Best of the Left - Progressive Politics, News and Culture, Curated by Human Leftists, Not Algorithms or A.I. artwork

Best of the Left - Progressive Politics, News and Culture, Curated by Human Leftists, Not Algorithms or A.I.

1,676 episodes - English - Latest episode: 4 months ago - ★★★★★ - 3.1K ratings

Expertly-curated progressive politics, news and culture produced by leftist humans, not algorithms or A.I.. This is an award-winning podcast that dives deeply on a wide range of national, international and local issues facing society and governments. We draw from hundreds of sources of progressive news and commentary. Est. 2006.

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Episodes

Bonus Sample #280 Tracking people and animals in order to save them and ourselves

November 17, 2023 16:00 - 18 minutes - 12.9 MB

Air Date: 11-17-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - The internet culture of putting people on blast, - a reexamination of kids who want their parents to track their movements, - trying to learn about the human condition but getting tricked into watching poverty porn, - and using AI to talk to whales and save all life on earth REFERENCES: Teens Want Parents to Track Their Phones and Monitor Their Every Move - Wall Street Journal Whoever staves lease wins - Vulture ...

#1593 Beyond Neoliberalism: Dreaming a new economic system into being

November 15, 2023 01:55 - 1 hour - 42.7 MB

Air Date 11/14/2023 The Supreme Court turned the table on average, working people back in the 70s when they empowered wealthy individuals and corporations to have an outsized role in our politics. Now we're trapped in the reality that shift in power created and are dreaming of a better way to manage our economic and political systems for the benefit of all people. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.c...

#1592 Israel and Palestine are less complicated than you think: Standing for international law while condemning crimes against humanity, war crimes, antisemitism, and apartheid.

November 11, 2023 02:35 - 1 hour - 45.4 MB

Air Date 11/10/2023 Violence and oppression are destructive and corrosive to both the victim and perpetrator and this goes a long way toward explaining many of the dynamics at play in the holy land between Israelis and Palestinians. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Why Hamas Attacked Israel ...

#1591 Broken News: Understanding traditional media and social media reporting on the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza

November 06, 2023 20:20 - 1 hour - 44.2 MB

Air Date 11/6/2023 Media literacy is a basic requirement for understanding the war in Gaza, as propaganda, misinformation, and disinformation are being distributed for both ideological and financial reasons. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Breaking News Consumer's Handbook Israel-Gaza Edit...

#TBT #1510 Avoiding Accountability: How the powerful in the US have almost always been allowed to skate by (Throwback)

November 01, 2023 14:30 - 1 hour - 57.6 MB

Original Air Date: 8/31/2022 Today, as the news of Trump's various trials continues to drop out, we take a look back at this episode covering the long and illustrious history of powerful people avoiding prosecution in the United States. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Welcome to the golden age of...

#TBT #1507 Installing Loyalists: The Multi-Pronged Destruction of Our Democracy Already in Progress (Throwback)

October 27, 2023 14:23 - 1 hour - 47.3 MB

Original 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. Be part of the show! Leave us a messag...

#1590 Red Caesar and Project 2025: A fascist fever dream being given a vaguely respectable coat of paint by the Claremont Institute and the Heritage Foundation paving the way for an unconstrained, lawless, authoritarian Republican president

October 24, 2023 20:00 - 1 hour - 44.5 MB

Air Date 10/23/2023 The people who want to pull the country in directions that are only supported by a small minority of the population have to develop very intricate plans to have any hope of succeeding. This is the story of the latest plan to establish unchecked rule to implement unpopular policies supported only by the far right. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Cl...

Bonus Sample #279 Complainers gonna complain, creepers gonna creep

October 21, 2023 18:07 - 16 minutes - 11.6 MB

Air Date: 10-21-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - the complainers at The Atlantic - why a mindful workforce is an oxymoron - the myriad problems with creeping on people - how Taylor Swift is going to solve anti-native racism   REFERENCES: The Microwave Makes No Sense - The Atlantic  Real mindfulness would transform the economy - Vox  Maybe think twice before making an innocent stranger go viral? - NPR  The Very Common, Very Harmful Thing Well-Meaning ...

