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Latest Episodes:

End Times Fascism - 400 UNLOCKED Sep 19, 2026

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Today we've got our old pal Astra Taylor on to talk about the new book she co-wrote with Naomi Klein: End Times Fascism and the Fight for the Living World. What distinguishes today's neofascists--from MAGA to the AfD in Germany--from their predecessors in the 1930s, what is their plan for the world, and how do we defeat them?

The Odyssey Review - 399 Sep 09, 2026

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Today we've got the classicist Jase Short back on to discuss Christopher Nolan's new film. Is it any good, does it illuminate our present issues or those of humanity in general, and most importantly, is it loyal enough to the source material to please the die-hard Homer fanbase? Enjoy!

Trump's Collapsing Foreign Policy - 398 PREVIEW Aug 26, 2026

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Trump is back to escalating his shooting war against Iran, and his trade war against Canada, and he's quite obviously losing both of them. Subscribe now to hear the whole episode!

A Biden Climate Retrospective - 397 Aug 14, 2026

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Joe Biden was the best American president on climate change by maybe three orders of magnitude. Yet it didn't cement a Kamala Harris victory in 2024, and Trump has since rolled back most of Biden's signature climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act.

Today we've got UC Santa Barbara Professor Leah Stokes on to discuss her upcoming book The Carbon Wave: A Story of Democracy, Parenthood, and the Race to Protect Our Planet, to talk about her role in the passage of the IRA, what's left of it, what Trump's victory says about climate policy, and what we should do next time.

Check out Leah's newsletter here, her podcast A Matter of Degrees here, and her Atlantic piece about the political success of Bidenomics here.

Is Ukraine Winning? - 396 PREVIEW Aug 05, 2026

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In this excerpt we discuss why so many American leftists struggled to get to the correct understanding in Ukraine, and why so many liberals have struggled to get to the correct understanding in Israel-Palestine.

Subscribe now to hear the whole episode!

Welcome to Franchise Hell - 395 Jul 28, 2026

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Today we've got David Dayen back on to talk about his reporting on how awful it is to attempt to make it as a franchisee for the Kitchen and Bath Tune-Up company. We also discuss the flailing incompetence of various Trump lawyers in their efforts to persecute critics of the regime, the return of tariffs, and the resumption of endless war with Iran, again. Enjoy!

The State of American Socialism in 2026 - 384 UNLOCKED Jul 18, 2026

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We are still recovering from vacation and travel, so enjoy this premium episode from awhile back.

Zohran Mamdani is now arguably the most politically successful socialist in American history, having won the mayoralty of New York City. So we've got longtime socialist organizer and DSA member David Duhalde back on the podcast to discuss his recent review of Organize or Burn: How New York Socialists Fight for Climate Survival, by Fabian Holt, as well as the overall state of DSA nationally under the second Trump regime.

'Christian' Nationalism Is Anti-American - 394 PREVIEW Jul 07, 2026

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Today we have Professor Harvey Kaye back on to talk about so-called Christian nationalism, and not only why all the Founding Fathers would have regarded such an idea with horror, but also so would have Jesus Christ. People like Elon Musk and Pete Hegseth loudly proclaim their religiosity while simultaneously massacring innocent children, starving poor people by the millions, and welcoming the moneychangers into the temple.

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The Age of Greenspan, with Rick Perlstein - 393 Jul 02, 2026

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Today we've got noted author and historian Rick Perlstein on to discuss the late Alan Greenspan's 20-year reign as the chair of the Federal Reserve, the damage he did to the American working class and New Deal financial regulations, and what that says about the history of the 1990s and 2000s. Then we turn to what the rise of bareknuckle boxing has to say about MAGA's particularly chintzy and gross brand of fascism. Enjoy!

Check out Rick's newsletter here, and his books here.

The Downfall of Keir Starmer - 392 PREVIEW Jun 29, 2026

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In this latest bonus episode, we are talking about how former Labour Prime Minister Kier Starmer frittered away one of the biggest parliamentary majorities in British history, and what lessons that holds in general. Then we talk about the on-again-off-again Iran deal, and Trump's epic debacle with the Reflection Pool on the National Mall.

Subscribe now to hear the whole thing!

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