BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Hear the Full Show, Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Air Date: 9-29-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - Why Cards Against Humanity is fighting Elon Musk - How car-related deaths have soared in the US - How partial automation tech in cars is making driving more dangerous - Why truck bloat(or C.O.U.S.s, if you prefer)is deadly - Surveillance CARpitalism that will blow your mind - The electric school bus fleets sweeping the nation - The fratzonic sound of t...
Sep 29, 2024•19 min•Ep. 322
Air Date 9/27/2024 Let's just say that it's not a coincidence that right-wing authoritarians are on the rise at the same time as people around the world are having a harder time than ever figuring out what's true. That said, society is beginning to fight back. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! KEY POINTS KP 1: https:/...
Sep 27, 2024•2 hr 31 min•Ep. 1658
Air Date 9/24/2024 The positive dad vibes of Tim Walz came onto the national scene in the middle of an ongoing crisis of masculinity that stretches from the youngest generations to the oldest. Both positive and negative aspects of masculinity tie in with the general election, basically divided right down the partisan line, and the next generation of voters (not to mention humans) are often feeling stuck between the two with insufficient guidance from the men in their lives. Be part of the show! ...
Sep 24, 2024•2 hr 19 min•Ep. 1657
BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Hear the Full Show, Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Air Date: 9-23-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - Musk's latest - J.D. Vance's war on truth and brown people - The super villains who spread lies - Sane Washing Trump - Correcting the Left - Right-wing lies as a matter of course REFERENCES: Musk Claims ‘Joke’ About Assassinating Harris Was Funnier in Person J.D. Vance’s War on American Life Starts in Springfield JD Vance Thinks He Can Sell His Nationa...
Sep 23, 2024•20 min•Ep. 321
Original Air Date: 3/21/2023 Today, we take a look at how GOP-controlled states are subverting democracy with a form of "competitive autocracy" and some of the horrifying legislation these states then pass after they are no longer subject to the opinions of the general public. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content) Join our Discord community ! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: The Autocratic N...
Sep 21, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 1550
Air Date: 9-19-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - the fallout from the debate, Trump's lies, and how his incoherence is being sanitized - The inadequacy of workplace protections, even in unionized shops - how worker stress and consumer misery are actually features, not bugs - the hope of Philosopher Obama and Trump's Power of Positivity® - people's need to feel like they're getting their money's worth at the expense of all else REFERENCES: UPS Drivers Won “Historic Heat Protections...
Sep 18, 2024•15 min•Ep. 320
Air Date 9/17/2024 It's not just the threat of the electoral college handing the presidency to the loser of the popular vote, nor the specter of a repeat of a January 6th-like event hanging over the election - there's also copious lies and disinformation including a new and improved nazi-to-Republican-talking-point-pipeline, and fresh new intimidation and voter suppression tactic experiments underway in the laboratories of democracy. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-399...
Sep 17, 2024•2 hr 34 min•Ep. 1656
Air Date 9/13/2024 We've been living through the modern equivalent of the oil boom, back when poking a hole in the ground would make one of the world's most valuable substances, upon which entire economies would be built. But in our case, it's not oil, it's data. Now we are at a pivotal moment as the old unchallenged master of data, Google, has been found guilty of illegal anti-competitive behavior at the same time as generative AI companies are in a new desperate rush to stake claims on every l...
Sep 13, 2024•2 hr 7 min•Ep. 1655
Air Date 9/10/2024 It's said that we live in a melting pot here in the United States. Perhaps it's more of a salad bar, who knows? In any case, there are a lot of people coming from a lot of different backgrounds, cultures, histories, and geographies all about to vote in a few weeks. Today, we try to understand, at least roughly, how people’s backgrounds influence their vote. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | Transcri...
Sep 12, 2024•2 hr 29 min•Ep. 1654
BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Hear the Full Show, Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Air Date: 9-8-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - labor unions fighting for time off when it's too hot - cooling tech - electric trains - and the corporations running our national parks into the ground REFERENCES: Greek Unions Want Paid Time Off When It’s Too Hot to Work To keep workers going in the heat, companies try fledgling cooling tech Please Do Not Make Fun of My Neck Fan Is the US finally getti...
