22_General_-_3-16-22_19.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:55pm EDT

Original Air Date: 2-8-22
 
Today, I am talking with Amanda, Erin and Deon. We discuss:
- Tragic Optimism
- Don't Look Up
- Simulacra and Simulation
- That Funny Feeling
 
References:
 
Leave a message at 202-999-3991
 
Produced by:
Jay! Tomlinson
Thanks for listening!
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft
Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft 
Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 
Review the show on Apple Podcasts!
Direct download: Bonus_Show_246_Sample.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:40pm EDT

Air Date 3/11/2022

Today we take a look at the intertwining oil interests that underlie many of the decisions about Russia's invasion of Ukraine and how others are responding to it. It is a tangled mess that the US, Europe and other nations are currently attempting to extract themselves from but it will be a long process.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript


Bombas.com/Best Shop for 20% off!


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why Gas Costs So Much: Trump, Saudi Arabia & Putin Exposed! - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 3-9-22

Gas prices are going up, but it's not Biden's fault. Thom exposes Trump, Saudi Arabia and Putin's connection to raise gas prices.

Ch. 2: Russian Invasion Shows Risks of Addiction to Fossil Fuels; Will Biden Fund Shift to Renewables - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-9-22

We speak to energy and climate investigative reporter Antonia Juhasz, author of "The Tyranny of Oil: The World's Most Powerful Industry," about growing calls for a green energy revolution amid the climate crisis and rising prices for fossil fuels.

Ch. 3: Russian oil and gas; Republican election fraud and insurrection Part 1 - The BradCast - Air Date 3-8-22

As the horrors of Russia's war on Ukraine continue, we continue focusing on efforts to counter it. Shell Oil apologizes for getting caught secretly buying cheap Russian oil.

Ch. 4: Joe Biden Can End High US Gas Prices By Nationalizing The Oil Industry - The Majority Report - Air Date 3-9-22

The MR crew discusses how increasing oil production domestically is being talked about as a solution, but no one is talking about the importance of nationalizing energy.

Ch. 5: Russian oil and gas; Republican election fraud and insurrection Part 2 - The BradCast - Air Date 3-8-22

Ch. 6: Banning Russian oil - Today, Explained - Air Date 3-8-22

Gas prices hit a record high in the United States today. Then the White House put an embargo on Russian oil. The Atlantic's Robinson Meyer explains.

Ch. 7: Withdrawing from Afghanistan and the Impact of Global Corruption with Sarah Chayes - Why is This Happening - Air Date 8-17-21

The prolific author has said that kleptocratic actions are an “existential threat facing our generation.”


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8:  Peak Oil- It's a Crude, Crude World. - Unf*cking The Republic (UNFTR) - Air Date 2-5-22

We tie in good ol’ Milton Friedman again to discuss how trading this ubiquitous fuel went from commodity to casino.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 9: Final comments on the rising demand for clean energy action in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine


TAKE ACTION!

Find Your Local:

350.org Chapters

Extinction Rebellion Chapters

Sunrise Movement Chapters

Mothers Out Front* (*not just for mothers) Chapters

League of Conservation Voters Affiliates

Local Politics:

Find Your State Legislators and Write and Call Them

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EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

Newsletter: Heat Pumps for Peace and Freedom (Bill McKibben on Substack)

Editorial: What’s better than a ban on Russian oil imports? Ending our dependence on fossil fuels (LA Times)

Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Close up of a white sign that says "War Sized Climate Action Now!" in black, military-style text. To the right, a silhouette of the Iwo Jima memorial shows soldiers raising a wind turbine (instead of a flag).

Credit: "CleanEnergyMarch-5-1470274" by Mark Dixon, Flickr | CC by 2.0 License | Changes: Cropped, slight increase in brightness and contrast

Direct download: 1475_Russia_Ukraine_War_Oil_Air_Date_3-11-22_General_-_3-11-22_17.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:14pm EDT

Original Air Date 3/10/2021

Today we take a look at the current goings-on around the world regarding our foreign policy under the new but not-so-new-feeling leadership of Joe Biden. We check in on Iran, Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and a couple of assorted arms sales to authoritarian leaders who support our foreign policy.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Biden Administration Should Strike a Deal with Iran - World Class - Air Date 2-18-21

Abbas Milani — an expert on U.S.-Iran relations — discusses the Iranian economy, the future of Iran’s leadership, and what a potential nuclear deal could mean for the U.S.

