Loud & Clear

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Coronavirus Fightback: Immigrant Detainees Wage Hunger Strike Apr 16, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Juan José Gutiérrez, the executive director of the Full Rights for Immigrants Coalition.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, has broad powers to detain and hold people indefinitely at the country’s borders. It has the power to imprison them, to expel them, or to release them to their families in the United States. In the age of the coronavirus, however, ICE also has the power to decide who lives and who dies. It has the power to decide who enters the country and who must deal with the ravages of the disease in the agency’s teeming, filthy, and overcrowded border prisons. That’s what’s happening in California, where some detainees are on a hunger strike.
Bernie Sanders this week formally dropped out of the Democratic presidential race and endorsed Joe Biden for president. Elizabeth Warren, who had been uncommitted, did the same thing. The endorsements are a result of a hard push by Democratic National Committee officials to unify the party around Joe Biden, a longtime moderate with a solid pro-war, pro-capitalist record. What do the endorsements mean for the American left? Was there a quid pro quo in the endorsements or will they be left in the cold? Ben Norton, a journalist with the Grayzone and co-host of the Moderate Rebels podcast, joins the show.
Thursday’s weekly series “Criminal Injustice” is about the most egregious conduct of our courts and prosecutors and how justice is denied to so many people in this country. Paul Wright, the founder and executive director of the Human Rights Defense Center and editor of Prison Legal News (PLN), and Kevin Gosztola, a writer for Shadowproof.com and co-host of the podcast Unauthorized Disclosure, join the show.
Loud & Clear’s series, In the News, is where the hosts look at the most important ongoing developments of the week and put them into perspective, including the biggest recent developments related to the pandemic and the economic crisis it has sparked. Sputnik news analysts Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
A regular Thursday segment deals with the ongoing militarization of space. As the US continues to withdraw from international arms treaties, will the weaponization and militarization of space bring the world closer to catastrophe? Brian and John speak with Prof. Karl Grossman, a full professor of journalism at the State University of New York, College at Old Westbury and the host of a nationally aired television program focused on environmental, energy, and space issues, and with Bruce Gagnon, coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space and a contributor to Foreign Policy In Focus.

The Reason Farmers are Destroying Food While Millions Line Up for Food Apr 15, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Krissy Kasserman, the Factory Farm Organizing Manager at Food & Water Watch.
Smithfield Foods is the largest pork processor in America and is the largest employer in the state of South Dakota, accounting for an astounding 130 million servings of meat every day. Yesterday the company announced that it would close indefinitely after scores of employees tested positive for the coronavirus, accounting for half of all coronavirus cases in the state. Meanwhile, farmers around the country are being forced to destroy fruits, vegetables, and dairy products because they can’t sell them. The Trump administration is working to slash the wages of migrant farmworkers, even as it works to send direct aid to farmers and ranchers hurt by the coronavirus pandemic.
President Trump continues to blame China for the spread of the coronavirus and for the concurrent downturn in the global economy. The conservative media, meanwhile, has pushed a steady anti-China narrative. It appears that the President is preparing to launch a cultural war against China this election season. And he thinks it’s a winning strategy. KJ Noh, a peace activist and scholar on the geopolitics of Asia, and a frequent contributor to Counterpunch and Dissident Voice, joins the show.
While the rich are fleeing to secluded mansions and beach houses, poor and working class people are being left behind to bear the brunt of the Coronavirus crisis. And the widening inequality that’s been put on full display by the pandemic may be leading to a resurgence for the labor movement. And on a global scale, U.S. sanctions are making matters worse. Brian and John speak with Dan Kovalik, a human rights and labor lawyer who is the author of the book “No More War: How the West Violates International Law by Using 'Humanitarian' Intervention to Advance Economic and Strategic Interests.”
An unreleased dossier written by the British Labour Party says that party officials opposed to Jeremy Corbyn worked to lose the 2017 election in the hope that a resultant backlash would trigger a leadership move to oust him. The report shows that those officials, who worked at the party’s headquarters, became increasingly despondent as Labour rose in the polls, despite their secret efforts to sabotage the campaign. Neil Clark, a journalist and broadcaster whose work has appeared in The Guardian, The Week, and Morning Star, joins the show.
Wednesday’s weekly series, In the News, is where the hosts look at the most important ongoing developments of the week and put them into perspective. Sputnik news analysts Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
Wednesday’s regular segment, Beyond Nuclear, is about nuclear issues, including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear, and Sputnik news analyst and producer Nicole Roussell, join the show.