#1589 War in the Holy Land: Context Behind the Atrocities, Crimes Against Humanity, and the Possible Escalation That Will be Detrimental to All Sides in the Wake of the Hamas Attack Israel is Calling Their "9-11"

October 17, 2023 23:19 - 1 hour - 51.3 MB

Air Date 10/17/2023 There is absolutely no understanding of the conflict in Israel and Gaza without deep context, history, and human psychology. Those who attempt to find moral clarity through simplification of the situation will only find themselves supporting atrocities by one side or the other and demonstrate themselves to be fools in the process. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Me...

#1588 The Shutdown That Wasn't And The Chaos That Is: The far-right of the GOP has been intent on not governing for a long time and eating their own, like McCarthy most recently, is their go-to maneuver.

October 13, 2023 21:26 - 59 minutes - 41.3 MB

Air Date 10/13/2023 Understanding the historical context of the civil war within the GOP as they have just fought their way out of being able to govern at all with an empty Speakership in the house that is grinding congress to a halt. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Shutshow - Today, Explai...

#TBT #1545 Agents of Chaos: The New Congress (Throwback)

October 10, 2023 23:51 - 1 hour - 47.7 MB

Original Air Date: 2/22/2023 Today, we take a look at some of the work of the chaotic wrecking crew that is the GOP of the 118th Congress including their plan to hold the world economy hostage and weaponize the government against Democrats all while infighting their way to the 2024 presidential election. 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 commun...

#1587 What Conservatives Think of When They Think of the Children: Child Labor, Child Brides, Child Mothers, Childhood Poverty, Child Indoctrination

October 07, 2023 12:04 - 58 minutes - 40.1 MB

Air Date 10/7/2023 Spanning the gamut of terrible policy choices and their impacts on children, we look today at the perverse reality at odds with conservatives' claim to be standing up for "family values" and saving children from the abuse of Democrats. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! Related Episodes: #147...

#1586 Cop City is the Backlash to the Backlash Against Police Brutality and Murder, the Atlanta Community is Fighting Back and Creating a Blueprint for Change in the Process

October 04, 2023 00:17 - 1 hour - 48.2 MB

Air Date 10/3/2023 The Stop Cop City movement in Atlanta is the current tip of the spear of the police accountability movement but the instinct of elected officials to lean into building more and bigger policing facilities is likely to spread as part of the backlash to the backlash against police violence which calls for defunding and redistributing resources to programs that actually help people. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft....

Bonus Edition #278 Obfuscating Reality Through Layers of Fantasy

September 29, 2023 22:44 - 19 minutes - 13.5 MB

Air Date: 9-29-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - The economics of witch trials - The creation of content for capital - Layers and layers of bullshit obscure reality - Post script: visit to the Salem museum   REFERENCES: How Social Turmoil Has Increased Witch Hunts throughout History - Scientific American  To Be a Consumer of Culture Means Living in a Hostage Situation - Slate  WE’VE LOST THE PLOT - The Atlantic  Dance, I Said — Dance! And Leave the Pa...

#1585 Workers Rights Ascendent Amid Writers and Actors Strikes in Hollywood and the UAW Strikes Against the Big 3 US Automakers all While the Sociopathic Reality of Capitalism is Laid Bare by CEOs Explain How Exploiting Workers is Intrinsic to the System

September 26, 2023 23:35 - 59 minutes - 40.8 MB

Air Date 9/26/2023 Rays of hope for the worker's struggle against unfettered, exploitative capitalism are coming from multiple angles as strikes from creatives in Hollywood and autoworkers in Detroit are striking to demand wages, benefits, and protections while executives make arguments for why workers should be made to feel the threat of poverty to keep them in line. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLe...

