Air Date: 10/17/2026

Today we look at how being poor in America is made harder on purpose. The hours of paperwork it takes to keep food assistance or Medicaid are there to shrink the programs quietly by attrition and make failure feel like a personal problem. The same design runs through a healthcare system that profits when care is denied and the patient doesn't have the time to fight back. The alternative is the kind of program you'd design if you thought everyone living in a wealthy society was worthy of a dignified life.

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: The Time Cost of Bureaucracy Part 1 - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 8-28-26

KP 2: The Vague, Capital-Serving Co-Optation of Affordability Politics Part 1 - Citations Needed - Air Date 6-17-26

KP 3: No One Can Escape The Time Tax Part 1 - What A Day - Air Date 9-3-26

KP 4: The $29 Trillion Social Security Crisis We Already Know How to Fix ( with Rey Fuentes) Part 1 - Pitchfork Economics - Air Date 9-8-26

KP 5: The Time Cost of Bureaucracy Part 2 - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 8-28-26

KP 6: Merchants of Death The Men Who Killed Healthcare in America. Part 1 - UNFTR - Air Date 9-4-26

(00:52:13) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

On the Launch of Our Social Media System

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DEEPER DIVES

(00:58:24) SECTION A: SOCIAL INSURANCE AND WORKER PROTECTIONS

A1: The New Deal - Everything Everywhere Daily - Air Date 10-9-26

A2: Terri Gerstein on Gig Workers Rights Part 1 - CounterSpin - Air Date 10-9-26

A3: The $29 Trillion Social Security Crisis We Already Know How to Fix ( with Rey Fuentes) Part 2 - Pitchfork Economics - Air Date 9-8-26

A4: Terri Gerstein on Gig Workers Rights Part 2 - CounterSpin - Air Date 10-9-26

(01:32:26) SECTION B: THE TIME TAX AND BURDEN BY DESIGN

B1: How the Government Wastes Our Time Part 1 - Fresh Air - Air Date 8-31-26

B2: No One Can Escape The Time Tax Part 2 - What A Day - Air Date 9-3-26

B3: How the Government Wastes Our Time Part 2 - Fresh Air - Air Date 8-31-26

(01:57:46) SECTION C: HEALTH CARE UNDER ATTACK

C1: The Cost of Drugs From Canada Is Set to Soar for Millions of Americans - CBS Pittsburgh - Air Date 10-8-26

C2: Merchants of Death The Men Who Killed Healthcare in America. Part 2 - UNFTR - Air Date 9-4-26

C3: Hidden Cuts to Health Care - Letters From An American - Air Date 8-20-26

(02:23:21) SECTION D: AFFORDABILITY POLITICS AND THE RISING LEFT

D1: Raina Lipsitz on DSA Politics Part 1 - CounterSpin - Air Date 9-25-26

D2: The Vague, Capital-Serving Co-Optation of Affordability Politics Part 2 - Citations Needed - Air Date 6-17-26

D3: Raina Lipsitz on DSA Politics Part 2 - CounterSpin - Air Date 9-25-26

D4: El-Sayed Affordability Crisis Is Destroying Dreams - The Moment - Air Date 8-28-26

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Air Date: 10/13/2026

Today we look at rape culture as a system that contains far more than the crimes. This topic was prompted by the Cornell 7 story but it starts with little boys annoying girls and having it excused as affection, runs through the "nice guy" who treats kindness as a down payment, and ends with the false claim that men can't be expected to control their sexual urges. We're organizing the episode a little differently than normal, with the material everyone should hear in the first hour and the deeper dives being reserved for that which men particularly need to face but that assault victims may want to skip.

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: It's Not About Sex: How Rape Culture Actually Works - Therese - Air Date 10-7-26

KP 2: AOC on the Campus Sexual Assault Factory - The Bitchuation Room (with Francesca Fiorentini) - Air Date 9-30-26 (Excerpt)

KP 3: Is It True That Men Can't Control Themselves Sexually? Consequences Vs. Temptations - Huey Li and the News - Air Date 10-5-26 (Excerpt)

KP 4: The Cornell 7: What Really Happened in Those 19 Days? - Therese - Air Date 10-3-26

KP 5: LSU Finds Student Responsible For Sexual Assault & DOESN'T CHARGE HIM - Indisputable with Dr. Rashad Richey - Air Date 9-28-26

KP 6: Turns Out The "Nice Guy" Is Actually TERRIFYING... Marina McBain - Air Date 6-6-26

KP 7: Jacob Geller, Cornell & the Future We Save for Men Part 1 - Jessie Gender - Air Date 10-7-26

KP 8: Men Scare Me and Good Men Make Excuses - Kat Blaque - Air Date 10-3-26 (Excerpt)

KP 9: Jacob Geller, Cornell & the Future We Save for Men Part 2 - Jessie Gender - Air Date 10-7-26 (Excerpt)

(01:04:10) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Blaming Assault on Men's Lack of Self-Control Is Toddler Logic