Ch. 2: Biden "Illegally" Bombs Iranian-Backed Militias in Syria, Jeopardizing Nuclear Talks with Tehran - Democracy Now! - Air Date 3-1-21

The Biden administration is facing intense criticism from U.S. progressives after carrying out airstrikes on eastern Syria said to be targeting Iranian-backed militia groups.

Ch. 3: Biden's First Act Of War Hits 3 Countries - Empire Files - Air Date 3-3-21

Biden's Feb. 26 strike in Syria was a crime, and risks major war with three countries. Abby Martin explains.

Ch. 4: Whither the Antiwar Left - Empire Has No Clothes - Air Date 2-25-21

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed the war in Afghanistan and why it's lost. We also talked with journalist James Carden about the state of the antiwar left and whether Joe Biden might do some good on foreign policy.

Ch. 5: What's Next For The War In Afghanistan - NPR Fresh Air - Air Date 3-4-21

America's 19-year war in Afghanistan may soon be coming to an end. The Trump administration negotiated a deal with the Taliban, in which the U.S. agreed to withdraw all its troops by May 1. But the Afghan government was not included in those talks.

Ch. 6: Can Joe Biden Save Yemen - Empire Has No Clothes - Air Date 2-11-21

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed Joe Biden's announcement that he would withdraw all American support for the war in Yemen.

Ch. 7: Did Jen Psaki Just Confirm That Biden's Afraid of MBS - The Majority Report with Sam Seder - Air Date 3-4-21

Joe Biden once vowed to hold Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's murder. Now, it looks like he's letting him off the hook. Emma Vigeland and the Majority Report crew discuss this.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: The future of the US-Saudi relationship (ft. Sen. Chris Murphy) - Worldly - Air Date 3-4-21

Zack, Jenn, and Alex debate whether the US should continue to treat Saudi Arabia as a close partner given its atrocious human rights abuses and the declining US dependence on Middle Eastern oil.

Ch. 9: Biden Sells Missiles to Fascists + US Base Destroys Ancient Coral Reef - Empire Files - Air Date 2-19-21

Abby Martin covers Biden's first arms deals to major human rights abusers Chile & Egypt; another US military base in Okinawa, opposed by a majority of residents, threatens unique biodiversity; militia puts US at crossroads of a new Iraq war

Ch. 10: Can Biden remake Trump's Middle East - The Bunker - Air Date 11-25-20

From Israel to Iran, Donald Trump thought he could reset the Middle East. His fixation on the region defined the last four years of US foreign policy. But what will Biden’s presidency mean for America and the Middle East?


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 11: Introduction to our caste system - Roy from Washington State


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on Biden attempting to talk about Afghanistan and China

BONUS CLIPS:

CNN Official interview Joe Biden on Afghanistan 'Making progress' - CNN - Air Date 11-28-10

What Biden Said About Uyghurs - CNN Presidential Town Hall


Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1403_Biden_Foreign_Policy_Air_Date_3-9-21_Members_-_3-9-21_22_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:26pm EDT

Air Date 3/4/2022

Today we take a look at the history of Ukraine as a Soviet state, war-torn state, famished state, westernizing state, energy-exploring state, annexed state, and invaded state. We also look at the role of the west and NATO as well as Putin's history and possible motivations.

Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The real and imagined history of Ukraine - Today Explained - Air Date 2-25-22

Vladimir Putin says Ukraine isn’t a country. He’s wrong.

Ch. 2: Timothy Snyder ─ Ukraine and Russia in a Fracturing Europe - Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs - Air Date 5-3-16

Timothy Snyder is the Bird White Housum Professor of History at Yale University, specializing in the history of central and eastern Europe.

Ch. 3: From spy to president: The rise of Vladimir Putin - Vox - Air Date 3-23-17

Putin’s intent on pushing back against the Western world order... and it appears to be working.

Ch. 4: What Russia And Putin Actually Want With Ukraine - AJ+ - Air Date 2-17-22

Troops are being deployed, harsh words have been said, and there is potential for an all-out war.

Ch. 5: Journalist Andrew Cockburn & Historian Timothy Snyder on Ukraine, Russia, NATO Expansion & Sanctions - Democracy Now - Air Date 3-1-22

Snyder says the focus on NATO ignores the agency of leaders in Ukraine and elsewhere who have the right to seek their own arrangements.

