Free Thinking Through the Fourth Turning with Sasha Stone - podcast cover

Free Thinking Through the Fourth Turning with Sasha Stone

Sasha Stonewww.sashastone.com
Essays on politics and culture from Sasha Stone's Substack. A former Democrat and Leftist who escaped the bubble to get to know the other side of the country and to take a more critical look at the left. Sashastone.substack.com

www.sashastone.com
Last refreshed:
Follow this podcast in the Metacast mobile app to refresh it and see new episodes.
Download Metacast podcast app
Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app
Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more

Episodes

Hollywood Can't Save itself, Let Alone Joe Biden

When Barack Obama gently took Joe Biden’s hand and led him offstage at a $30 million fundraiser in Los Angeles, it was hard not to see the whole thing as over. Like over over. Like the Fonz jumping the shark over. Fonzie wasn’t the guy who jumped sharks. He was the King of Cool. There was nothing cool about jumping sharks, just as there was nothing cool about being on a stage with Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Jack Black, and Jimmy Kimmel. It was all so yesterday. Oh sure, no one in the bubble ...

Jun 21, 202437 min

The Deep State Meets the Honey Badger

“Being in a minority, even in a minority of one, did not make you mad. There was truth and there was untruth, and if you clung to the truth even against the whole world, you were not mad.” - George Orwell, 1984 Rick Wilson thinks he’s won - throw Steve Bannon in Federal Prison on July 1st; that’s one less mover and shaker in MAGA world. A party, a celebration, as yet another scalp is claimed to lay at the feet of the wealthy libs who pay him the big bucks to go Trump hunting. Four months is a lo...

Jun 13, 202444 min

Joe Biden's Eternal Nightmare

Don’t let Joe Biden’s creepy grin fool you. He’s not confident. He’s terrified. They all are. Imagine being them right now. Imagine having all of the power, all of the culture, all of the institutions, and most of the administrative and security state; imagine the impeachments, the indictments, the endless attacks against Trump for eight years, and he’s still the frontrunner to be President of the United States in 2024. Biden knows the system might help him win in 2024 just as it did in 2020. He...

Jun 05, 202435 min

Trump and The Hero's Journey

As Trump wows the public at rallies, Biden seethes behind the castle walls, demanding that his nemesis be convicted and jailed. The next big news day for the regime will be Verdict Day! Oh, how they will celebrate. And lest you get carried away with the fantasy that maybe they’ll acquit Trump in the city that made him, think again. There is little chance that the jury will go home to their friends and family and confess they passed on the chance to save Democracy because they had a sudden case o...

May 27, 202442 min

Nellie Bowles Thoroughly Humiliates the New York Times

In 2024, the most radical act imaginable is telling the truth. Nellie Bowles has done just that with her new book, Morning After the Revolution . She lays out in painful but funny detail the madness we’ve all just lived through that almost no one will talk about. Bowles is too nice to humiliate the New York Times outright; she was their “golden girl,” after all, once upon a time. But her book humiliates them all the same, just by doing good reporting and telling the stories they refused to tell....

May 18, 202425 min

The Democrats' Stormy Hypocrisy

Bill Clinton once said, “Democrats fall in love, and Republicans fall in line.” We had to fall in love with him, that’s for sure, because by 1992, baby, we’d kissed a lot of frogs. Falling in love with him meant overlooking his blatant, unending womanizing. We believed, or we convinced ourselves to believe, that his personal life should be private. Our gold standard had been JFK, after all. His womanizing was seen not as a character flaw but as evidence of his superiority among men. He was so ha...

May 13, 202434 min

It's the Democrats Turn to Scare America

As college protests sprouted like mushrooms in Joe Biden’s America, the fanaticism of the Left seemed to catch many by surprise. How could it have gotten this bad? How could they seem so crazy, these educated college students? And why isn’t Joe Biden doing anything about it? It isn’t that it’s gotten this bad. It’s been this bad for a while. It was just covered up by the mainstream media on the Left, who were invested in only one narrative: MAGA supporters are the violent ones, the dangerous one...