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:14:34) SECTION A: WHAT BOYS ARE TAUGHT ABOUT BEING MEN

A1: Why Do Men Struggle with Empathy: The Problem of Transactional Relationships - Expatriarch - Air Date 11-5-24

A2: The Complicity of Geek Masculinity on the Big Bang Theory - Pop Culture Detective - Air Date 9-29-17

A3: Why Every Character in Obsession Failed Nikki - Kimbaland - Air Date 6-27-26

A4: The Problem With Porn - Breaking Down Patriarchy - Air Date 10-2-26

A5: Dulce Sloan: Will You Be My Valentine? - What Now? With Trevor Noah - Air Date 2-14-26

(01:54:33) SECTION B: HOW RAPE CULTURE IS BUILT AND WHO IT PROTECTS

B1: What Is Rape Culture? - Do You Really Know? - Air Date 8-19-26

B2: Alisa Kessel, "Rape Fantasies: Rape Culture and the Persistence of Sexual Violence" Part 1 - New Books in Political Science - Air Date 4-16-26

B3: Is It True That Men Can't Control Themselves Sexually? Consequences Vs. Temptations - Huey Li and the News - Air Date 10-5-26

B4: Alisa Kessel, "Rape Fantasies: Rape Culture and the Persistence of Sexual Violence" Part 2 - New Books in Political Science - Air Date 4-16-26

B5: Should Women Share the Blame for R**e Culture? Not the Way They're Normally Blamed - Huey Li and the News - Air Date 10-5-26

(02:28:37) SECTION C: THE CORNELL AND LSU RECORDS AND THE APOLOGISTS

C1: The Cornell 7 Is Business as Usual - The Bitchuation Room (with Francesca Fiorentini) - Air Date 9-30-26

C2: The Cornell 7 Case EXPLAINED - Hysteria - Air Date 10-1-26

C3: LSU Football Player UNDER INVESTIGATION After DISTURBING ASSAULT ALLEGATIONS!! - Katie Phang - Air Date 10-3-26

C4: NEW EVIDENCE From the Cornell 7 Case: Will THIS Be Enough For Justice? Part 1 - Hysteria - Air Date 10-3-26

C5: Michael Tracey, Shoe0nHead, Cornell - Edgier Than Thou - Air Date 10-2-26

C6: Jacob Geller, Cornell & the Future We Save for Men Part 2 - Jessie Gender - Air Date 10-7-26

C7: NEW EVIDENCE From the Cornell 7 Case: Will THIS Be Enough For Justice? Part 2 - Hysteria - Air Date 10-3-26

(03:25:54) SECTION D: ENABLERS, EXCUSES, AND WHAT MEN OWE

D1: Graham Platner and the Left's Misogyny Problem (with Yasmin Nair) - Current Affairs - Air Date 8-11-26

D2: I Feel Differently About the Cornell 57... - Kat Blaque - Air Date 10-3-26

D3: Thomas Jefferson Survives: The Cornell 7 and the Price of Great Men - Resistance History with Tad Stoermer - Air Date 10-2-26

D4: Do You Really Care About Assault? - Cam James - Air Date 10-7-26

Featured song: "Not All Men" by Morgan St. Jean, used with permission.

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Publish Date: 10-11-2026 Original Air Date: 9-16-2014

Today we dig through the archives to give context to the news that the Pentagon plans to execute the Fort Hood shooter by firing squad, the first U.S. military execution in more than 60 years.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Death Penalty - @LastWeekTonight with John Oliver - Air Date 5-4-14

Ch. 2: Americans Back Death Penalty, Whether It's Lethal Injection or Not - @majorityfm - Air Date 05-29-14

Ch. 3: Death Penalty Ruled Cruel And Unusual Punishment In California - @theyoungturks - Air Date 07-18-14

Ch. 4: Botched Lethal Injection Takes TWO HOURS to Kill Man - @davidpakmanshow - Air Date 07-24-14

Ch. 5: Two Hours To Cease Existence - @theharryshearer (le Show) - Air Date 7-27-14

Ch. 6: Why Is No One Talking About The Innocent Man Texas Executed? - @RedactedTonight - Air Date 8-8-14

Ch. 7: Study: More Than Half of People Executed Have Severe Mental Illness - @davidpakmanshow - Air Date 07-25-14

Ch. 8: Bill Blum on the death penalty, both beheadings and lethal injections - @truthdig - Air Date 9-12-14

Ch. 9: The Truth, Finally, After 30 Years In Prison & The Truth Is Ugly - @theyoungturks - Air Date 03-13-14

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Air Date: 10/7/2026

Today we trace the "Exxon Knew" story through a decade of our own archive, because that history is what the Supreme Court is weighing in Suncor v. Boulder in their first case this term. Exxon's scientists confirmed the climate science in the early eighties and the company chose to manufacture doubt. Communities like Boulder County have paid ever since and the question before the Supreme Court is whether any lawsuit like this will be allowed to go to trial.