Sep 08, 2024•19 min•Ep. 319
Air Date 9/6/2024 We're living in the world that dark money in politics and Citizen's United built. But since that Supreme Court ruling in 2010, we've invented cryptocurrency that promises to be a brand new source of opacity and financial power built on smoke and mirrors. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! KEY POINTS K...
Sep 06, 2024•1 hr 42 min•Ep. 1653
Original Air Date: 10/16/2018 Today we take a look at the distant and recent history of conservatism in America and beyond and follow the steps that have led to their rejection of science at a moment in history when it has never been more critical to heed the warnings of scientists Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Corey Robin o...
Sep 03, 2024•58 min•Ep. 1219
Air Date: 9-1-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - The ever-stranger headlines about RFK Jr. ...and dead animals - The political philosophies and missteps behind unipolar, bipolar or multipolar world views - The dogmatic history of the American Communist Party - The deeper reasons having kids is on the decline - The impacts of our bizarre online world on kids and teens REFERENCES: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Admits He Falls for Online Misinformation “All the Time” RFK Jr. Whale-Beheading S...
Sep 01, 2024•16 min•Ep. 318
Air Date 8/30/2024 Israel's assault on Gaza is fueled by pain, rage, trauma... a desire for safety, a desire for revenge, the hope for the safe return of hostages. It's a complicated mix of all of the above and more and it will be different for each person. However, there's also a deep well of denial and delusion about the decades-old status quo between Israel and Palestine that made the current conflict all but inevitable and the pursuit of genocide by some decision-makers in the Israeli govern...
Aug 30, 2024•2 hr 46 min•Ep. 1652
Air Date 8/27/2024 People feel lots of ways about immigration. Sometimes it's fear of the other, other times it's not about the people but just dismay over a broken system. The validity of these concerns and others certainly exist on a spectrum, some are utter bullshit and others aren't. Left-wing political parties tend to do a terrible job creating immigration policy - in that they just don't do it at all - while the right wing is all too happy to create and implement terrible policy. And given...
Aug 27, 2024•2 hr 13 min•Ep. 1651
Air Date 8/23/2024 The vibes of this election are nothing anyone could have predicted a month ago. And yet, some of the details have played out as though by a script. Democrats drink hope like ambrosia from the gods; Trump, when confronted with reality initiates a full blown meltdown; and everyone is doing their best to ignore the genocide in Gaza being carried out with our weapons. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | T...
Aug 23, 2024•2 hr 44 min•Ep. 1650
Original Air Date: 8/23/2023 For decades, we have rightly been focused on dialing back endemic misogyny and poking holes in the patriarchy in the hopes of a new normal of gender relations emerging that would be genuinely healthier for everyone, not just women. But, with so much of the focus on the type of masculinity men and boys shouldn't embrace, we may have fallen short on giving positive direction to boys about what they should be and do. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 20...
Aug 21, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 1579
Air Date: 8-19-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - How we likely all have COVID and can't believe we did a Bonus Show - The bizarre ways AI is already part of our political systems - Strong feelings on AI-generated art in a hyper-capitalist world - The ups, downs and side effects of so-called AI friends - AI in our love lives (P.S. Audiophiles Beware: We had some technical difficulties, so this show may sound a little strange in spots.) REFERENCES: RFK Jr. Doubles Down on Dead Bear ...
Aug 19, 2024•18 min•Ep. 317
Air Date 8/17/2024 James Baldwin's 100th birthday passed by recently and we're using the occasion to draw on his moral clarity and eloquence while we assess the state of race in America Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! KEY POINTS KP 1: Celebrating James Baldwin's 100th Birthday - 1A - Air Date 7-30-24 KP 2: James Bal...