Ch. 6: Is the West to Blame for Russia's Invasion? (no) - TLDR News - Air Date 2-27-22

Some have suggested that the West is the blame for Russia's invasion into Ukraine, we'll explain that argument and why it's fundamentally wrong.

Ch. 7: Why Russia is Invading Ukraine - RealLifeLore - Air Date 2-26-22

Explaining the oil interests in Ukraine that may be a motivating factor to Russia.

Ch. 8: America, Russia, and Ukraine's Far-Right - The Gravel Institute - Air Date 2-18-22

This video is about American funding for the Azov Battalion. It explicitly condemns Russian propaganda that Ukraine is a "neo-Nazi country."

Ch. 9: Putin's Bogus Claim To "Denazify" Ukraine - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 2-25-22

Steven Pifer, the former ambassador to Ukraine under Bill Clinton, and Jason Stanley, author of “How Fascism Works,” join Mehdi Hasan to discuss the Russian propaganda narrative.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 10: A Young Country With An Old History - WorldAffairs - Air Date 1-31-22

Historians Katherine Younger and Emily Channell-Justice tell Ray Suarez the story of modern Ukraine, and why embracing Western values has made Ukraine a threat to Vladimir Putin.

Ch. 11: Ukraine: Questions for the Anti-War Movement - Empire Files - Air Date 2-27-22

An analysis of Putin's anti-communist speech

Ch. 12: The Crimean War, Putin, and the War Over Reality - The Muckrake Podcast - Air Date 3-1-22

Jared Yates Sexton traces how the New World Order conspiracy theory led to this mess.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 13: Final comments on why you should probably listen to all that again


TAKE ACTION!

Ways to Help Ukrainians, Protest War, Etc. (*Please always do your own research before giving*): 

CODEPINK Global Day of Action, Sunday, March 6th: "Stop the War in Ukraine. Russian Troops Out. No to NATO expansion." (CODEPINK)

Support Ukraine's Independent Media Organizations and Journalists (Campaign endorsed by The Kyiv Independent)

Here’s How You Can Help LGBTQ+ and Black Ukrainian Refugees (Self)

25 Meaningful Ways You Can Help Ukraine (GlobalCitizen)

Linkt.ree of Resources/Ways to Help Ukrainians Curated by the nonprofit @RazomforUkraine (Razom for Ukraine)

Curated by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 


SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A blue and yellow Ukrainian flag is waved in the air in front of a cloudy sky above a protest to show solidarity with Ukrainians. 

Credit: Amanda Hoffman, February 2022 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Direct download: 1474_Ukraine_context_Air_Date_3-5-22_General_-_3-4-22_19.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:00pm EDT

Air Date 3/2/2022

Today we take a look at the not-so-slow transformation of Republicans from a Bush/McCain/Romney party to a Trump/DeSantis/Putin party complete with cultish devotion and a dependence on a near-total dismissal of truth replaced by propaganda.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Trump Victim Act Follows Authoritarian Playbook Drawing In Fanatical Supporters - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 1-8-22

Ruth Ben-Ghiat, professor of history at NYU and author of "Strongmen," talks about right-wing assault on democracy in the United States and familiar patterns between the Trump movement and other authoritarian movements around the world an in history.

Ch. 2: Legitimate Political Discourse - Political Gabfest - Air Date 2-10-22

The GOP embrace of Jan. 6 rioters

Ch. 3: The NYT’s Jeremy Peters on How the GOP Went Batshit Crazy - The Al Franken Podcast - Air Date 2-27-22

Explaining the seeming anomaly of Trump in the line of Republican presidential nominees

Ch. 4: Republicans in complete disarray - The Bradcast w/ Brad Friedman - Air Date 2-7-22

Trump's Republican National Committee labeled the violent, deadly Capitol Insurrection 'legitimate political discourse, and censured conservative Rep. Liz Cheney and Rep. Adam Kinzinger for participating in the bipartisan House Jan. 6 Select Committee.

Ch. 5: Rick Scott: The Man With The Plan? - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 2-23-22

What does the Republican Party really stand for — besides attacking liberals? One Republican senator is giving a masterclass in his plan to save America. David Jolly joins to discuss.

Ch. 6: How Vladimir Putin won Republicans' approval - Vox - Air Date 1-13-17

He's an authoritarian strongman, and he's never been more popular with GOP voters.