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: Trump's Big Oil Case Heads to the Supreme Court - What A Day - Air Date 3-16-26

KP 2: Exxon's History of Climate Change Research - On The Media - Air Date 9-18-15

KP 3: Brendan DeMelle on Exxon's Climate Cover-Up - CounterSpin - Air Date 4-29-16

KP 4: Bill McKibben on Exxon, the Power of Divestment, and Being Targeted by Shadowy Right-Wing Group - Democracy Now! - Air Date 05-26-16

KP 5: Five Lies Republicans Tell About the Climate Crisis - The Hartmann Report - Air Date 8-9-26

KP 6: Nationalizing Oil It's About Saving the World - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 4-11-22

KP 7: Ex Oil-Engineer Turned Climate Whistleblower: We Face Collapse. with Kevin Anderson - Downstream - Air Date 8-10-26

(00:59:46) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:09:07) SECTION A: THE INDUSTRY'S PLAYBOOK

A1: The Climate Deniers Began in 1940 - The Hartmann Report - Air Date 04-14-16

A2: Naomi Oreskes: Climate Change Disinformation Is Like Pro-Tobacco Lobbying - The David Pakman Show - Air Date 03-08-16

A3: Kert Davies on How the Climate Denial Industry Works - The David Pakman Show - Air Date 12-04-15

A4: Ari Rabin-Havt on the Climate Change Lie Machine - In Deep W/ Angie Coiro - Air Date 6-11-16

(01:37:18) SECTION B: TRUMP'S ROLLBACK AND THE LEGAL FIGHT TO STOP IT

B1: Why Trump Will Go Down In History As The Exxon President -The Majority Report with Sam Seder - Air Date 03-18-17

B2: Trump SHREDDING Obama's Environmental Rules - The Young Turks - Air Date 03-30-17

B3: Rolling Back Obama's Clean Energy Policies Will Be Harder Than Trump Thinks - The BradCast W/ Brad Friedman - Air Date 3-29-17

B4: What Happens When the Bedrock of US Climate Policy Is Wiped Away - Climate Court Voices - Air Date 5-15-26

B5: Notes on the Fight Against Fossil Capitalism with Ashley Dawson - This Is Hell! - Air Date 12-14-16

(02:19:01) SECTION C: SUNCOR V. BOULDER AND THE ACCOUNTABILITY FIGHT

C1: The Fight for Fossil Fuel Industry Accountability: Understanding Suncor V. Boulder Part 1 - Center for Progressive Reform - Air Date 9-3-26

C2: What's Suncor V. Boulder? And Why Does It Matter to Climate Progress? - Covering Climate Now - Air Date 9-23-26

C3: The Fight for Fossil Fuel Industry Accountability: Understanding Suncor V. Boulder Part 2 - Center for Progressive Reform - Air Date 9-3-26

(02:43:38) SECTION D: NATIONALIZE IT

D1: Not Everything That's Profitable Is Good - Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff - Air Date 2-10-17

D2: Climate Incrementalism Is the New Denial with Kate Aronoff - Bad Faith - Air Date 5-15-21

D3: Should We NATIONALIZE the Oil Industry with Matt Bruenig & Johanna Bozuwa - Bad Faith - Air Date 3-21-22

D4: What If The Fed Bought Out The Oil Industry - Ralph Nader Radio Hour - Air Date 7-18-22

D5: Climate Scientist James Hansen Warns World Is on Wrong Track to Prevent Runaway Global Warming - Democracy Now! - Air Date 12-04-15

D6: With Congress Unwilling to Act, Pressure Grows on Biden to Declare National Climate Emergency - Democracy Now! - Air Date 7-21-22

D7: Naomi Klein & Avi Lewis Climate Change Could Be Catalyst to Build a Fairer Economic System - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-05-15

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Air Date: 10/3/2026

Today we examine the mechanisms of complicity. We're not all complicit in the worst atrocities but we are complicit in something so it's good to know how it works. Good people go along with bad ideas and thoughtful people allow themselves to be thoughtless all the time. The reasons are often structural but they can be resisted on both the personal level and collectively.

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: How To Live Happily Next to a Death Camp | The Zone of Interest - Life Is A Story - Air Date 2-11-24

KP 2: "Do Not Obey in Advance": Timothy Snyder on How Corporate America Is Bending to Trump - Democracy Now! - Air Date 12-20-24

KP 3: Harry Potter Is Manufacturing Your Complicity - Jessie Gender - Air Date 8-30-26

KP 4: Politically Neutral? - PissedMagistus - Air Date 9-15-26

KP 5: Ta-Nehisi Coates: American Culture 'complicit' in Dehumanizing Palestinians - Velshi - Air Date 10-12-24

KP 6: The Paramount/WB Merger Is a Disaster - Adam Conover - Air Date 9-24-26

KP 7: I Quit My Job Because of Harry Potter Part 1 - Hoots Hootman - Air Date 9-26-26

(00:53:31) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

The Antidote to Following the Crowd Is One Other Person

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:05:32) SECTION A: LESSONS FROM NAZI GERMANY

A1: Confronting Complicity: Exploring Ordinary Germans' Roles in the Holocaust - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum - Air Date 2-8-24

