This podcast is a beautifully executed compilation combining the absolute best in progressive and liberal political news, commentary and occasional comedy with great music to pull it all together. Each edition focuses on a political theme and delivers a variety of stories and perspectives from an array of sources on that theme. By the way, this is an ENHANCED PODCAST with cool features built in which is fun but that means that it's not compatible with everyone's audio player. For the STANDARD MP3 feed visit BestOfTheLeft.com to subscribe (even if you still want to use iTunes to manage your subscription).
Air Date 5/15/2024
In an age of cultish in-group/out-group politics and media, we seek to find messaging for progressive partisans to achieve electoral success
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FRONTPAGE
FP 1: Everything's a cult now - The Gray Area
FP 2: Examining how U.S. politics became intertwined with personal identity - PBS NewsHour
FP 3: Jason Stanley on the Politics of Language - Amanpour and Company
FP 4: A Conversation About How Dems Can Win in November with Rachel Bitecofer - Deep State Radio
FP 5: Employ Negative Partisanship w. Rachel Bitecofer - Future Hindsight
FP 6: Everything's ... Part 2
FP 7: Hit 'Em Where It Hurts ... Part 2
FP 8: Employ Negative ... Part 2
(59:24) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
On the importance of finding common-but-adaptable messaging
(1:02:14) SECTION A: IDENTITY
A2: Examining how U.S. ... Part 2
(1:10:14) SECTION B: POLITICAL RHETORIC
B1: 'Hit 'Em Where It Hurts' urges Dems to go on attack - Morning Joe
B2: 'Our message resonated with voters' - Morning Joe
B3: Watch VP Harris slams Trump over abortion access - MSNBC
(1:26:17) SECTION C: MESSAGING
C2: Republican Policies VERY Unpopular With Voters - The Majority Report
C4: Employ Negative ... Part 3
(1:50:33) SECTION D: INDEPENDENTS
Air Date 5/11/2024
The effort to turn theory into practice that will open up new ways of thinking about antitrust lawsuits attempting to rein in big tech and other mega-corporations, which are operating in a new phase of capitalism.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: FTC Chair Lina Khan on Antitrust in the age of Amazon - Planet Money - Air Date 11-3-23
On today's show, a conversation with FTC Chair Lina Khan on what it's like to try to turn audacious theory into bureaucratic practice, the FTC's new lawsuit against Amazon, and what it all means for business as usual.
Ch. 2: Apple's Antitrust Problem - Professor Talha Syed - The BTLJ Podcast - Air Date 3-10-24
Professor Syed reveals his thoughts and assessment of the new Brandeis movement, headed by Lina Khan and Jonathan Kanter of the FTC and DOJ.
Ch. 3: FTC Chair Lina Khan on Antitrust in the age of Amazon Part 2 - Planet Money - Air Date 11-3-23
Ch. 4: How to Fight Monopoly Power with FTC Chair Lina Khan - Factually! - Air Date 11-8-23
Lina Khan, appointed chair of the Federal Trade Commission by President Biden, has become the foremost voice of this movement and has engaged in high-profile battles to reshape how America deals with monopolies.
MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)
Ch. 8: Real Estate Fees Crushed By Anti-Trust w David Dayen - The Majority Report - Air Date 3-26-24
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 12: Final comments on the new show format tried out in the campus protesters episode as well as a retraction
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE:
Description: A court document with “Antitrust” at the top sits on a desk with a gavel and block on top.
Credit: “Antitrust” by Nick Youngson via Pix4free | License: CC BY-SA 3.0 | Changes: Added solid background
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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Air Date 5/7/2024
Civil resistance on campuses across the country against Israeli genocide in Gaza calling for cease fire and divestment, university administrations up to the Biden administration respond, often with overwhelming violence and claims of antisemitism.
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FRONTPAGE
FP 1: The US college protests... - Today in Focus - Air Date 4-25-24
FP 2: Behind Columbia... - Al Jazeera English - Air Date 4-24-24
(47:13) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
(50:54) SECTION A: POLICE RESPONSES
A1: Atlanta Police Violently Arrest Emory... - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-26-24
A2: Juan González, Veteran of '68 Columbia Strike... - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-1-24
(1:06:59) SECTION B: INSIDE THE PROTESTS
B1: Pro-Israel THUGS Attack... - Owen Jones - Air Date 5-1-24
B2: Live from the Encampments - CODEPINK Radio - Air Date 5-1-24
(1:34:52) SECTION C: BIDEN'S POLITICS AND ACCUSATIONS OF ANTISEMITISM
C1: Nicholas Kristof ... Part 2 - Brian Lehrer - Air Date 4-26-24
C2: Manufactured Panic Over Peaceful... - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-23-24
(1:57:05) SECTION D: UNIVERSITY ADMINS AND ENDOWMENTS
D1: Why Colleges Have No Idea... - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 4-23-24
D2: Columbia University President ... - The Bitchuation Room - Air Date 4-27-24
(2:37:42) SECTION E: MEDIA CRITICISM
IMAGE
Description: A photo of a lawn in front of a university building at Vassar College showing students standing near tents, a sign that reads "Liberation," and a Palestinian flag along a walkway.