May 04, 202437 min

"Let Joe Be Joe" has been a Disaster

Joe Biden has been a failure as the leader of the United States. There has never been one moment in the past four years when he has thought of us, the American people. He has only thought of himself and how badly he does not want to lose to Donald Trump, so he stands before the press at the White House Correspondents Dinner, and he lies. He lies about January 6th. He lies that Trump said there would be a “bloodbath” if he lost, a false media narrative that should have shamed every so-called “jou...

Apr 28, 202431 min

It Takes a Village to Trans a Child

Dear Hillary, In 1996, you wrote: “The African proverb “It takes a village to raise a child” summed up for me the commonsense conclusion that, like it or not, we are living in an interdependent world where what our children hear, see, feel, and learn will affect how they grow up and who they turn out to be.” That’s still true, Hillary. But now, you are no longer protecting children. You no longer seem to care what is happening to them at the hands of the Left and the Democratic Party. The releas...

Apr 24, 202441 min

The Lawfare made me a Trump supporter

Six years ago, I stood a few feet away from Joe Biden at a fundraiser and was certain he was the only person who could save this country from Donald Trump in 2020. However, by the end of the election, I would leave the Democratic Party for good. I saw them as corrupt, too powerful, and dangerous to the very democracy they now claim they want to protect. Now, I wake up every morning in a panic that our last best hope of ending the monopoly of power on the Left rests on the imperfect shoulders of ...

Apr 13, 202437 min

An Interview with Writer John Nolte

I’ve been wanting to interview John Nolte about his sublime and brilliant book, Borrowed Time ever since I read it. Well, the day has finally arrived. We chatted for about an hour about his book, his life, how he got into writing, what gave him the idea for his book, and why he may never write another one, and of course, our favorite topic, what happened to culture on the Left. Hope you enjoy the inaugural interview for this Substack. Some useful links: My review of the book— Here is a link to t...

Apr 11, 202455 min

How to Spot an "Election Denier"

There could be an Election Denier right next door. They could deliver your mail, serve you a cocktail at the airport, sit next to you on the subway, or empty your garbage. They might be a grandma, a wife, or a son. They could be anyone. They could even be me. Yes, I am an Election Denier . I am someone you’ve been told to fear, someone you probably think has been captured by extremist ideology and THE BIG LIE. You might say that also makes me an “insurrectionist” and “domestic extremist.” I woul...

Apr 05, 202437 min

Ronna McDaniel Wouldn't Deliver Enough Hate for MSNBC

A chill went down my spine in 2020 when I realized what I’d been participating in for the four years Trump was in power. I didn’t go along with all of it. I defended Melania Trump when Twitter slut-shamed her. I defended Sarah Huckabee Sanders when the Good People of the Left mocked her makeup. But I went along with enough that, at some point, I overdosed on hate. I always thought we were the good guys and that we didn’t engage in bullying, harassment, abuse, and dehumanizing. Don’t the lawn sig...

Mar 29, 202429 min

Why Trump is Polling Ahead of Biden

Unlike most people in the media, Frank Luntz spends a lot of time talking to regular folks. He and can see the objective reality of where we are now, yet they have difficulty explaining that to people on the Left. To most of them, they’ve been fighting a war against Trump and MAGA since 2016. It’s unthinkable that anyone in America, let alone a majority, would not feel the same way. Here is how the polls are lining up right now on Real Clear Politics: Why is Trump polling ahead? Let’s get into i...

Mar 24, 202419 min

Too Black to Fail

It took us decades, but we finally found religion on the Left. The counterculture initially seemed great: a big bang of movies, civil rights, women’s rights, gay rights, comedy, art, and investigative journalism, all in the pursuit of free expression and objective truth. My generation was raised on atheism, with the idea that if you pursue happiness, you will be fulfilled. But it doesn’t work like that. Making happiness the goal in life ultimately leads to dissatisfaction because nothing and no ...