A2: Before America's Midterms: Hitler Didn't Rise Because of Democracy - Resistance History with Tad Stoermer - Air Date 9-25-26

(01:22:39) SECTION B: COMPLICITY IN GAZA: MEDIA, GOVERNMENTS, AND CELEBRITIES

B1: It's Not Complicated: The Israel - Palestine "Conflict" - Doomed - Air Date 5-17-21

B2: UK Sanctions Israeli Settlers. A Breakthrough Or A Cop-Out? - Owen Jones - Air Date 9-8-26

B3: Ed Sheeran's "Safety and Sanctuary" - Brenna Perez - Air Date 9-15-26

B4: Documenting the U.S. Media's Complicity in the Genocide of Gaza (with Robin Andersen) - The Chris Hedges Report - Air Date 8-26-26

B5: Theo Von and Joe Rogan Are Complicit - The Serf Times - Air Date 9-25-26

(01:55:10) SECTION C: THE MYTH OF NEUTRALITY: MEDIA, MODERATES, AND OBEYING IN ADVANCE

C1: "It Might Not Be Good for America, But It's Good for Us": How the Media Got Rich on Trump's Rise - Democracy Now! - Air Date 11-9-16

C2: How "Moderates" Serve The Right - Second Thought - Air Date 12-17-21

C3: We Don't Need to Say Unalived! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 9-25-26

C4: Why Centrists and Ezra Klein Are Ruining Everything - Benaminute - Air Date 11-21-25

C5: Should The Press Boycott Trump? - Leeja Miller - Air Date 9-24-26

(02:28:45) SECTION D: FANDOM, CONSUMPTION, AND PERSONAL RECKONING

D1: The 7 Levels of Complicity With The System - Extra Andrewism - Air Date 7-6-26

D2: I Quit My Job Because of Harry Potter Part 2 - Hoots Hootman - Air Date 9-26-26

D3: The Hidden Danger of Turning Villains Into Heroes | Plotlines - Storied - Air Date 9-22-26

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Air Date: 9/30/2026

Today we look at the legacy of Occupy Wall Street, which was in full swing 15 years ago and changed how the country talks about inequality and the 1%. In the meantime, the cumulative wealth of the 1% in the US has roughly tripled and Trump has the wealthiest cabinet in history running the country, so the concerns expressed at Occupy have only come into sharper relief.

This miniseries helped inspire today's episode, check it out!

Occupy! An Unfinished Uprising

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: Episode 1 The Invitation Part 1 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-7-26

KP 2: America Lost Trust in Its Government. Now Comes the Dangerous Part. Part 1 - The Hartmann Report - Air Date 9-17-26

KP 3: The Long Fight Against Equality in the United States with Kim Phillips-Fein Part 1 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 9-3-26

KP 4: Occupy Wall Street 15 Years Later; Fighting for Medicare for All with Yotam Marom, Nancy Altman Part 1 - The Majority Report - Air Date 9-23-26

KP 5: We Are the 99 - 15 Years Later, Occupy Wall Street's Impact Is Still Being Felt Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 9-18-26

KP 6: Episode 6 You Can't Evict an Idea Part 1 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 8-13-26

(00:59:24) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

I Made My AI Chatbot Talk Like My 14-Year-Old Self

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:07:45) SECTION A: INSIDE THE OCCUPATION

A1: Episode 1 The Invitation Part 2 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-7-26

A2: Episode 3 A Fork in the Road Part 1 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-23-26

A3: Episode 4 They Walk Among Us Part 1 - Future Hindsight Part 1 - Air Date 7-30-26

A4: Episode 3 A Fork in the Road Part 2 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-23-26

A5: Episode 4 They Walk Among Us Part 2 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-30-26

(01:55:33) SECTION B: INEQUALITY'S LONG HISTORY

B1: The Long Fight Against Equality in the United States with Kim Phillips-Fein Part 2 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 9-3-26

B2: The US Tradition of Inequality with Kim Phillips-Fein Part 1 - Behind The News - Air Date 7-16-26

B3: The Long Fight Against Equality in the United States with Kim Phillips-Fein Part 3 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 9-3-26

B4: The US Tradition of Inequality with Kim Phillips-Fein Part 2 - Behind The News - Air Date 7-16-26

(02:34:40) SECTION C: BILLIONAIRES AND THE BACKLASH

C1: How Close Is the US to Crony Capitalism Part 1 - The Indicator From Planet Money - Air Date 10-2-25

C2: America Lost Trust in Its Government. Now Comes the Dangerous Part. Part 2 - The Hartmann Report - Air Date 9-17-26

C3: Bernie Sanders The World Is Moving in the Wrong Direction on War, Climate, Inequality & AI Tech Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 9-23-26

C4: Stanford Legal California Billionaires Tax with Darien Shanske Part 1 - Stanford Legal - Air Date 3-30-26

C5: Why Is Newsom Fighting Californias Billionaire Tax Part 1 - Lever Time - Air Date 6-18-26

C6: Stanford Legal California Billionaires Tax with Darien Shanske Part 2 - Stanford Legal - Air Date 3-30-26

