Hello Banthas! Swara and Stephen are back for Episode 60 to with some exclusive audio from Dragon Con 2018, a great panel on Crime & Politics in Star Wars. We also riff on the bombshell anonymous op-ed in the New York Times by a member of the Trump administration about the work being done on the inside to restrain his worst impulses from the inside. Is there a Star Wars tie-in? You bet there is! And finally, we talk about the Disney union workers vote for higher wages - with a little disagre...
Sep 06, 2018•1 hr 36 min
BONUS EPISODE! Beltway Banthas Contributor John Liang chats with author Max Brooks about Star Wars and the lessons that can be applied to today's modern military. Brooks wrote "Strategy Strikes Back: How Star Wars Explains Modern Military Conflict" This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.geekystoics.com/subscribe...
Sep 01, 2018•46 min
The Empire is coming for your moisture farm! Today on the show we discuss politically charged deleted scenes that never made it into the final cut of Star Wars films. Our main focus is a discussion between Biggs and Luke Skywalker about the "imperialization" of industry. Abby Gleason fills in for Swara and we are joined by Brittany Hunter to talk socialism in space, bourgeois Biggs and more. Also on this episode, Abby and Stephen talk about the latest in Trump drama surrounding Michael Cohen and...
Aug 23, 2018•56 min
We're back! Stephen and Swara are back to discuss whether President Trump treats the media like Palpatine treated the Jedi Order during the Clone Wars. Both institutions are meant to be a positive check on power and injustice, but has Trump succeeded in changing the public narrative against the media as Palpatine did with the Jedi? Tune in to find out! We also discuss the state of toxic fandom as reported in the past several months, and how and whether we can take steps to combat it and make fan...
Aug 09, 2018•1 hr 20 min
We have a jam-packed episode for y'all before our hiatus! First Stephen and Swara give their review of Solo. We then present Swara's conversation with Matt Rogers (@Politodope) to talk about the politics of the Resistance on the Left and parallels we find with Star Wars, all from the prequels to the sequels. Finally the hosts give their final Bantha Fodders for the season before our two month hiatus! Matt also discusses his project to get young people involved in politics: "Politodope", Stephen ...
May 31, 2018•1 hr 32 min
Mark Hamill is a Hollywood legend for his depiction of Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars movies. He is also a staunch believer in speaking on about politics. In this weeks episode we look at Mark Hamill's public stand on gun control, President Trump and how he balances Star Wars with politics alongside the fans. This is part of a larger conversation on pop culture and whether or not our hyper politicized society has made it harder to enjoy art. In the intro Swara & Stephen give final thoughts ...
May 24, 2018•1 hr 21 min
The Star Wars franchise has been becoming more visibly diverse on the screen, but will LucasFilm go further on issues of representation? Swara, the hosts of Book Wars Pod and Rebel Grrrl , are joined by Star Wars: Last Shot author Daniel Jose Older and others to discuss this topic. The online campaign that emerged as a result of this effort is called #SWRepMatters. Come check out and join the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #SWRepMatters! Get in touch with everyone on the show! Leave us...
May 17, 2018•1 hr 1 min
Abby and Swara discuss and analyze the life of one of their favorite fictional politicians of all time, the wonderful and estimable Bail Organa of Alderaan. What drove him to sacrifice so much for the good of the galaxy? How can we learn from his amazing example? Why does he give us so many feels?!? Listen to find out! We also dig into the Donald Glover's appearance on SNL, his "This is America" music video, the latest in the Trump scandal news, dish out our Bantha Fodders, and much more! This i...
May 10, 2018•1 hr 13 min
Beltway Banthas turned two this month! The experiment of blending Star Wars and politics has turned into an adventure the likes of which we could never has anticipated. THANK YOU for sticking with us all this time and making it so much fun. We are excited on this May 4th, Star Wars Day, to announce the addition of new hosts to the show: Brittany Hunter and Abby Gleason. On this episode we get to know Abby and Brittany and talk about the past and future of Beltway Banthas. Get in touch with every...
May 03, 2018•50 min
Finally we discuss the man, the Sith Lord, the Emperor, Sheev Palpatine! What lessons on democracy and our political institutions can we draw from our dear Uncle Palpy and his political career? Stephen and Swara delve into the political life of their favorite Star Wars politician to discuss! At the start of the show we also talk about French President Macron's US visit and the prospect of international war in Syria, Kanye West's apparent support for the President, and much more in this discussio...
