Sean and Paul briefly discuss the revolt among Trump’s base over the proposed DACA deal as well as the patriarchal wet dream that is the Bruce Willis remake of 1972’s Death Wish. Then, they turn their attention to the undeserved good reputation of America’s 35th President, John F. Kennedy.
Because we’re massive nerds, Sean’s visit to a community theater stage production of George Orwell’s 1984 sparked our discussion of the best literary metaphor for authoritarianism in the age of Trump, which is…the Real Housewives of Orange County. Also starring Vicki Gunvalson, the anti-John Galt.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, Sean and Paul talk about the role played by dysfunctional, federally-subsidized flood insurance in the devastation. No, really, we promise: flood insurance can be both interesting and infuriating!
This week, Mark Lilla’s hot take on the death of campus liberalism gives Sean the piles. Also, Colin Kaepernick’s protest reveals the skewed economic structure of the NFL.
On this week’s show, Paul and Sean discuss the real history of the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the massive paramilitary violence that put white supremacists back in power afterwards. Confederate monuments are not neutral expressions of historical interest; rather, they were symbols over white power over black lives in the Jim Crow South. These facts should inform our conversation about what to do with those monuments today. Bonus: Listen until the end to catch a description of our shared favorite Confederate monument, that of Nathan “Derpy” Bedford Forrest.
This week, Paul and Sean discuss the horrific events in Charlottesville and how we ought (and ought not) to respond. Sean delineates between the various factions within the Democratic Socialists of America and offers compelling reasons for why it should transform itself into a vanguard party.
Paul reminds us that before Anthony Scaramucci communicated his way out of a job at the White House, he was an executive at the Export-Import Bank, itself an unholy amalgamation of corruption and waste and thus, quite naturally, something that politicians learn to love. Sean discusses the failed unionization vote at Nissan’s Mississippi plants, a battle for which most national Democrats were MIA.
Article links for this episode:
Veronique de Rubgy’s Congressional testimony on the Export-Import Bank
PBS Newshour on Ex-Im
NYT Overview of Nissan Unionization Drive
Bernie Sanders Alleges Misconduct by Nissan
Local Paper on Distinction between Contract & Regular Workers