Mar 22, 202439 min

What Really Happened to Matt Drudge?

In the new podcast series, Finding Matt Drudge , Chris Moody wants to know two things: why Matt Drudge dropped out of sight and why he turned on Donald Trump. If it is still really Drudge running the DrudgeReport now, and not some paid lackey to push links, then it would not be unreasonable to think he’s hanging on for one last job, to do what Joe Biden, the Lincoln Project, Liz and Dick Cheney, Mike Pence and every other Never Trumper has been trying to do for the last eight years: stop Trump f...

Mar 17, 202434 min

The Proposed Ban on TikTok is Election Interference

Kara Swisher has a good strategy for Joe Biden to beat Donald Trump, which she shared on CNN. Just call Trump three things: Racist, Rapist, Fascist. There was a time when that would have worked. That time has come and gone. At best, Swisher will be ruthlessly mocked online and, at worst, completely ignored. For someone who studied propaganda, she sure has become good at peddling it. Maybe it will cycle through the Facebook feeds of whatever is left of the #resistance, a relic of the old days whe...

Mar 15, 202438 min

Respectfully, Mr. De Niro, Get a Grip

Dear Mr. De Niro, I trust you had a wonderful evening at the Oscars. Watching you bask in the comforting embrace of the special people was a reminder of who you really are—a movie star. By the looks of it, the Oscars are back. They have a host now and they gave their top prize to a movie people actually saw. It won a whopping 7 Oscars. There were dance numbers and jokes, beautiful people in their finery—a grand celebration to revive the lifeless body of Hollywood. I was shocked that they kept po...

Mar 11, 202431 min

The Red Pill Revolution

Guess what I’m doing on Super Tuesday? I’m registering as a Republican to vote for Donald Trump in the primary in California. They won’t allow me to vote as an independent for President of the United States, so for the first time in my life, I will be one of the people I used to judge and hate. I also plan to vote red straight down the line. Oh, I realize this is like spitting in the Pacific Ocean in my state. Still, if other residents in California are starting to see what anyone driving throug...

Mar 03, 202440 min

The Fourth Turning Explainer - Why is it called that anyway?

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.sashastone.com It took me some time to consider an “extra” for paid subscribers, and I came up with a free-form podcast, not written as an essay but just an improvisational ramble. It’s meant to be casual so, of course, it is not perfect. I hope to get better over time. The first 20 minutes will be a free preview, and the rest will be behind the paywall. I hope you …...

Feb 26, 202421 min

Why Joe Biden isn't Sweating

Fear is trickling down the walls at the White House like blood from a crime scene. They try to wipe it away with a Lawrence O’Donnell monologue here, a Stephen Colbert freak out there. Any other president at any other time in American history would be sweating. But Joe Biden isn’t. It reminds me of this scene from the movie Quiz Show where the investigator, played by Rob Morrow, corners the President of NBC, played by Allan Rich, in an elevator. We have finally got you, Morrow says. Oh yeah? Ric...

Feb 25, 202429 min

This is What Totalitarianism Looks Like

Donald Trump isn’t Alexei Navalny. He wasn’t poisoned or beaten or tortured, then left to die in a Siberian gulag. We aren’t under the control of a dictator like Putin. But there is no getting around the ugly truth that none of this would happen if Biden weren’t trailing Trump in the polls. News of Navalny’s death sent shockwaves through both sides of the political aisle, as each tried to grapple with the many conflicts we’re now facing, the war in Ukraine and the war on Donald Trump, but it’s t...