Credit: "Liberation Lawn at Vassar College (cropped)" by Found5dollar, Wikimedia | License: CC BY-SA 4.0 | Changes: Cropped
Air Date: 5-5-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - Jerry Seinfeld blaming the "extreme left" and "PC culture" for the death of sitcoms - how Poe's Law (and the Amanda Principle) makes creating and identifying satire difficult - how TV shows trying to satirize the left for the left struggle to land the jokes
Jerry Seinfeld Is a Lazy Hack Out of Touch with the Real World—And Who Can Blame Him?
‘In the Know’ Showrunners Unpack Its Loving Evisceration of Public Radio, Progressive Politics
Zach Woods, NPR Fan, Reads NPR Fans for Filth
Exclusive: In the Know's Zach Woods and Brandon Gardner on Satirizing Liberals with Mike Judge
The Cleaner - S2 E5 The Statue (Acorn)
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Produced by: Jay! Tomlinson Thanks for listening! Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at [email protected] Review the show on Apple Podcasts!
Air Date 5/3/2024
A look back at previous coverage of criminalizing protests, weaponizing civility, and violent responses to peaceful dissent.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: The Problem with Civility - On the Media - Air Date 6-30-18
Ch. 2: Criminalizing Protest - @USNewsBeat - Air Date 6-14-18
Ch. 3: Civility as a cudgel - Trumpcast - Air Date 6-30-18
Ch. 4: Protests Sweep Across America and Beyond Part 2 - The Daily Show - Air Date 6-9-20
Ch. 6: Anti-Protest Bills Popping Up Everywhere - David Pakman Show - Air Date 8-19-20
Ch. 7: Elly Page on Anti-Protest Bills - CounterSpin - Air Date 4-23-21
Ch. 8: Not Ready For That Conversation - On The Media - Air Date 4-23-21
Ch. 9: GOP States Are Pushing for Stricter Penalties for Protesters - The Takeaway - Air Date 4-27-21
Ch. 10: How Corporate Media Protects Violent Cops - Carlos Maza - Air Date 6-4-20
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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Air Date 5/1/2024
The past, present, and future of tackling the uselessness of extreme wealth by exposing and closing tax avoidance loopholes and pushing for a culture change to embrace the need for a more equal society.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: What Happens When You Tax Billionaires at 90 Percent? - The Hartmann Report - Air Date 6-3-23
We did it before, and the result was the creation of the world’s first and largest middle class and a level of peace and prosperity that held its own until Ronald Reagan took a meat-axe to it…
If you think school teachers shouldn't pay a higher tax rate than billionaires, join us to learn how you can join in on the fight to #TaxBillionaires!
Ch. 3: Wealth Tax Part 1 - Pullback - Air Date 4-11-23
Should we be taxing Scrooge-McDuck wealth? Can we? We talk with friend of the pod Fariya Mohiuddin, a Senior Program Officer with the International Budget Partnership's Tax Equity Program, and our favourite tax justice researcher and activist.
If you're serious about alleviating poverty, as most liberals claim to be, should there be a cap on how wealthy one person can be?
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 12: Final comments on anger and irrationality in war and politics
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE:
Description: A protester holds a sign that says “Tax the Rich”
Credit: “We have a right to the city. Tax the rich.” by dignidadrebelde, Flickr | License: CC BY 2.0 | Changes: Cropped
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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Contact me directly at [email protected]
Air Date: 4-29-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - how the film 'Civil War' intentionally avoids any specifics about the "why", and in doing so becomes a perfect encapsulation of the Amanda Principle™
- how "the view from nowhere" journalism is supposed to be straight down the middle and fact-based, but is actually rife with bias and ends up representing the dominant culture - that America and its culture has been steeped in war and violence since it's inception - the similarities between modern America and Germany in 1933
REFERENCES: Americans Have Enjoyed Imagining Civil War for a Long, Long Time
How to Both-Sides a “Civil War”
Alex Garland's Civil War Plays Both Sides
Opinion: Is the US on the brink of another civil war?
‘Civil War’ and the Dangerous Myth of ‘Unbiased’ Journalism
America Isn’t Nazi Germany, but It Looks a Little Like 1933
Modern Mathematics Confronts Its White, Patriarchal Past
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Produced by: Jay! Tomlinson Thanks for listening! Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at [email protected] Review the show on Apple Podcasts!