Ch. 7: Wagner: Some Republicans Are Uniting Against Biden And Siding With Putin - All In w/ Chris Hayes - Air Date 2-23-22

Alex Wagner: “The shocking thing is when these Republicans look at Russia—its repression and flouting of democratic norms and restriction of essential freedom—when they look at all that they may not see a cautionary tale, but an aspirational one.”


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: How Jan 6th Changed Extremism - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 1-5-22

Brandy Zadrozny talks about the landscape of extremism since January 6th and her new investigation that finds some militia and white supremacist groups have shifted tactics, going from protesting to putting energy into local politics and school boards.

Ch. 9: The America We Deserve - In The Thick - Air Date 2-8-22

They get into the latest on the January 6th insurrection, and the connection between voter suppression and anti-Black racism.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on sheep-dogging, coalition governments and power dynamics


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com


Air Date 2/26/2022

Today we take a look at the slow but important progress that's been made in the last ten years of efforts toward sensible gun control and accountability for gun manufacturers as well as the activists pushing the issue.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The Path to the Sandy Hook Settlement - What Next - Air Date 2-22-22

A deft legal strategy led to the largest payout by a gun manufacturer in a mass shooting case. Guest: @NicoleHockley is co-founder and CEO of Sandy Hook Promise Foundation.

Ch. 2: Sandy Hook families achieve major victory over gun maker - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 2-16-21

Tonight's guests are Joshua Koskoff, attorney representing Sandy Hook families.

Ch. 3: 45K People Died from Gun Violence on Your Watch Parkland Survivors Demand More Action from Biden - Democracy Now! - Air Date 2-16-22

Survivors and families of the victims of the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland, Florida, have launched a new online tool called the “Shock Market” to track the occurrence of U.S. gun violence.

Ch. 4: A New Kind of Gun Control Part 1 - What Next - Air Date 2-3-22

San Jose is trying to pioneer a fresh way to address gun violence. Will it survive all the lawsuits? Guest: Sam Liccardo, mayor of San Jose, California.

Ch. 5: Exploring why gun violence has soared during the pandemic, and how to combat it - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 4-19-21

Gun violence in America has remained high throughout the pandemic. By some early estimates, 2020 is one of the worst years for homicides in recent times. Amna Nawaz speaks to The Trace's Champe Barton about efforts to change gun laws.

Ch. 6: A New Kind of Gun Control Part 2 - What Next - Air Date 2-3-22

Ch. 7: Stop Gun Violence: A Valentine's Day Plea from the Heart - Breaking the Sound Barrier - Air Date 2-17-22

Valentine’s Day is when we’re supposed to give heart-shaped boxes of chocolates and flowers to those we love. For Manuel “Manny” Oliver, Valentine’s Day is something different.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Woman Accidentally Fires Purse Gun at Basketball Game - David Pakman Show - Air Date 11-6-21

A woman "accidentally" fires her gun, which was in her purse, during a basketball game

Ch. 9: Brian Lehrer Close Reading Adams Blueprint to End Gun Violence - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 2-17-22

Mayor Adams's new public safety agenda, guests Anthonine Pierre, leader of Communities United for Police Reform, Richard Aborn, president of the Citizens Crime Commission of NYC and Elise White, deputy research director at the Center for Court Innovation


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on the news from the invasion of Ukraine by Russia


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: A woman walks during the March on Washington for Gun Control in 2013 holding a sign that says "Sandy Hook Chooses LOVE". A red 'no' symbol is over the silhouette of a semi-automatic rifle. Next to this, are two, gray child's hand prints with a red heart between them.

Credit: "March on Washington for Gun Control 032" by Slowking4, Wikimedia Commons | Creative Commons License | Changes: Cropped

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1472_Gun_Control_Air_Date_2-26-22_General_-_2-25-22_17.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Air Date 2/22/2022

Today we take a look at the new right-wing protest tactic sweeping the world, truck convoy siege tactics in capital cities. Their causes are nonsensical, their tactics harmful but cracking down on them too harshly may boomerang on progressive protests down the road.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Canadian Truckers Inch Closer to U.S. Border in Protest of COVID Restrictions - The Daily Show - Air Date 2-11-22

Canada’s anti-vax protest comes to a new head as truckers block off a major bridge connecting Canada and the U.S.

Ch. 2: Canada Afflicted With Right-Wing American Covid Conspiracy Chaos - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 2-10-22

Timothy Snyder, author of "On Tyranny," looks at how the U.S. has become a bad actor in the global community as its antigovernment right-wing, inflamed by Fox News and social media, is triggering political and economic disruption by fringe extremists.