Apr 26, 2018•1 hr 19 min
We join our friends at Tosche Station and the Book Wars Podcast to talk about Star Wars Multimedia Empire at Awesome Con! How do the books and comics in the Expanded Universe differ from the current canon books? Why do we read these books when we have the film? How do the books deepen and enrich politics in the Galaxy Far, Far Away? How can Lucasfilm do better with diversity and inclusion? We discuss all this and more! The new canon structure for the books may be confusing now, but we attempt to...
Apr 19, 2018•44 min
DJ has a bad reputation after selling out our heroes in The Last Jedi. Some have said he embodies the self interested nature of libertarianism, Ayn Rand and a school of thought known as Objectivism. Today we go into the weeds with Brittany Hunter of FEE to learn a bit about Objectivism, rational self interest and how DJ does or does not fall into that category. Before the main topic we talk about Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook and the departure of Paul Ryan from Congress. It's whirlwind episode of Be...
Apr 12, 2018•59 min
This past weekend we were at Awesome Con in Washington DC! Stephen and John join Nanci Schwartz, Brian Larsen and Bria Lavorgna of Tosche Station , and Jay Shah of Eleven-ThirtyEight to discuss the theme of redemption in the galaxy far, far away. If Vader can be redeemed, can anybody? Is Kylo Ren able to truly atone for the crimes he's committed? Tune in for a rich panel discussion of one of the franchise's major themes. Redemption has been a crucial part of Star Wars since 1983, but how often d...
Apr 05, 2018•43 min
Poe Dameron, beloved ace pilot of The Resistance, is he a sexist as some fans have claimed? Or was it simply his frustration under pressure and Vice Admiral Holdo's secrecy that led him to mutiny in The Last Jedi ? Let's talk gender politics in The Last Jedi! We welcome back our good friend Kate Sanchez of But Why Tho? The Podcast to discuss! Stephen, Swara, and Kate also discuss the March For Our Lives in DC this past weekend, Trump's attack on Amazon and the Austin TX bombings. We conclude wit...
Mar 29, 2018•1 hr 6 min
On this week's episode, we welcome Jon Lovett, one of the co-hosts of Pod Save America and host of Lovett or Leave It . Lovett explains to us how he got into Star Wars with the Special Editions, why he loves Rogue One and what motivates his political activism. Jon also offers his thoughts on a potential Star Wars political drama, that Hagerman dude who went off the grid to avoid Trump and Saw Gerrera. On Beltway Banthas, Stephen and Swara discuss politics, Star Wars, and all the ways they inters...
Mar 22, 2018•40 min
In a super light and not-at-all serious discussion this week (JK!), we dig into the First Order and extremism! How did George Lucas, JJ Abrams, and others envision the main bad guys of the Original Trilogy and Sequel Trilogy? Have they grown beyond the label of "Space Nazis" at all? Where do communism, fascism, terrorism, and other extremist ideologies come into play? Join the discussion on Beltway Banthas! Stephen and Swara also talk about trade wars in Star Wars and real life, the President's ...
Mar 15, 2018•1 hr 7 min
Dan Wallace is the author of beloved Star Wars books "The Jedi Path" "Book of the Sith" and "Imperial Handbook". Now he has penned another behind the scenes manuel for the Rebellion and joins the show to talk about it. John Liang interviewed Wallace last week and got the scoop on what the book reveals about the rebellion, galactic politics and more. Stephen and Swara also convene in the start of this episode to review the finale of Star Wars Rebels on Disney XD. It was a whirlwind final episode ...
Mar 08, 2018•1 hr 4 min
Rey and Kylo are seemingly total opposites...until the events of The Last Jedi. Through the Force and circumstance, these two foes connect in a way they never expected. Turns out - they have a lot in common. This week we are joined by Caitlin and Charlotte of the Skytalkers Podcasts to discuss "Reylo" and how it might relate to our own worlds broken politics. Get in touch with everyone on the show! Leave us a review on iTunes and tell us what you think of the show! Subscribe and connect with us ...
Mar 01, 2018•1 hr 12 min
Let's get political! This week on Beltway Banthas we are rejoined by Republican pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson of The Pollsters Podcast . Kristen is a huge Star Wars fan and came on to talk with Stephen about Rotten Tomatoes scores and how trolls factor into public perception of a movie. In addition to looking at The Last Jedi's scores, we discuss what an ideal method of gauging reaction to a movie would look like. Kristen offers reactions to The Last Jedi as a whole, and we also banter about ...
Feb 22, 2018•57 min
Swara and guest host Heath Williams of Rogue Podron discuss parallels between US presidents throughout American history and the various chief executives of Star Wars. From Chancellors Vallorum to Villecham, we trace the trends of executive leadership and how they compare to various occupants of the White House. We also give a reaction to the new Solo trailer and much more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ge...