WTF: Farmers Destroy Food as Millions Wait in Line for Food Handouts Apr 14, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Professor Wolff, a professor of Economics Emeritus, University of Massachusetts, Amherst and founder of the organization Democracy at Work whose latest book is “Understanding Socialism.”
Today is Loud & Clear’s weekly series about the biggest economic news of the week with special guest -- Prof. Richard Wolff.
Israeli politics has undergone a dramatic realignment, with the main opposition alliance breaking apart and the once-dominant Labor Party effectively dissolving itself. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Resilience Party leader Benny Gantz said last night that they had made “major progress” in talks toward a coalition government. Talks are now extended until midnight Wednesday. Miko Peled, the author of “The General’s Son - A Journey of an Israeli in Palestine,” and of "Injustice: The Story of the Holy Land Foundation Five,” joins the show.
Our friend and frequent guest Steve Hedley was recently suspended from his position as the senior assistant general secretary of the UK’s Rail, Maritime, and Transport Workers Union after making a joke on his Facebook page about Boris Johnson contracting the coronavirus. He was predictably attacked by Britain’s right-wing media, and when he didn’t apologize for the joke, the attacks became more severe and sustained. Brian and John speak with Steve Hedley, the senior assistant general secretary of the UK’s Rail, Maritime, and Transport Workers Union.
Loud & Clear’s series, In the News, is where the hosts look at the most important ongoing developments of the week and put them into perspective. Sputnik news analysts Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
Tuesday’s regular segment is called Women & Society with Dr. Hannah Dickinson. This weekly segment is about the major issues, challenges, and struggles facing women in all aspects of society. Hannah Dickinson, an associate professor at Hobart and William Smith Colleges and an organizer with the Geneva Women’s Assembly; Nathalie Hrizi, an educator, a political activist, and the editor of Breaking the Chains, a women’s magazine, which you can find at patreon.com/BreakChainsMag; and Loud & Clear producer Nicole Roussell join the show.

Coronavirus Killing Black Americans: “Race & Class in the USA” Apr 13, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Dr. Gerald Horne, a professor of history at the University of Houston and the author of many books, including “Race to Revolution: The U.S. and Cuba during Slavery and Jim Crow.”
The global pandemic and economic depression is reshaping the world in fundamental ways. Facing a choice between destitution and risking their lives, workers are rising up across the country. Once again, Black working class neighborhoods are being left behind by the government in a time of crisis. And globally, the old international order between world powers is fraying and the neo-liberal model of capitalism may be on its last legs.
President Trump has gone out of his way to blame China for the spread of the coronavirus, which in turn has led to violence against Asian-Americans. The conservative media, meanwhile, has pushed a steady anti-China narrative. And the blogosphere has even suggested the possibility of war with China. With a presidential election coming up in November, will China be the defining issue? KJ Noh, a peace activist and scholar on the geopolitics of Asia, and a frequent contributor to Counterpunch and Dissident Voice, joins the show.
Monday’s segment “Education for Liberation with Bill Ayers” is where Bill helps us look at the state of education across the country. What’s happening in our schools, colleges, and universities, and what impact does it have on the world around us? Bill Ayers, an activist, educator and the author of the book “Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto,” joins Brian and John.
In this segment, The Week Ahead, the hosts take a look at the most newsworthy stories of the coming week and what it means for the country and the world, including . Sputnik News analysts and producers of this show Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
Monday’s regular segment Technology Rules is a weekly guide on how monopoly corporations and the national surveillance state are threatening cherished freedoms, civil rights and civil liberties. Web developer and technologist Chris Garaffa and software engineer and technology and security analyst Patricia Gorky join the show.