C7: Why Is Newsom Fighting Californias Billionaire Tax Part 2 - Lever Time - Air Date 6-18-26

(03:32:56) SECTION D: FIFTEEN YEARS LATER

D1: Fifteen Years Later, Revisiting the Promise and Limits of Occupy Wall Street Part 1 - NYC NOW - Air Date 9-16-26

D2: Leaving Occupy Anarchism in the Past with Ben Fong & Christie Offenbacher Part 1 - Jacobin Radio - Air Date 3-18-22

D3: Fifteen Years Later, Revisiting the Promise and Limits of Occupy Wall Street Part 2 - NYC NOW - Air Date 9-16-26

D4: Occupy Wall Street 15 Years Later; Fighting for Medicare for All w_Yotam Marom, Nancy Altman Part 2 - The Majority Report - Air Date 9-23-26

D5: Leaving Occupy Anarchism in the Past with Ben Fong & Christie Offenbacher Part 2 - Jacobin Radio - Air Date 3-18-22

D6: Episode 6 You Can't Evict an Idea Part 2 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 8-13-26

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Air Date: 9/26/2026

Today we explore the layers of chaos surrounding the AI industry, including the idealistic nerds-turned-nazis, the grift, bubble, and doom-marketing business model, and what people are doing to fight back.

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: Do Silicon Valley Billionaires Want to End Democracy? - Political Breakdown - Air Date 8-14-26

KP 2: The AI Bubble Is Bigger And More Dangerous Than You Think Part 1 - The Tea with Myriam François - Air Date 9-11-26

KP 3: OpenAI's Math Battle - Elena OnOffline - Air Date 9-9-26

KP 4: Muskism Is the New Fordism with Ben Tarnoff & Quinn Slobodian - Tech Won't Save Us - Air Date 5-7-26

KP 5: Monologue: Jacob Coxon and the AI Safety Grift - Better Offline - Air Date 9-10-26

KP 6: The Real AI Jobs Apocalypse - Blood in the Machine - Air Date 9-4-26

KP 7: AI Has Ruined the Internet - Adam Conover - Air Date 8-31-26

KP 8: You Don't Hate AI Enough. - Nash Keune - Air Date 9-20-26

(01:00:11) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

AI Turned "Just a Little Bit More" Into a Business Model

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:12:47) SECTION A: THE NERD REICH - WHO THEY ARE AND WHAT THEY BELIEVE

A1: We Uncovered The Master Plan That Peter Thiel Doesn't Want You To See - More Perfect Union - Air Date 6-29-26

A2: Valerie Veatch: Ghost in the Machine — AI as Eugenics - Pivot to AI - Air Date 9-11-26

A3: The 'End Times Fascists' of AI - Blood in the Machine - Air Date 9-13-26

A4: Silicon Valley's Dark Future Is Almost Here - Michael Burns - Air Date 9-2-26

A5: "The Nerd Reich": Author Gil Durán on Big Tech Fascism, Peter Thiel, JD Vance & the War on Democracy - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-17-26

(01:58:16) SECTION B: WHAT AI IS ACTUALLY DOING TO US

B1: The Al Question No One Wants to Ask Part 1 - Struthless - Air Date 6-9-26

B2: "Deep Unlearning": Timnit Gebru on AI Hype, Ethics & Algorithmic Racial Bias - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-13-26

B3: The Al Question No One Wants to Ask Part 2 - Struthless - Air Date 6-9-26

B4: Never Learn Again! AI Will Do It For You - Harland Spinks - Air Date 8-31-26

B5: Cybersecurity Has An AI Doomer Problem. - Marcus Hutchins - Air Date 9-15-26

B6: AI Expert: A 10% Extinction Risk Is "Way Too Low" - W/ Nate Soares - Owen Jones - Air Date 9-10-26

(02:44:18) SECTION C: THE GRIFT, THE BUBBLE, THE DOOM MARKETING

C1: Is AI The Terminator Or The Big Short? - The Lever - Air Date 9-15-26

C2: The AI Bubble Is Bigger And More Dangerous Than You Think Part 2 - The Tea with Myriam François - Air Date 9-11-26

C3: Slow Down Your AI Expectations! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 9-20-26

C4: Why Tech Can't Determine Our Future - Side Burns - Air Date 9-10-26

(03:06:54) SECTION D: FIGHTING BACK - WORKERS, COMMUNITIES, ALTERNATIVES

D1: Tech Workers of the World, Unite (ft. JS Tan, Clarissa Redwine) - This Machine Kills - Air Date 9-3-26

D2: Why I Think I'm a Luddite... and I'm Pretty Sure You Are, Too - Hello Tomorrow Podcast - Air Date 8-18-26

D3: How Mass Layoffs Changed Working in Tech with Clarissa Redwine & JS Tan - Tech Won't Save Us - Air Date 8-27-26

D4: Government Is Putting AI Before People and the Planet with Matt Haugen - Tech Won't Save Us - Air Date 8-13-26

D5: Why We Can't Prevent an A.I. Crisis... and Shouldn't Want to - Hello Tomorrow Podcast - Air Date 9-8-26

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Air Date: 9/22/2026

The Monthly-ish Mix™ is here to get you caught up on the news from July and August without being overwhelming! Organized around a single idea: ask who the system is for, and every story this summer gives the same answer. The administration rewrites the national story while libraries lose their funding. Corporations fence off ideas as private property. Latin America gets treated like a portfolio and Greenland like a drilling site. Police cameras put every driver under permanent investigation. The seats it all runs from are held until death, and the fixes on the table aim at prying some of them open.