#1584 Israel's Political Upheaval, Supreme Court Power Struggle, US Support, and the Normalization of Apartheid

September 24, 2023 21:14 - 1 hour - 41.9 MB

Air Date 9/24/2023 Israel's politics have been upended by the return of Netanyahu as Prime Minister, put in office with the help of extremely far-right factions who have now pushed through reforms to the Israeli Supreme Court that fundamentally undermine their democracy. All this while they were already a farce of a democracy due to the maintenance of an apartheid-like system of differing rules applying to different residents based on ethnicity. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or...

#TBT #1360 Redefine, Unburden and #DefundThePolice: With Copy City renewing debate over policing, we look back at the counterargument (Throwback)

September 22, 2023 19:31 - 59 minutes - 40.8 MB

Original Air Date: 8/8/2020 Today we take a look at the concept of defunding the police; what it means, what it doesn't and what the goals of the movement are.  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 Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Race, Police, & The Pandemic - FRONTLINE - Air Date 6-2-20 Jelani Cobb describes how the relationship between...

#1583 Alluring Conspiracy Culture vs Capitalism: The Driving Forces that are Attracting People into Conspiratorial Thinking About Trump, COVID, Economics, Military Affairs and More.

September 18, 2023 23:49 - 1 hour - 42.3 MB

Air Date 9/18/2023 Exploring the captivating world of conspiracy theories! We are all wired to believe misinformation to some degree, but not all to the same degree. With help from Naomi Klein, and other experts, discover why people are drawn to conspiracies, the psychology behind belief and ideas about the best way to prevent conspiratorial thinking. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (M...

#TBT ​#1190 Island Recovering From Disaster: Hurricane Maria laid bare the colonialism and capitalism in Puerto Rico (Throwback)

September 16, 2023 00:01 - 57 minutes - 39.5 MB

Original Air Date: 6/15/2018 The high toll Puerto Rico is paying, in both money and lives, for the triple disasters of colonialism, Hurricane Maria and disaster capitalism 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 Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Deadlier than Katrina & 9/11 Hurricane Maria Killed 4,645 in Puerto Rico, 70 Times Official Toll - ...

#1582 Maui Fire Sale: Hawaiian Colonization, Disaster Capitalism, and the Climate Crisis Fueling Wildfires and Housing Insecurity in Native Hawaiian Communities on Maui and Beyond

September 13, 2023 22:29 - 56 minutes - 38.9 MB

Air Date 9/13/2023 This eye-opening episode will explore the complex web of colonialism, disaster capitalism, and climate change is ravaging Native Hawaiian communities. We explore how corporations and privatization going back to annexation have exacerbated wildfires, water scarcity and housing issues in Hawaii. We also discuss the role of tourism and its impact on local culture and resources and learn how community-led mutual aid efforts are offering a glimmer of hope for the unhoused and...

Bonus Sample: The human condition since the Christianization of Europe

September 08, 2023 21:06 - 17 minutes - 12.1 MB

Air Date: 9-8-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - The need for good structures of society, not scripture - Jesus is too liberal for Christians - Amateur anthropology - Technology and humanity - Drugs and alcohol   REFERENCES: Report: Record Number Of People Following Their Hearts - Babylon Bee The Misunderstood Reason Millions of Americans Stopped Going to Church - The Atlantic Evangelicals Are Now Rejecting 'Liberal' Teachings of Jesus - Newsweek Doug Rushk...

#1581 Indicted Authoritarianism Up For Debate: GOP presidential candidates debate the future of the party just in case Donald Trump is found guilty of any of his many crimes and somehow manages to lose the GOP primary or is barred from office.

September 07, 2023 03:24 - 1 hour - 41.8 MB

Air Date 9/6/2023 The first GOP presidential debate happened without the frontrunner, Donald Trump, being present for the event but rather hanging over the proceedings like a specter. Meanwhile, Trump's legal troubles continue to mount and we examine what it is that is keeping Republican voters and presidential candidates alike, with minor exceptions, firmly defending the former president. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Tr...

#1580 Bet Your Life: Sports betting is opening new and expensive ways to waste your time and destroy your mental health. The impacts of gambling are straining the legitimacy of sports and how they're reported by ESPN and beyond.