Aug 17, 2024•2 hr 23 min•Ep. 1649
Air Date 8/13/2024 Spirits among Kamala Harris supporters, Democrats, and anyone opposing Trumpism are at an all-time high right now. That's both fortuitous and crucial to the upcoming election. By the very nature of Trumpism, this election will be the most flagrantly contested in history with far more Trump loyalists in place ready to throw wrenches in the works wherever they can. Nothing short of overwhelming victory for the Harris/Waltz ticket is necessary to stave off constitutional crisis. ...
Aug 13, 2024•3 hr 6 min•Ep. 1648
BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Hear the Full Show, Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Air Date: 8-11-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon, and Erin discuss: - Understanding the New Right - JD Vance's mangled metaphor - The best headline about RFK Jr. - Where the anti-trans movement has taken us - What Star War controversies through the years can teach us REFERENCES: Watch: J.D. Vance Makes an Unfortunate Couch Joke at Nevada Rally This Is Why J.D. Vance Hates “Childless Cat Ladies” How JD Vance Thinks About...
Aug 11, 2024•19 min•Ep. 316
Original Air Date: 2/8/2019 Amid the ongoing fallout of a contested presidential election, we take a look back, briefly, at the last 100 years of Venezuelan history to understand how they went from oil riches and inequality to revolution and social progress only to run afoul of American imperialism Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! SHOW NOTES Ch....
Aug 09, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1248
Air Date 8/6/2024 After the recent Supreme Court ruling that allowed governments to constitutionally purge unhoused people from public spaces, we are getting an immediate lesson in the difference between addressing systemic problems with solutions and using the police to clean up after governments that failed to act. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No A...
Aug 06, 2024•1 hr 49 min
BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Hear the Full Show, Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Air Date: 8-4-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - The use of strategic ambiguity as a way to ensure everyone hears what they want to hear - How weird Republicans are now - How the joke about JD Vance having sex with a couch is viewed as plausible because his inability to deal with generational trauma has made him a bizarre person - How the right's bigotry runs so deep, they can't escape it even when th...
Aug 04, 2024•16 min•Ep. 315
Air Date 8/2/2024 The Kamala Harris presidential campaign has been on a wild ride since it unexpectedly began less than two weeks ago. Record fund raising, organic enthusiasm not seen since Obama, and the ugly pushback to match. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! KEY POINTS KP 1: This Is What DEI Means (And Why Conserv...
Aug 02, 2024•2 hr 8 min•Ep. 1646
Air Date 7/30/2024 The Republican Party is making it sound like they're trying to transform themselves into the party of working people. There's a mountain of evidence suggesting that you shouldn't believe them but there's also plenty of reason to sit up and take notice of the situation. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Full Show Notes | Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord communit...
Jul 30, 2024•1 hr 45 min•Ep. 1645
BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Hear the Full Show, Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Air Date: 7-29-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - All of our hope-y, fearful feelings about this political moment - The sexist, racist insults already being hurled at Harris - The perceived threat of a woman's laugh - Men's deep-seeded struggle with masculinity REFERENCES: Trump campaign finally reveals why ex president continues to profess love for Hannibal Lecter in speeches What people mean when th...
Jul 29, 2024•18 min•Ep. 314
Air Date 7/26/2024 It's clear where the vast majority of violent rhetoric is coming from in the country and it's clear which party is a cult of personality and which puts country before personal power. This is the state of play in our politics. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript | Full Show Notes BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! KEY POINTS KP 1: Jeff Sharlet on Trump A...
Jul 26, 2024•2 hr 29 min•Ep. 1644
Original 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. Transcript Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] BestOfThe...
Jul 23, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 1526
Air Date: 7-21-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, and Deon (Erin couldn't join us) discuss: - Deon's hatred of old people - How the media industry's failing state led to ineffective coverage of the Biden age story - Amanda's excellent sports analogy - The factors that have lead to America's worsening gerontocracy REFERENCES: Did the media botch the Biden age story? Jon Stewart Examines Biden’s Future Amidst Calls For Him to Drop Out | The Daily Show Inside the Complicated Reality of Being America’s Oldest ...
Jul 21, 2024•17 min•Ep. 313