Original Air Date 9/14/2022
Today, we take a look at the history and hysteria behind debt and debt forgiveness while Biden is canceling student debt and opponents of the idea are reacting in the most predictable way possible because they misunderstand the relationship between debt and morality.
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SHOW NOTES
We speak to Astra Taylor, writer, filmmaker, and co-director of the Debt Collective, a union for debtors and one of the original advocates for a debt jubilee that would cancel all student debt.
Ch. 2: Freedom Dreams: Black Women and the Student Debt Crisis - The Intercept - Air Date 8-22-22
The Intercept’s new documentary, “Freedom Dreams: Black Women and the Student Debt Crisis,” profiles Black women educators and activists struggling under the weight of tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, in student loan debt.
Ch. 3: Hidden History of Student Debt - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 8-25-22
Many woke up to find news that $10k of their student debt would be forgiven, Thom Hartmann and Jefferson Smith break down what this means and what happens next.
Max breaks down the politics, the details, and biggest misses of the Biden student debt relief plan and why it’s in danger of being PITOTWIU
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 11: Final comments on morality and money
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE:
Description: A dark gray, 3D image of the word "DEBT" sits in a white void, a connected chain and open shackle with an open padlock lie in front of it.
Credit: "3D Shackled Debt" by Chris Potter, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0 | Changes: Enlarged with more white background
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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Air Date 4/24/2024
Only by understanding the past can we understand the present and the histories of Cuba and Haiti have very stark lessons to impart about the cruelty of the Cuba embargo, the repercussions of imperial exploitation, and the dangers that arise amid dysfunctional democracy.
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SHOW NOTES
Musa Springer, Erica Caines, & Onyesonwu Chatoyer from Hood Communist discuss their participation in The Second International Meeting of Theoretical Publications of Left Parties and Movements and discuss history and present events playing out in Haiti.
Ryan Grim delves into the complexities of Cuba’s current economic crisis with Andrés Pertierra, a historian of Latin America and the Caribbean.
"The root of this crisis is not last week, it's not this week, it's not even Ariel Henry. But we have to go back to 2004 with the coup-d'état," says Pierre.
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 11: Final comments on the dangers of unrepresentative, unresponsive government
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE:
Description: Photo of a protester in 2007 holding a large cloth sign that says “Solidarity…Haiti YES! Occupation NO. Canada-US-U.N. OUT of Haiti”
Credit: “Solidarity - Haiti Yes - Occupation No” by Robert Thivierge, Flickr | License: CC BY-SA 2.0 | Changes: Cropped
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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Air Date: 4-22-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - How Israeli citizens and government officials use of the US's settler-colonialist past, westward expansion, and religious fundamentalism to justify their own settler expansion - How the members of the extreme right are put in positions of power within the Israeli government, which is then used to validate the settler's actions - The role racist propaganda and intergenerational trauma play in convincing Israelis of the righteousness of their settler-colonialist actions - The societal dangers of living in an ethnostate combined with feeling of specialness that comes from generations of victimhood
REFERENCES: The Israeli Settlers Attacking Their Palestinian Neighbors
The grandmother who wants to lead Israelis back to a Gaza without Palestinians
A debate over Israel-Palestine curriculum flares at Berkeley schools
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Produced by: Jay! Tomlinson Thanks for listening! Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at [email protected] Review the show on Apple Podcasts!
Air Date 4/20/2024
Old habits die hard and the American establishment's unquestioning support for Israel is a very old habit indeed. Israel's government drifts farther and farther to the right, culminating in a genocidal push into Gaza. Meanwhile, President Biden, standard-bearer of the old establishment, seems destined to be the very last Democrat to see the need for a change.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: Jon Stewart Interrogates America's Support of Israel - The Daily Show - Air Date 4-8-24
Jon Stewart checks in on the war in Gaza and interrogates how America's purported values stack up against its support of Israel. Plus, Ronny Chieng and Grace Kuhlenschmidt report from the eclipse's path of totality with startling different reports.
Roth tells host Steve Clemons that US President Joe Biden is engaging in “cynical” election politics by refusing to enforce the UN resolution calling for a ceasefire, or the World Court ruling ordering Israel to allow more food into Gaza
In this video, we’ll look at comments from both Youssef and Stewart, examples of “performative” outrage from politicians, and demands from voters that the Democratic Party and Joe Biden are refusing to meet.
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 9: Final comments on the words we've heard and the actions we've seen from Israel's government
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE:
Description: Photo of a protest outside the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC in honor of Airman Aaron Bushnell’s self-sacrifice. Protestors kneel behind a banner that says “Stop U.S. Support of Genocide.”
Credit: “50.Gather.AaronBushnellVigil.WDC.26February2024” by Elvert Barnes, Flickr | License: CC BY-SA 2.0 | Changes: Cropped
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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