September 03, 2023 20:39 - 1 hour - 42.1 MB

Air Date 9/3/2023 Sports gambling through smartphones has become widely available and wildly addictive but the effects are being felt beyond the individual gambler's bank account and anxiety levels. Partnerships between gambling companies and colleges, influencers, and even journalistic institutions like ESPN are changing the fundamentals of the sports themselves and how they're understood by fans - all for the worse. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or ema...

#TBT ​#1152 Rise of the Oligarchs Like the Ones Taking Clarence Thomas on Trips: From the Libertarians of the Chicago School and the Push for Market Fundamentalism to the Megadonors Pulling the Strings of Politicians Today (Money in Politics) (Throwback

August 31, 2023 20:56 - 54 minutes - 37.5 MB

Original Air Date: 12/15/2017 The history and current state of rich people seeking to undermine democratic rule by the people in favor of oligarchy for the rich  Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Show Notes Ch. 1: Why The Koch Brothers Despise The Constitution - Majority Report (@MajorityFM) - Air Date: 07-26-17 Ch. 2: Jane Mayer on the Rise of Conservative Orthodoxy - On The Media - Air Date 5-5-17 Ch. 3: The complicated...

#1506 Native Landback for a Healthier Society and Environment (Repost)

August 30, 2023 03:45 - 1 hour - 58.7 MB

Original Air Date 8/10/2022 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. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Why It’s Time To G...

#1504 Neurodiversity is Strength: Autism, ADHD and Beyond (Repost)

August 27, 2023 12:37 - 1 hour - 53.8 MB

Original Air Date 8/2/2022 Explaining neurodiversity 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. Autism, ADHD and other examples of neurodiversity all have positive attributes that rarely get talked about which blinds society to those benefits but also perpetuates stigma. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfT...

#TBT #1209 How to Debate Your Values: Being part of the solution in an age of hyper-polarization as we enter a new election cycle (Throwback)

August 25, 2023 14:39 - 58 minutes - 40.7 MB

Original Air Date 9-11-2018 Strategies to, and reasons why we need to, have better political conversations. As the first GOP debate signals the beginning of a new election cycle with the country divided as ever, we could always use a refresher on better ways to communicate. 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 Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch....

#1579 Positive masculinity is a process. Many boys hear more about what they shouldn't say, how they shouldn't act, but without a strong alternative example which opens the door for the purveyors of toxic masculinity like Andrew Tate to fill the gap.

August 24, 2023 01:49 - 1 hour - 45.9 MB

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 202-...

#1578 A.I. is a big tech airplane with a 10% chance of crashing, should society fly it? ChatGPT was only the starter pistol but it has shown the sloppiness of these companies and the need for regulate artificial intelligence for the public good.

August 20, 2023 17:18 - 1 hour - 44.9 MB

Air Date 8/20/2023 Big tech is currently scrambling to bring untested A.I. products to market, over-promising, under-delivering, and working hard obscure and ignore any possible downsides for society. Big tech needs A.I. regulation now before we all suffer the easily foreseeable consequences as well as some unforeseeable ones. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips an...

#TBT #1323 Maui Fire and Power to the People: The Future of Public Ownership and Local Control (Throwback)

August 18, 2023 02:18 - 1 hour - 12 MB

Original Air Date 12-7-2019 In the context of the devastating fire on Maui, we are replaying this throwback episode to look at the reaction to decades of the fetishization of privatization in the form of a reinvigorated movement for public ownership of institutions meant to serve the public such as utilities, banks, train systems and so on. But this isn't your grandfather's top-down public ownership, the new movement has bottom-up, accountable, democratic control of institutions at the ver...