Covering: July–August 2026

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SECTION 1: OWNING THE STORY

(00:01:52) #1815 - Sanctioned Ignorance: The Assault on Museums, Libraries, and American Memory

1: Trying to Rewrite History - Letters From an American - Air Date 7-28-26

2: Why Libraries Matter in a Fascist Moment Part 1 - Movement Memos - Air Date 3-19-26

(00:21:31) #1816 - IP'd to Death: How Intellectual Property Law Went from a Protection to a Weapon

3: We Are Being IP-ed to Death / Vicky Osterweil Part 1 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 5-27-26

4: Is AI Burning The Library Of Alexandria? - Taylor Lorenz - Air Date 8-5-26

5: Everyone's Wrong About John Oliver's Trademark War - LegalEagle - Air Date 8-8-26

SECTION 2: THE WORLD AS INVENTORY

(00:45:39) #1814 - Open Imperialism in Latin America: Trump Says the Whole Hemisphere Is His to Run

6: "Imperial Laboratory": Alexander Aviña on the "Donroe" Doctrine & U.S. Intervention in Latin America - Democracy Now! - Air Date 1-6-26

7: 'Cuba Is Not Venezuela': Trump's Takeover Threat Collides with 'disciplined Revolutionary State' - FRANCE 24 English - Air Date 3-18-26

(01:02:20) #1817 - Worse on Purpose: Trump is Killing Our Response to the Climate Emergency

8: Fire Climate Hot, Dry, Windy Days Are Becoming Common, Making Wildfires Harder to Control - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-6-24

9: Is This How We Invade Greenland - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 8-11-26

SECTION 3: EVERYONE ELSE

(01:22:58) #1818 - Flock Cameras, ICE, and the Surveillance State Targeting Everyone

10: Ohio Professor Specialized in Policing Nails Why Flock Cameras Are a Threat to Everyone - More Perfect Union - Air Date 8-16-26

11: Police Surveillance Technology - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - Air Date 8-3-26

12: Former ICE Lawyer Says the Point of Trump's ICE Is to "engender Fear" - The Current - Air Date 7-14-26

(01:42:24) #1813 - Suffering is the Strategy: ICE, Mass Deportation, and Demographic Engineering

13: Trumps National Killer Police Force Part 1 - The Intercept Briefing - Air Date 7-24-26

14: ICE Deports Family To Their Deaths In Guatemala - The Majority Report - Air Date 7-29-26

15: Lauren Bonds on ICE Murders Part 1 - CounterSpin - Air Date 7-17-26

(02:08:33) #1819 - Coerced Sterilization, Abortion Bans, and the New Pronatalism: Who Controls American Reproduction

16: Buck V. Bell Part 1 - 5-4 - Air Date 5-26-20

17: Explaining This Moment of Pronatalism Part 1 - rePROS Fight Back - Air Date 6-16-26

18: If Roe Was Never Enough, Why Was It Everything (And a Word to My Boom! Lawyered Fam) Part 1 - Boom! Lawyered - Air Date 6-11-26

SECTION 4: HELD FOR LIFE... UNTIL NOW

(02:35:29) #1811 - Country for Old Men: Gerontocracy By Design and the Democracy Problem

19: Mitch, Lindsey and the Gerontocracy Part 1 - What Next - Air Date 7-13-26

20: What Is There to Say About Lindsey Graham - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 7-12-26

21: Where Is Mitch McConnell? - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 7-10-26

(02:58:47) #1812 - Democracy or This Supreme Court, But Not Both

22: 'Unhinged and Racist': Hayes EVISCERATES Trump's Birthright Argument - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 6-30-26

23: Did the Birthright Citizenship Ruling Prove It's Time for SCOTUS Reform? Part 1 - Stateside with Kai and Carter - Air Date 7-1-26

24: Broke: Pack the Supreme Court. Woke: Pack ALL of the Courts - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 7-23-26

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Air Date: 9/18/2026

Today we're doing something new and different but also very old. Occupy Wall Street just hit its 15th anniversary this month and we thought we'd do something that only we can, which is dip into our archives and pull out the best of the Occupy coverage we played in real time as it was happening as well as some other retrospective coverage that aired 10 years later.