Feb 15, 2018•56 min
Hello Banthas! This week we are joined by radio producer and head writer for Glenn Beck, Mr. Stu Burguiere. Stu is a big time Star Wars fan and all around enjoyable radio personality. We thought you'd enjoy this behind the curtain conversation with a notable conservative radio personality and fan. Stephen and Stu discuss his career trajectory, working with Beck, Star Wars role in his life and how the theme of the new films is exposing frauds. Every other week we try to introduce our listeners to...
Feb 08, 2018•1 hr 5 min
In our latest episode delving into the politics of The Last Jedi, we are joined by Entertainment Weekly's Anthony Breznican to discuss populism in the film! Do we use this term correctly? Are we actually seeing what is traditionally known as "populism" in the film? What does it really mean for common people to rise to power? We tackle all these questions and more! From the children on Canto Bight rebelling against their oppressors to Rey being from "nowhere," we see a rejection of legacy and hie...
Feb 01, 2018•59 min
Hello Banthas! This week we are excited to be joined by renowned science-fiction and fantasy author Ken Liu. His short stories have appeared in F&SF, Asimov's, Analog, Lightspeed, Clarkesworld and he recently debuted in Star Wars canon helming The Legends of Luke Skywalker. Ken joined our producer John Liang for a call where they discuss his background, Asian themes in Star Wars and the experience of adding to the new universe. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with oth...
Jan 25, 2018•52 min
It's the first of our in-depth discussion on The Last Jedi. This week we discuss the politics of Canto Bight! Joining us to discuss is political scientist Seth Masket! We discuss war profiteering, socioeconomic inequality, whether we think the sequence carries apt allegories, partisan interpretations of the sequence, and much more! Get in touch with everyone on the show! Leave us a review on iTunes and tell us what you think of the show! Subscribe and connect with us on Twitter: @ Stephen_Kent89...
Jan 18, 2018•1 hr 8 min
Hello Banthas and welcome to our first interview of 2018! This week we had the distinct honor of meeting the real humans behind the curtain of @RealTrumpatine , Twitters most prolific Star Wars and politics account. Every day the Emperor Trumpatine account pumps out amazing comedic content echoing whatever President Trump is Tweeting that day. It has kept us laughing from 2015 to today. This has been a year in the making, so meet Dan Udell and Tom Hunt, the two halves of the Trumpatine brain. Ge...
Jan 11, 2018•43 min
We’re back from our holiday hiatus! Stephen and Swara FINALLY offer their first spoiler-filled thoughts on The Last Jedi . This is the first of many episodes we’ll be having on this deeply layered film. In this episode, we touch all our favorite parts and hangups. We also overview its many political themes and list out what we’ll be talking about in the coming weeks. In this episodes Bantha Fodder segment, we kick off our new Patreon Bantha Fodder series patron Isaiah Leslie, who sent in his own...
Jan 04, 2018•1 hr
Beltway Banthas is all about bringing people together - so this week we did just that. Past guests of the show, GOP pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson ( host of The Pollsters Podcast ), Ben Domenech ( The Federalist) , Tamara Keith & Scott Detrow ( NPR Politics ) gathered at the Arlington library in Virginia to share their love of Star Wars. This was a live show in front of an audience. We recorded the the program for you to enjoy! The group discusses the politics of Star Wars, some polling by...
Dec 14, 2017•1 hr 11 min
What did the Empire do in the days and weeks following Return of the Jedi ? It's not a simple happy ending. The Emperor left orders for Operation Cinder, a brutal campaign that would leave countless dead and the groundwork laid for the First Order. This week we discuss Operation Cinder and real world parallels. Also! We are joined for a special segment by David Mark of the Morning Consult. They released a poll this week on American's opinions about Star Wars politics. The results are intriguing....
Dec 07, 2017•1 hr
The galaxy is total upheaval! The events of Episode VII left the political order of Star Wars in a fascinating state of disarray. This week on Beltway Banthas the crew looks at The Last Jedi and it's political questions. This is an episode of speculation, intrigue and analysis about a movie we are all dying to see. Swara, Stephen and John Liang also banter about Thanksgiving, Star Wars Battlefront 2, EA Games big controversy and much more! Want to support the show? Visit us on Patreon at www.pat...
Nov 30, 2017•54 min
Happy Thanksgiving! Beltway Banthas is taking this week off to connect with family & friends, but we did want to speak to you on this holiday. First, we want to thank you! This audience is amazing. We also share things we are thankful for in Star Wars and politics, as well as read your Tweets. Finally...some important announcements about the future of the show. Stick around for those in this holiday broadcast. Get in touch with everyone on the show! Leave us a review on iTunes and tell us wh...
Nov 23, 2017•22 min