Bonus Sample #276 There Are No Mild-Mannered People on the Internet

August 16, 2023 04:05 - 17 minutes - 12.3 MB

Air Date: 8-15-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - The Internet, it turns out, is bad - Musk and Zuckerberg cage fight - The "Dopamine Detox" movement   REFERENCES: The Ugly Honesty of Elon Musk’s Twitter Rebrand The ‘Dopamine Detox’ Is Having a Moment Dopamine fasting: Misunderstanding science spawns a maladaptive fad #dopamine  #dopamineaddiction  #classpolitics  #disabilitystudies - slug.town on TikTok   Join our Discord Server Leave a message at 202-...

#1577 Trump's historic third indictment containing three counts of conspiracy and one of obstruction regarding the 2020 election and Jan 6th, 2021

August 12, 2023 13:00 - 1 hour - 45.2 MB

Air Date 8/12/2023 Today, we take a look at the most consequential case against Trump which summarizes his direct involvement in using allegedly illegal means to contest the 2020 election while making knowingly false claims about the legitimacy of election process while directing a conspiracy of followers to do the same. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Show...

#TBT #1054 What Drives Trump Conservatives - "Strangers in Their Own Land" (Throwback)

August 10, 2023 19:43 - 1 hour - 42.6 MB

Original Air Date 11-1-2016 Today we dive deeply into the world of conservatives as described in the new book “Strangers in their own Land” by Arlie Russel Hochschild in an attempt to understand how some non-deplorable people in the country could be supporting Donald Trump. 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 Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! Show Notes Ch....

#1499 January 6th Insurrection Hearings (Everyone Knew The Lie Was A Lie) (Repost)

August 09, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 43.7 MB

Original 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. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content) Join our Discord community! S...

#1576 How Florida's education reform works to maintain unjust power imbalances

August 07, 2023 02:41 - 59 minutes - 41.4 MB

Air Date 8/6/2023 Today, we take a look at the education curriculum reforms currently being pushed through in Florida through the lens of the long pattern of choosing to see our history in a way that comforts the comfortable and afflicts the afflicted. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Meet...

Bonus Sample #275 Alternate Universes

August 04, 2023 21:17 - 17 minutes - 12.5 MB

Air Date: 8-4-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - Barbie, Black Mirror and corporations in on the joke - The Extended Mattel Cinematic Universe - The alternate conservative commerce universe - The alternate conservative entertainment universe REFERENCES: Sorry Netflix, Streamberry isn't funny - Mashable Matt Gaetz Can’t Say Margot Robbie Is Hot Without Being Transphobic - Rolling Stone Can the Daily Wire Become a Right-Wing Entertainment Machine? - Bloomberg Joi...

#1575 Cluster Headache, Matching War Crimes with War Crimes Against Russia in Ukraine

August 02, 2023 17:49 - 1 hour - 41.8 MB

Air Date 8/2/2023 Today, we take a look at the status of the war in Ukraine and the decision made recently for the US to provide cluster bombs to Ukraine, a munition that Biden's Press Sec. referred to as a potential war crime when it was reported that Russia had used them. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW...

#1497 A Healthier Humanity Through a Wellness Economy (Repost)

July 31, 2023 02:20 - 1 hour - 51.2 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Original 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. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay...

#TBT #1250 Teachers at the forefront of a resurgent progressive labor movement (Throwback)

July 28, 2023 02:18 - 41 minutes - 28.4 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Original Air Date: 2/15/2019 Today we take a look at recent teachers union strike in the Los Angeles school district and see it as another event in an emerging pattern of progressive uprisings that have been stirring for the last decade, fighting back against the status quo, neoliberal instinct to privatize everything for the ultimate benefit of billionaires.  Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or ...

#1574 Creative vs Control: Hollywood strikes for livable wages and the future of human creativity

July 26, 2023 03:49 - 54 minutes - 37.5 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Air Date 7/25/2023 Today, we take a look at the impact of the rise of streaming video services and the potential for AI-written scripts on the future of show business and those trying to earn a living from it. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Writers Guild Strikes Back | Adam Conover Part 1 - The Majori...