Feb 20, 202437 min

The Democrats Are Going Down with the Ship

A source tells Free Thinking what’s really going on. What old man in the White House? I didn’t see any old man in the White House. The President, you mean? Oh, that’s just Joe Biden. He’s fine. With age comes wisdom. Joe did nothing wrong, and even if he did, it was decided he could not stand trial. Hur is not a neurologist. He doesn’t know what’s going on in Joe’s brain. It was a stressful day. The attacks on October 7th were distracting. You can’t expect the President of the United States to h...

Feb 15, 202432 min

Gaslighting Biden's Troubles Away

I don’t know what’s going to happen. All I can say is this: The man we saw speaking from the White House tonight, on February 8—that man will not be reelected president. Maybe Biden can become a new man. Maybe he’s had an off week. Maybe they can adjust his meds. Maybe. But probably not. Right? Probably not. —John Podhoretz, Commentary They’ve been lying about Joe Biden’s cognitive abilities since at least 2020. COVID allowed them to hide both Biden and Harris far from the prying eyes of the pre...

Feb 10, 202424 min

Confessions of a Corrupt Liberal

“So you’re voting for Du-taxus?” a woman said to me in 1988. I was a lowly receptionist at a gym called “Women Only,” which was probably later sued out of business. I had to answer the phone with, “ We have the way, Women Only, this is Sasha, may I help you? ” I was undoubtedly blurting out this mouthful when the client noticed my Dukakis pin, because why wouldn’t she? I told her yes, I was, though I wasn’t “political” back then, and I had no idea why I was voting for Dukakis. He was a Democrat....

Feb 07, 202431 min

Taylor Swift's People Meet Joe Biden's People

Joanna Parker paces in her office. The media narrative successfully sank the Republicans and their efforts to steal some of the Taylor Swift/Travis Kelce energy. Amateurs. After all this time, they still haven’t learned that WE control everything. Making them look like fools, waking up a whole generation to how stupid the Republicans are, was worth all of the trouble it took to hire well-paid and well-placed social media actors to whip them up into a frenzy. The Pentagon? Please. Like they care ...

Feb 01, 202421 min

What Trump and MAGA Are Up Against in 2024

This election year promises to be one long “October Surprise” as the newly weaponized legal system, and Department of Justice go to unprecedented and extraordinary lengths not to stop Trump but to damage him enough that one of the least popular presidents in history can be once again dragged over the finish line in November. It’s so blatantly corrupt it’s hard to believe it’s actually happening. Whether you like Trump as a person or plan to vote for him or not, there should be no question that t...

Jan 29, 202431 min

Why I'm Rooting for the 1972 Landslide I Once Feared

I am not supposed to be rooting for Trump and MAGA. I’m supposed to be one of the million and change who huddles on my couch in terror, watching MSNBC as the results from Iowa trickle in. I’m supposed to somberly nod when Rachel Maddow tells her viewers they won’t show Trump’s speech. Shut down the speech! I am supposed to say, as if any of this is normal. I will not watch it . I will not listen for myself and think for myself and judge for myself. I will instead fill my head with what Lawrence ...

Jan 18, 202436 min

January 6th and How the Press Became the "Enemy of the American People"

On January 6th, Trump will give a rally in Iowa. He’ll do what he’s done for seven years as a hunted man - reassure his supporters that there is nothing to fear but fear itself. Joe Biden, the President of the United States, will also give a speech that day and do what he has been doing since taking office: offer the people nothing but fear itself. Biden’s message? Be afraid. Be very, very afraid of your fellow citizens. The guy who works at the gas station, the waitress, the bus driver, the con...

Jan 05, 202436 min

An Ex-Democrat's Case for Trump

“Are you a Trump supporter now?” is the question my friends, acquaintances, and colleagues sometimes ask me. I know the answer to that question could end our relationship. So do they. Most of the time, they just don’t ask. They quietly assume that I might be, but what they don’t know can’t hurt them. Since 2016, being labeled “Trump supporter,” has given most people the green light to cut ties, publicly humiliate, attack, and dehumanize at will. What you will rarely see on the Left is empathy. W...

Dec 23, 202319 min
For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android