Ch. 3: Tucker Uses Convoy To Cosplay As Working-Class Ally - The Rational National - Air Date 2-8-22

Fox News host Tucker Carlson used the Canadian 'Freedom Convoy' to cosplay as a working-class ally.

Ch. 4: Trucker protests energize Canada’s far-right movement - The World - Air Date 2-4-22

Actions have energized a small but growing far-right movement in Canada. And similar protests have popped up in Europe, where people are trying to convene in a convoy in Brussels to protest against pandemic restrictions

Ch. 5: What the truck is happening in Canada? - Today, Explained - Air Date 2-15-22

A convoy of truckers angry over Covid-19 mandates is disrupting life in Canada’s capital city. Their movement is gaining traction in cities around the globe.

Ch. 6: Vaccine protests in Canada - World Review from the New Statesman - Air Date 2-3-22

Thousands have joined the so-called “Freedom Convoy” in Canada, which has spiraled from truckers’ frustrations over Covid-19 vaccine mandates into calls to overthrow the government.

Ch. 7: Canadian 'Freedom Convoy' Part 2: Border Blockades & Political Ramifications - It Could Happen Here - Air Date 2-15-22

As the Convoy occupation expanded beyond choking a single major city, the blocking of supply lines and border crossings raised more questions regarding how the government's reaction might affect political movements in the future.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 9: What the truck is happening in Canada? Part 2 - Today, Explained - Air Date 2-15-22


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on a successful vacation and the weak allure of the internet


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1471_Trucker_Protest_Air_Date_2-22-22_General_-_2-23-22_09.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:36am EDT

Original Air Date 2/16/2021

Today we take a look at the competing histories fighting for dominance in the minds of Americans; the mythologized and romanticized history as represented by the "patriotic" framing of history from the 1776 Commission report and the much more fact-based approach that doesn't skirt the issue of race from the 1619 Project.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: The 400 Year Legacy with Nikole Hannah-Jones and Ibram X. Kendi - Why Is This Happening with Chris Hayes - Air Date 12-6-19

Nikole Hannah-Jones, the architect behind "The 1619 Project," and Ibram X. Kendi, author of “How To Be an Antiracist,” joined Chris Hayes to examine the 400 year legacy of slavery in America.

Ch. 2: With Hours Left in Office, Trump White House Tries to Rewrite U.S. History - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 1-19-21

Prof. Eddie Glaude Jr. joins Mehdi Hasan to explain why the Trump administration's 1776 Report is an attempt to stoke a culture war via historical nonsense.

Ch. 3: Eric Foner on The 1619 Project - Start Making Sense - Air Date 11-21-19

Historian Eric Foner talks about The New York Times’ “1619 Project,” which argues that the legacy of slavery is central to all of the American past and present—including the White House today.

Ch. 4: The 1776 Report - Past Present - Air Date 1-26-21

In this episode, Neil, Natalia, and Niki discuss ·The 1776 Report· issued by the outgoing Trump administration.

Ch. 5: The Original Sin of 1619 - In The Thick - Air Date 8-20-19

Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones led a team of black journalists, writers and poets to create The 1619 Project, a deep and thoughtful look into the 400th anniversary of the beginning of slavery in this country. But a lot of the response has been predictable


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 6: Midnight in the Garden of American Heroes - Know Your Enemy - Air Date 2-11-21

Matt and Sam explain West Coast Straussianism, the school of thought behind one of the last acts of the Trump administration: its publication of the "1776 Report," the Right's shabby response to the 1619 Project and blueprint for the American Founding

Ch. 7: Adolph Reed Critiques The 1619 Project - The Michael Brooks Show - Air Date 5-14-20

Adolph Reed talks about the 1619 project through the lens of anti-essentialism.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 8: Proper attribution for vaccines - Dr. Gay

Ch. 9: Financial health of the show? - Nick from California


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on framing vaccine manufacturers properly


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

SUPPORT THE SHOW

Listen Anywhere!

Check out the BotL iOS/Android App in the App Stores!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1399_1619_vs_1776_Air_Date_2-16-21_Members_-_2-16-21_19_Repost.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:00am EDT

Original Air Date 2/5/2021

Today we take a look at the role that social media plays in the radicalization of discontented communities and engage in the debate over content moderation and de-platforming of individuals.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content)

MERCHANDISE!

REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy!


Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Why everyone hates Big Tech, with The Verge's Nilay Patel - The Weeds - Air Date 7-19-19

Verge editor-in-chief and Vergecast host Nilay Patel joins Matt in this special crossover episode to explain what Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which allows platforms to circumnavigate liability for user content, really means.

Ch. 2: Let’s Break Up Facebook, Google, Amazon - Newsbroke - Air Date 1-30-21

Trump has been removed from the nation’s capital and the nation’s social media feeds. And while it was fun to watch him and other far-right accounts “getting owned” by Twitter, Facebook, Google and other platforms, it does pose an important question

Ch. 3: Solving the Facebook Problem at Home and Abroad - On The Media - Air Date 5-22-19

When former Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes penned a New York Times op-ed calling for the breakup of the platform, he was lauded by anti-corporate politicians and the press. Then came a series of hard questions

Ch. 4: Zephyr Teachout on "Break 'Em Up" - Off-Kilter - Air Date 8-4-20

Rebecca talks to Zephyr Teachout about her new book "Break 'Em Up: Recovering our Freedom from Big Tech, Big Ag, and Big Money" and why we need an antitrust movement for our time.

Ch. 5: ADL International Leadership Award Presented to Sacha Baron Cohen - Anti-Defamation League - Air Date 11-21-19

Sacha Baron Cohen is the well-deserved recipient of ADL’s International Leadership Award, which goes to exceptional individuals who combine professional success with a profound personal commitment to community involvement and to crossing borders

Ch. 6: Joan Donovan on how platforms enabled the capital hill riot Part 1 - Big Tech - Air Date 1-21-21

Joan Donovan studies social movements and their use of media and technology to spread their message.

Ch. 7: Peter Kafka and Kevin Roose on big tech's power and responsibility - Vox Conversations - Air Date 1-18-21

Recode’s Peter Kafka speaks with New York Times’s Tech columnist Kevin Roose about big tech’s power and responsibility - and whether it is going to have accountability.

Ch. 8: Insurrection on Capitol Hill Heightens Focus on Social Media Radicalization - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 1-13-21

Former Facebook Chief Security Officer Alex Stamos joins Mehdi Hasan to explain how Facebook is tackling radicalization on its platform, and where the company is still falling short.

Ch. 9: Joan Donovan on how platforms enabled the capital hill riot Part 2 - Big Tech - Air Date 1-21-21

Joan Donovan studies social movements and their use of media and technology to spread their message.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 10: Your Nation's Attention for the Price of a Used Car - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 10-6-20

Today’s extremists don’t need highly produced videos like ISIS. They don’t need deep pockets like Russia. With the right message, a fringe organization can reach the majority of a nation’s Facebook users for the price of a used car.


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 11: Final comments on Social Media Externalities


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com


Air Date 2/12/2022

Today we take a look at the recent uptick in banning and removing educational subjects and books from school curricula as well as specifically who is being harmed and who is being privileged by these decisions.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript


SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Right-Wingers Banning Books While Complaining About Cancel Culture - David Pakman Show - Air Date 2-2-22

Despite claiming that the left wants to stifle "free speech," Republicans are increasingly banning books, including from school libraries

Ch. 2: Is Big Money Behind Book Banning Frenzy? - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 2-8-22

What's behind the right-wing book-ban frenzy? Is it big money with a long-term plan? We do know it's not a "grassroots" or spontaneous.

Ch. 3: The Movement to Erase Black History and Culture Part 1 - At Liberty - Air Date 2-3-22

We believe that the first amendment is fundamental because it should stop this kind of erasure in its tracks. That’s why we’re meeting this surge of censorship with new litigation and fierce advocacy. Joined by Emerson Sykes, Senior Staff Attorney w/ ACLU

Ch. 4: Critical Race Theory and The Obstruction of Black Education with Dr. Ivory Toldson Part 1 - Black History Year - Air Date 11-29-21

Education has always mattered to Black people. Our enslaved ancestors risked their lives to learn what white oppressors withheld. Because those oppressors understood the important role knowledge of ones history and oneself plays in Black liberation.

Ch. 5: The Movement to Erase Black History and Culture Part 2 - At Liberty - Air Date 2-3-22

Ch. 6: Critical Race Theory and The Obstruction of Black Education with Dr. Ivory Toldson Part 2 - Black History Year - Air Date 11-29-21

Ch. 7: Bans & Schools Book Panics - Now & Then - Air Date 2-8-22

Book bans are back. What’s causing this resurgence? What have similar acts of censorship meant throughout American history? And how should concerned citizens respond?