Yes, We Are Already in a Great Depression Apr 10, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Sputnik News analysts and producers Walter Smolarek and Nicole Roussell.
Friday is Loud & Clear’s weekly hour-long segment The Week in Review, about the week in politics, policy, and international affairs. Today they focus on the huge unemployment numbers, the difficulties workers and small businesses are dealing with right now while Boeing gets a bailout, whether insurance companies are going to pay for pandemic expenses, Bernie dropping out of the presidential race, where the socialist movement is headed, and more.
Nearly 17 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past three weeks--numbers not seen since the Great Depression. Congress, the White House, and the Federal Reserve have all moved to soften the blow by spending vast amounts of borrowed money and trying to provide a buffer for businesses small and large alike. But is it enough to stop the country from going into another depression? Dr. Jack Rasmus, a professor of economics at Saint Mary's College of California and author of “The Scourge of Neo-Liberalism: US policy from Reagan to Trump” whose work is at www.jackrasmus.com, joins the show.
Most states are encouraging healthy residents to leave the house to walk, bike, or run for exercise, provided that they remain six feet away from anybody else to slow or stop the spread of the coronavirus. But many city sidewalks are not six feet wide themselves. Some cities are closing off some streets to cars so that walkers, bikers, and runners can move around safely. But many haven't -- at the risk of their own residents. Brian and John speak with Katy Lang, a pedestrian safety advocate who is an expert in city planning & transportation.
It’s Friday! So it’s time for the week’s worst and most misleading headlines. Brian and John speak with Steve Patt, an independent journalist whose critiques of the mainstream media have been a feature of his site Left I on the News and on twitter @leftiblog, and Sputnik producer Nicole Roussell.

Sanders Steps Back But The New Socialist Movement Will Grow Apr 09, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Jodi Dean, a professor of Political Science at Hobart and William Smith Colleges and a commentator on political issues, whose latest book is called “Comrade.”
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders dropped out of the Democratic presidential race yesterday, saying that he was suspending his campaign. Sanders seemed to be merely an accidental figure for the emerging socialist movement in the United States. Where will this movement head now?
Healthcare workers across America are struggling to treat the tidal wave of coronavirus patients and they’re doing so with shortages of basic necessities, like gloves, masks, and gowns. How can the United States, the wealthiest country in the world, the country that brags about its healthcare system, not have the bare basics to provide to its first responders and frontline medical personnel? Satya Vatti, an organizer with the ANSWER Coalition, joins the show.
Thursday’s weekly series “Criminal Injustice” is about the most egregious conduct of our courts and prosecutors and how justice is denied to so many people in this country. Paul Wright, the founder and executive director of the Human Rights Defense Center and editor of Prison Legal News (PLN), and Kevin Gosztola, a writer for Shadowproof.com and co-host of the podcast Unauthorized Disclosure, join the show.
Loud & Clear’s series, In the News, is where the hosts look at the most important ongoing developments of the week and put them into perspective. Sputnik news analysts Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
A regular Thursday segment deals with the ongoing militarization of space. As the US continues to withdraw from international arms treaties, will the weaponization and militarization of space bring the world closer to catastrophe? Brian and John speak with Prof. Karl Grossman, a full professor of journalism at the State University of New York, College at Old Westbury and the host of a nationally aired television program focused on environmental, energy, and space issues, and with Bruce Gagnon, coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space and a contributor to Foreign Policy In Focus.