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: Keith Olbermann Reads First Collective Statement of Occupy Wall Street - Countdown - Air Date 10-6-11

KP 2: 99% V 1% the Data Behind the Occupy Movement Animation - Library Of Electronic Press - Air Date 11-16-11

KP 3: News Coverage Numbers of the Occupy Protests Vs Tea Party Protests - On the Media - Air Date 10-7-11

KP 4: What the Occupy Wall St Movement Wants Part 1 - Planet Money - Air Date 10-7-11

KP 5: The General Strike in Oakland - Rachel Maddow - Air Date 11-2-11

KP 6: Keith's Special Comment Why OWS Needs Michael Bloomberg - Countdown - Air Date 11-16-11

KP 7: UC Davis Police Pepper Spray Sitting Protesters at Point Blank Range - David Pakman - Air Date 11-21-11

KP 8: Occupy at 10 with Astra Taylor Part 1 - The Dig - Air Date 9-25-21

(01:01:34) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Democratic Primary Voters Keep Guessing What Everyone Else Will Do

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:12:59) SECTION A: THE STATE STRIKES BACK

A1: Comparing the Occupation to the Bonus Army Encampment - Rachel Maddow - Air Date 10-26-11

A2: Erroneous Reporting on the Occupation - Counterspin - Air Date 10-27-11

A3: Protesting at Berkley, Past and Present - Rachel Maddow - Air Date 11-15-11

A4: If Cops Use Force Then Your Speech Wasn't Free (to Say the Least) - Matthew Filipowicz - Air Date 12-9-11

A5: Iraq Vet Scott Olsen on What He Hopes the Movement Will Achieve - Countdown - Air Date 12-2-11

(01:49:52) SECTION B: RIGGED SYSTEM, RIGGED COVERAGE

B1: The Top 1% Vs YOU - The Young Turks - Air Date 10-31-11

B2: Panic of the Plutocrats - Green News Report - Air Date 10-11-11

B3: Three Quarters of Americans Believe Rich, Corporations Have Too Much Power - The Young Turks - Air Date 12-17-11

B4: World Economy Going to Hell - Dan Carlin - Air Date 9-28-11

B5: Leaked Republicans Scared of Occupy Wall Street - The Young Turks - Air Date 12-2-11

B6: Erin Burnett's Horrible Occupy Wall St Report - The Majority Report - Air Date 10-7-11

B7: The Screaming Majority Song on Occupy Wall St - The Majority Report - Air Date 10-7-11

(02:43:16) SECTION C: WHAT THE MOVEMENT WAS DOING

C1: What the Occupy Wall St Movement Wants Part 2 - Planet Money

C2: Prophetic Article Calling for the Occupation - The Majority Report - Air Date 10-25-11

C3: Occupying Our Homes - Rachel Maddow - Air Date 12-2-11

(03:13:08) SECTION D: THE LEGACY, 10 YEARS ON

D1: Will Occupy Wall Street Affect 2012 Election Glenn Greenwald Interview - David Pakman - Air Date 11-14-11

D2: The Legacy of Occupy Wall Street, with Ruth Milkman and Nastaran Mohit - Belabored - Air Date 9-24-21

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

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Air Date: 9/13/2026

Today we trace the two-front war on the American press. On one side, government regulators and members of Congress are going after news outlets for the stories they choose to run. On the other, politically friendly buyers are taking ownership of major networks to turn them into free-market versions of state media.

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..TOP TAKES

KP 1: How to Build a State Media - Blonde Politics | The Silly Serious - Air Date 12-13-25

KP 2: Breaking: ABC SUES Trump Over Free Speech After Kimmel's WIN - The Beat with Ari Melber - Air Date 8-18-26

KP 3: How Thiel, Musk, and Other Tech Billionaires Bought the Liberal Media / Eoin Higgins - This Is Hell! - Air Date 2-4-25

KP 4: Congress Just Subpoenaed Our Newsroom for Doing Journalism - BreakThroughNews - Air Date 7-23-26

KP 5: Public Media - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO) - Air Date 11-17-25

KP 6: "A Victory for Journalism": Washington Post Ordered to Rehire Fired Opinion Columnist Karen Attiah - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-26-26

KP 7: Coyote Vs. Acme Proves the CEOs Don't Know S***. - Adam Conover - Air Date 9-4-26

(00:56:23) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Corporate Media Cannot Be Trusted to Serve the Public Interest

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:06:24) SECTION A: THE FCC WEAPONIZED

A1: ABC Says FCC Waging a Retaliatory Campaign Violating Free Speech Rights - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 8-18-26

A2: Trump's Scheme to Control the Media - Robert Reich and Inequality Media - Air Date 5-7-26

A3: Trump's "Authoritarian Takeover" of the Media, ABC Suing FCC & the Meta Trial: Free Press's Jessica González - Air Date 8-19-26

(01:23:10) SECTION B: JOURNALISTS IN THE CROSSHAIRS

B1: FBI Raids Home of Washington Post Reporter as Attacks on Press Freedom Intensify Under Trump - Democracy Now! - Air Date 1-15-26

B2: Media Under Scrutiny Following Tragic Death Of Jason Arday | Novara Live - Novara Media - Air Date 8-17-26

B3: A New McCarthyism? House GOP Subpoenas BreakThrough News in Escalating War on Progressive Groups - Democracy Now! Air Date 7-28-26