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Bans & Schools Book Panics Part 2 - Now & Then - Air Date 2-8-22

Ch. 9: The Movement to Erase Black History and Culture Part 3 - At Liberty - Air Date 2-3-22

Ch. 10: Critical Race Theory and The Obstruction of Black Education with Dr. Ivory Toldson Part 3 - Black History Year - Air Date 11-29-21


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 11: A message to Nick and Quai on anger and what to do with it - Alyson from Boulder, CO


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on perhaps only thinking I have let go of my anger


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Photo of the graphic novel book “Maus I” laying on top of the graphic novel book “Maus II”. The covers show anthropomorphized mice under a white circle with a black swastika and a graphic depiction of a Hitler-ized mouse with whiskers in its center.

Credit: “Maus I and II” by Bill Smith, Flickr https://www.flickr.com/photos/byzantiumbooks/51845556207/in/photolist-2n2epPd-2mZq2A8-2n1Mj1g-XYhG-2TmUhq-55feBS-avJJH3-Tjp4gY-SBWLR9-SBWLHd-TExp9E-8WwJM

| License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/  | Changes: cropped and tilted left

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

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Direct download: 1470_Book_and_CRT_Banning_Air_Date_2-12-22_General_-_2-12-22_10.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:57am EDT

Air Date 2/9/2022

Today we take a look at the simmering geopolitical crisis in Ukraine as Russia amasses military forces along the border. In particular, we hear from those who do not predict the imminent outbreak of war and analyze the various motives at play.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Understanding Ukraine: The Problems Today and Some Historical Context - vlogbrothers - Air Date 3-4-14

In which John discusses the crisis in Ukraine, and how the influence of Russia and Europe have shaped Ukrainian politics for centuries. REMINDER: Educational videos are allowed to be more than four minutes long.

Ch. 2: Can the U.S. and Russia agree on Ukraine? Here’s the latest on the negotiations - PBSNewsHour - Air Date 1-28-22

On the Ukraine crisis, there was a sharp juxtaposition Friday as the Pentagon warned that Russian troops could invade at any time, while Ukraine’s president accused the West of sowing panic.

Ch. 3: “It’s Not About Security”: Belgian Peace Activist Says NATO Has Outlived Its Purpose - Democracy Now! - Air Date 2-1-22

To speak about the key role NATO is playing in the Ukraine crisis, we speak with Ludo De Brabander, spokesperson of the peace organization Vrede vzw in Belgium, where NATO is headquartered.

Ch. 4: Sanctions Sanctions Everywhere w/ Yar Batmanghelidj - American Prestige - Air Date 2-4-22

Danny and Derek speak about the attempted coup in Guinea-Bissau, North Korea's missile test, Ukraine, the U.S. operation that killed an Isis leader in Syria, and recent reports about Iran's nuclear breakout capability.

Ch. 5: Russian Historian: We Need Both the U.S. & Russia to Deescalate Crisis over Ukraine - Democracy Now! - Air Date 2-3-22

Despite Russian President Vladimir Putin continuing to deny accusations of a planned invasion of Ukraine, the Biden administration ordered the deployment of 3,000 additional troops to Eastern Europe on Wednesday to supposedly protect Ukraine.

Ch. 6: Ukraine w/ Volodymyr Ishchenko - The Dig - Air Date 1-28-22

An in-depth interview on the historical and political-economic context of the Ukraine crisis with Ukrainian sociologist Volodymyr Ishchenko.

Ch. 7: Ukrainians Doubt a Russian Invasion Is Imminent as U.S. Peace Groups Urge Biden to Halt Escalation - Democracy Now! - Air Date 2-1-22

The United States and Russia sparred on Monday over the crisis in Ukraine at the United Nations Security Council. Meanwhile, U.S. senators are preparing to unveil a bill that would target Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russian banks and other entities


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Explaining the US-Russia Saber-Rattling - Jacobin Radio w/ Suzi Weissman - Air Date 2-1-22

Hillel Ticktin also joins to continue the discussion about the escalating tensions on the Russian/Ukrainian border. Ticktin argues that the long downturn and economic stagnation are the backdrop to understanding both Russia and the US in this crisis.