Sanders Ends Campaign But Millions Still Want A "Political Revolution" Apr 08, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Sputnik news analysts Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek.
Wednesday’s weekly series, In the News, is where the hosts look at the most important ongoing developments of the week and put them into perspective. Today’s In the News is about Sanders dropping out of the race, the movement that propelled him continuing onward, and the racialized health disparities in the United States becoming even clearer in the coronavirus pandemic.
Unfounded accusations against the Chinese abound--that Beijing has stolen medical supplies destined for the United States, that the coronavirus was created in a Chinese military intelligence lab, and that the pandemic is part of a Chinese plan for world domination. Is this anti-Chinese bias new or has the pandemic just given media outlets an opportunity to promote it? KJ Noh, a peace activist and scholar on the geopolitics of Asia, and a frequent contributor to Counterpunch and Dissident Voice, joins the show.
Joe Biden apparently won a resounding victory in yesterday’s Wisconsin primary, an election made controversial by a federal judge’s refusal at the behest of the state Republican Party to postpone it until July because of the coronavirus. At least, that’s if exit polls are to be believed. Voters waited in lines for as long as three hours before making it into a polling station. We don’t yet know what happened in the state’s most controversial race, the hotly-contested Supreme Court race, Trump-endorsed Judge Daniel Kelly, and the state’s electoral commissioner said he won’t release results until April 13. Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders ended his campaign for president today. Brian and John speak with Dave Lindorff, an investigative reporter, a columnist for CounterPunch, and a contributor to The Nation, Extra! and Salon.com, whose writings are at ThisCantBeHappening.net.
Every country around the world has a plan to bring its economy out of the coronavirus recession, but will it be enough to avert the biggest economic catastrophe since the Great Depression. In the United States, Congress already has passed a multi-trillion dollar bailout package, mostly for big companies, and the Federal Reserve has cut its interest rate to zero. In the European Union, many countries are fully covering unemployed workers’ salaries, but there are fierce debates between wealthier Northern European economies and the harder-hit south. And in Japan, the parliament has allocated $4 billion to be distributed mostly among small and medium-sized businesses. Steve Keen, the author of “Debunking Economics” and the world’s first crowdfunded economist, whose work is at patreon.com/ProfSteveKeen, joins the show.
Wednesday’s regular segment, Beyond Nuclear, is about nuclear issues, including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear, and Sputnik news analyst and producer Nicole Roussell, join the show.

The End Of The Economic System As We Know It Apr 07, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Professor Wolff, a professor of Economics Emeritus, University of Massachusetts, Amherst and founder of the organization Democracy at Work whose latest book is “Understanding Socialism.”
Today is Loud & Clear’s weekly series about the biggest economic news of the week with special guest Prof. Richard Wolff.
Tuesday’s regular segment is called Women & Society with Dr. Hannah Dickinson. This weekly segment is about the major issues, challenges, and struggles facing women in all aspects of society. Hannah Dickinson, an associate professor at Hobart and William Smith Colleges and an organizer with the Geneva Women’s Assembly; Nathalie Hrizi, an educator, a political activist, and the editor of Breaking the Chains, a women’s magazine, which you can find at patreon.com/BreakChainsMag; and Loud & Clear producer Nicole Roussell join the show.
Loud & Clear’s series, IIn the News, is where the hosts look at the most important ongoing developments of the week and put them into perspective. Sputnik news analysts Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
New York remains the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the United States, with more than 130,000 confirmed cases in the state and more than 3,000 people dead there. But the disease is just now showing signs of leveling off. Are the lockdown and social distancing finally working? Brian and John speak with Jim Kavanagh, the editor of thepolemicist.net.
Brazil’s far-right president Jair Bolsonaro is still telling reporters that the coronavirus pandemic is a result of media hysteria, saying that the disease is “just a little flu” and that “we all die someday anyway.” He has even urged Brazilians to return to work and to ignore the World Health Organization. As a result, 24 of Brazil’s 27 governors have announced that they will ignore Bolsonaro’s pronouncements and will act independently of the president on coronavirus. Aline Piva, a journalist and a member of Brazilians for Democracy and Social Justice, joins the show.