B4: US Media's Hasan Piker Derangement Syndrome Is Ridiculous - The Majority Report W/ Sam Seder - Air Date 8-11-26

B5: Katy Tur Sounds More Like 1930s German Propaganda Than Journalism - Paul Lance - Air Date 9-3-26

B6: Joy Reid & Dean Obeidallah: Fascism Tests Journalistic Integrity In Modern Media - Laura Flanders and Friends: Solutions-Focused Progressive Perspectives on Politics, News, and Culture - Air Date 8-19-26

(02:06:18) SECTION C: WHO'S BUYING, WHO'S CASHING IN

C1: The Playbook Putin Used Is Being Run in America Right Now | Media Consolidation - Jim Acosta - Air Date 3-23-26

C2: FOR SALE: Truth Social Selling Early Access to Trump's Posts - Connnect W/ Jacob Soboroff - Air Date 8-9-26

C3: The Meta Settlement Isn't The Victory You Think It Is - Leeja Miller - Air Date 8-28-26

C4: "Profoundly Corrupt": Trump Sued for Selling Early Access to His Truth Social Posts for $100K/Month - Democracy Now! - Air Date - 8-19-26

C5: Finance Bros Are Coming for the Public Airwaves - On The Media - Air Date 8-28-26

(02:35:41) SECTION D: BUILDING SOMETHING BETTER

D1: The World After Billionaire Media - Lever Time - Air Date 6-21-24

D2: News Brief: The Call to Boycott—and Delegitimize—the New York Times - Citations Needed - Air Date 5-28-26

D3: From Deadspin to Defector: The Power of Worker-owned News Outlets - Laura Flanders and Friends: Solutions-Focused Progressive Perspectives on Politics, News, and Culture - Air Date 8-12-26

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

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Air Date: 9/9/2026

Today we look at the strategies being deployed by the Trump administration and their enablers to undermine the midterm elections and what it actually takes to fight back. The lawyers fighting in court against the efforts to destroy our democracy are clear-eyed that you cannot litigate your way to a free election. The most durable defense is a turnout margin too large to plausibly contest, and organizers are building toward it now.

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TOP TAKES

KP 1: President Trump Is Trying to Change How Elections Are Run. Where Do Things Stand - Consider This - Air Date 8-28-26

KP 2: Trump's Strategy to Rig the Midterms + Jake Lang's Christian Nationalist Spectacle Part 1 - Straight White American Jesus - Air Date 8-25-26

KP 3: Protecting the Midterms—at the Grassroots and in the Courts Part 1 - Start Making Sense - Air Date 8-19-26

KP 4: Is SCOTUS Letting Trump Meddle in the Midterms Part 1 - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 8-31-26

KP 5: Will Dems Risk Being Called 'Election Deniers' If They Need to Challenge Midterms - The BradCast - Air Date 8-27-26

KP 6: Will Data Centers Cost Republicans the Midterms - Runaway Country with Alex Wagner - Air Date 8-27-26

KP 7: Protecting the Midterms—at the Grassroots and in the Courts Part 2 - Start Making Sense - Air Date 8-19-26

(00:54:01) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

On Burnout and ADHD

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DEEPER DIVES

(01:00:47) SECTION A: THREAT AND BACKFIRE

A1: What Happens if Trump Tries to Mess with the Midterms - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 8-28-26

A2: Trump's Strategy to Rig the Midterms + Jake Lang's Christian Nationalist Spectacle Part 2 - Straight White American Jesus - Air Date 8-25-26

A3: Trump Accidentally Wrecks GOP Midterm Message in Dumbest Self-Own Ever - THE DAILY BLAST - Air Date 8-28-26

(01:32:06) SECTION B: CRACKS AND CONSTRAINTS

B1: Trump Election Scheme Suddenly Blocked in Late Night Order Part 1 - Legal AF - Air Date 8-29-26

B2: Is SCOTUS Letting Trump Meddle in the Midterms Part 2 - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 8-31-26

B3: Alarming Voting System Vulnerabilities Persist, with Guest Susan Greenhalgh, Election Security Expert Part 1 - The BradCast - Air Date 8-10-26

B4: Trump Election Scheme Suddenly Blocked in Late Night Order Part 2 - Legal AF - Air Date 8-29-26

B5: Alarming Voting System Vulnerabilities Persist, with Guest Susan Greenhalgh, Election Security Expert Part 2 - The BradCast - Air Date 8-10-26

(02:14:39) SECTION C: RESISTANCE AND RESPONSE

C1: Distraction Drugs For America; A Crucial Voting Strategy For Before November Part 1 - The Politicrat - Air Date 9-2-26

C2: Powerful, Brave, and Free with Tamika Middleton Part 1 - The Anti-Authoritarian Podcast - Air Date 9-2-26

C3: Distraction Drugs For America; A Crucial Voting Strategy For Before November Part 2 - The Politicrat - Air Date 9-2-26

C4: Powerful, Brave, and Free with Tamika Middleton Part 2 - The Anti-Authoritarian Podcast - Air Date 9-2-26

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

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