Ch. 9: Putin's Terrorism and What to Do About It - Gaslit Nation - Air Date 2-1-22

We dig deep into this complex conflict, examining the humanitarian toll it takes on Ukraine, Putin’s ambitions for other regions of the world and the American exploitation of the conflict for partisan purposes.


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 10: Value of curation regarding the recent Israel/Palestine episode - Craig from Ohio

Ch. 11: Maybe Neil Postman is actually the devil - Nick from California


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 12: Final comments on Russia plans besides war and their new agreement with China


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1469_Russia_Ukraine_Air_Date_2-9-22_General_-_2-9-22_20.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:10pm EDT

Original Air Date: 1-13-22
Today, I am joined by Amanda, Erin and Deon to discuss:
- Don't trust engineers
- We were all assholes
- Is Deon parenting wrongly?
- It only takes two hours of talking
- Words Matter: Nouning people into groups

References:
Words Matter by Sally McConnell-Ginet

Leave a message at 202-999-3991

Produced by:
Jay! Tomlinson
Thanks for listening!
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft
Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft
Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com
Review the show on Apple Podcasts!

Direct download: Bonus_Show_245_Sample_-_2-8-22_11.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:58am EDT

Air Date 2/4/2022

Today we take a look at several vignettes of recent victories against conservative governments implementing exploitative, neoliberal policies that inspired the people to fight back. We will hear from the recent elections in Chile and Honduras, the massive farmer protests in India and the protest movement against deregulation or petroleum prices in Kazakhstan. Activists, take note.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com 

Transcript

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Chile Votes for Socialism over Fascism (w Guillaume Long) - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 12-21-21

Socialist Gabriel Boric takes the majority of the vote in Chile, changing the politics of the country. Socialism won over fascism. Now we wonder what will the imperialist countries do about a socialist country in South America?

Ch. 2: Two Interviews on Chile - Behind the News - Air Date 12-28-21

Doug speaks with Antonia Mardones Marshall on the recent presidential election and its winner, Gabriel Boric. Plus: Antonia Atria, in an interview from October 2020, on that country's constitutional referendum.

Ch. 3: A Moment of Hope Xiomara Castros Likely Win in Honduras Ends Years of Right-Wing Rule After Coup - Democracy Now! - Air Date 11-30-21

“It’s brought hope to the entire country,” says Faridd Sierra. Years of corruption and conservative law-making “showed the Honduras people just how cruel the [National] Party was and … they voted in response,” adds Suyapa Portillo.

Ch. 4: India's huge farmer protests, explained - Vox - Air Date 12-30-20

Thousands of India’s farmers have set up camp in Delhi.

Ch. 5: Debriefing the Indian Farmers' Victory with Navyug Gill Part 1 - The Anti-Empire Project - Air Date 11-29-21

I'm joined by Navyug Gill from William Paterson University to talk about the historic victory of the Indian Farmers who, after demonstrating for a whole year at the cost of 750 lives, succeeded in forcing the repeal of three farming reform laws.

Ch. 6: Kazakhstan's Oyan protest movement w/ Paolo Sorbello - This is Hell! - Air Date 1-20-22

Journalist Paolo Sorbello on his article "‘Our activism won't stop': The Oyan movement recounts the January protests in Kazakhstan" for Global Voices, and in a Moment of Truth, Jeff Dorchen tangles with all-pervasive networks.

Ch. 7: Has Socialism Broken The Chains of Neoliberalism? - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 12-21-21

In these days of dark news from the rise of militarism to a new wave of Covid, there are green shoots: neoliberalism is finally being replaced by social democracy around the world & in America.


MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 8: Debriefing the Indian Farmers' Victory with Navyug Gill Part 2 - The Anti-Empire Project - Air Date 11-29-21


VOICEMAILS

Ch. 9: Humanize but don't fall asleep at the wheel - Zelda from Minnesota


FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 10: Final comments on getting focused on effective politics


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

  • Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
  • Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
  • Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
  • Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

SHOW IMAGE:

Description: Three elderly Indian men with white beards, wearing turbans (pagri) and a jacket, vest, and sweater (respectively), sit on wall. Each man has one fist raised in the air. The man in the middle holds a long bamboo staff with his other hand.

Credit: "Three protestors at the 2020-2021 Indian Farmers' Protest" by Ravan Khosa, Wikimedia Commons | License | Changes: Cropped to square

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Direct download: 1468_International_Chile.India_Air_Date_2-4-22_General_-_2-5-22_10.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:33am EDT