Trading Places? Trump & Republicans Embrace “Big Government” Apr 06, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Ted Rall, an award-winning editorial cartoonist and columnist, whose work is at www.rall.com.
Congress last week appropriated $2 trillion in new spending in an effort to keep the economy afloat during the coronavirus crisis. And House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that she is amenable to another spending package. This kind of government spending is seen around the world as “responsible” in order to prime the pump and keep people working. Why is it seen as a “left wing” approach here in the United States?
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been hospitalized with the coronavirus, some 11 days after testing positive. Johnson’s office said that he is comfortable and undergoing tests, but that his illness has been lingering and so it was prudent to seek further testing. Meanwhile the Labour Party has elected a new leader to replace Jeremy Corbyn. Keir Starmer, the Shadow Brexit Secretary, received 56 percent on the first ballot in the party’s leadership vote. He has promised to respect the basic tenets of the Labour platform, but he is expected to be more conservative than Corbyn, and his election was celebrated by Corbyn’s detractors in the party. Neil Clark, a journalist and broadcaster whose work has appeared in The Guardian, The Week, and Morning Star, joins the show.
Spain has seen more than 12,000 deaths due to coronavirus, a catastrophic total in a country with a population of 47 million people. But the death toll over the weekend seems to have leveled off, showing perhaps that the disease has peaked there. There are more than 80,000 active cases of coronavirus in Spain, but the rise over the weekend was the smallest since March 20. Still, Spain’s state of emergency will continue until at least April 26. Brian and John speak with Dick Nichols, the correspondent for Spain and Catalonia for Green Left Weekly.
Monday’s segment “Education for Liberation with Bill Ayers” is where Bill helps us look at the state of education across the country. What’s happening in our schools, colleges, and universities, and what impact does it have on the world around us? Bill Ayers, an activist, educator and the author of the book “Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto,” joins Brian and John.
In this segment, The Week Ahead, the hosts take a look at the most newsworthy stories of the coming week and what it means for the country and the world, including the expected spike in Coronavirus fatalities in the United States and how the US government is prioritizing its geopolitical goals over the lives of its own people. Sputnik News analysts and producers of this show Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
Monday’s regular segment Technology Rules is a weekly guide on how monopoly corporations and the national surveillance state are threatening cherished freedoms, civil rights and civil liberties. Web developer and technologist Chris Garaffa and software engineer and technology and security analyst Patricia Gorky join the show.

Trump Mocks US Governors As They Beg For Medical Supplies Apr 03, 2020

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Sputnik News analysts and producers Walter Smolarek and Nicole Roussell.
Friday is Loud & Clear’s weekly hour-long segment The Week in Review, about the week in politics, policy, and international affairs. Today they focus on the scarcity of essential medical goods, the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, exploding unemployment, essential workers standing up for safety on the job, and more.
Literally every country in the world is fighting the coronavirus, some with more success than others. But some countries are dealing with extreme added difficulty as they try to mount a defense against the virus. Why? Because of US sanctions. Health care professionals in Iran, Venezuela, and elsewhere are struggling to provide for the public health because the United States will not allow for the importation of medicines or supplies. Anya Parampil, a journalist for The Grayzone who hosts the new show Red Lines, joins the show.
Syria is still mired in civil war. The country reported its first coronavirus case last week and has already begun reporting deaths from the pandemic. How does a country at war, with fragmented and limited healthcare, protect itself and save its citizens with no medicines, few qualified healthcare workers, no money, and almost no equipment, all under the heavy hand of international sanctions? Brian and John speak with Ambassador Peter Ford, the former UK Ambassador to Syria.
It’s Friday! So it’s time for the week’s worst and most misleading headlines. Brian and John speak with Steve Patt, an independent journalist whose critiques of the mainstream media have been a feature of his site Left I on the News and on twitter @leftiblog, and Sputnik producer Nicole Roussell.

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