#1573 Confronting Climate Chaos with Action and Adaptation

July 22, 2023 20:33 - 1 hour - 43.2 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Air Date 7/22/2023 Today, we take a look at the action needed to curb and adapt to the extreme weather that climate change is already delivering Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Climate and energy journalist Andrew Freedman on the spate of record-shattering extreme weather - The BradCast - Air Date 7-1...

#TBT #1311 Our Culture and Our Economy are Making Us Depressed (Throwback)

July 19, 2023 04:44 - 1 hour - 52 MB

Original Air Date: 10/16/2019 Today we take a look at the literally depressing truth about our economy, our work and the culture that surrounds it. We work too hard to be perfect, we don't get enough time off, many of us don't have enough control over the work we do and too many know their jobs are completely worthless. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) SHOW NOTES ...

#1572 Building a circular, sustainable economy for all

July 16, 2023 19:00 - 56 minutes - 38.9 MB

Air Date 7/16/2023 Today, we take a look at the problems of overconsumption and some policy solutions for reducing waste through a circular, rather than linear, approach to the economy. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Is capitalism actually broken? - TED-Ed - Air Date 11-1-22 People have become incre...

Bonus Sample #274 The good news is that the end is nigh

July 14, 2023 23:50 - 16 minutes - 11.7 MB

Air Date: 7-14-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - A bad take on smartphones - Eating alone - Lunches of suffering - The failure of Instant Pot REFERENCES: What Did People Do Before Smartphones? A Brief History of the 'Sad Desk Lunch' Party Of 1: We Are Eating A Lot Of Meals AloneParty Of 1: We Are Eating A Lot Of Meals Alone ‘Lunch of suffering’: plain ‘white people food’ goes viral in China The Instant Pot Failed Because It Was a Good Product   Join our Dis...

#1571 Understanding what we lost with the repeal of affirmative action

July 12, 2023 03:23 - 1 hour - 42.8 MB

Air Date 7/11/2023 Today, we take a look at the history and unceremonious end of affirmative action for college admissions that were an attempt to correct the compounded impact of hundreds of years of systemic racism. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Affirmative Reactions Part 1 - Straight White Americ...

#1570 The overpopulation debate is more philosophical than empirical

July 09, 2023 02:37 - 1 hour - 44.1 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Become a member in July for 20% off!) Air Date 7/8/2023 Today, we take a look at the dubious, ideologically-driven debate between overpopulation being a danger to the future of humanity and it being a dangerous myth obscuring the real issue of over-consumption Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Is Overpopulation Killing the Planet? - Id...

#TBT #1155 Leisure, Desperation or a Reorientation (The Future of Work) (Throwback)

July 07, 2023 03:00 - 56 minutes - 38.8 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Original Air Date: 1/2/2018 Today we take a look at a few different visions of what the future holds for our labor market and some policies we should be putting in place to set the scene for the coming evolution of work Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Show Notes Act 1: The future of work in a world of artificial intelligence - Ideas - Air Date 9-12-17 Act 2: ...

#1569 Winning Progressive Policies with Better Messaging

July 04, 2023 21:33 - 53 minutes - 37.2 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get 20% Off Membership in July!) Air Date 7/4/2023 Today, we take a look at the difference between the kind of political messaging that feels like the right thing to say and the reframed messages that actually get political results that allow for progressive policies to get passed. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Why Behind The What ...

Bonus Sample #273 Marriage Proposals

July 02, 2023 02:10 - 14 minutes - 13.4 MB

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Become a member in July for 20% off!)   Air Date: 7-1-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Erin and Deon discuss: - Marriage and christianity collapsing - Free lunches for kids - Neo-nazis doing pushups at Pride - The assault on no-fault divorce - Hannah Gadsby's wedding cake   REFERENCES: Marriage collapse, absent fathers 'unraveling' Christianity in growing US crisis: study Nevada Legislature Advances Bill to Extend Free School Meals Into 2025 Neo-Nazis tr...

#1495 No One Supports the Economic Interests of Rural America (Repost)

June 28, 2023 06:06 - 1 hour - 54.6 MB

Original 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 or text at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonus Content) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: How can Democ...

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