The Gist

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The Abbreviated Highlight Reel of Stacey Dash Feb 28, 2018

Show notes

Hang onto your skirts: Clueless co-star Stacey Dash is running for Congress.

On The Gist, returning champion Maria Konnikova is back to sum up the social science on poker tells: Are they BS? Konnikova writes for the New Yorker and is the author of The Confidence Game.

In the Spiel, we should acknowledge our progress.

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Dissing Dianne Feinstein Feb 27, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, President Trump's latest poetry reading.

Last week on the show, we talked about the manifold reasons for optimism in the world. This week, Harvard cognitive scientist Steven Pinker builds on that argument, adding that we've had a roughly 300-year run of steady improvements in technology, health, and civility. It just so happens that the only thing as constant as human progress is our tendency to focus on human shortcomings. Pinker's latest book is Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress.

In the Spiel, why it should be worrying that the California Democratic Party snubbed Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

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Don't Fall for It Feb 23, 2018

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On The Gist, Trump boosted an empty idea at CPAC: arming teachers to stop mass shooters.

In the interview, Derek DelGaudio is the magician of our time. His one-man show, In & of Itself, questions identity in a political atmosphere that's consumed by it.

In the Spiel, "unsubstantiated" stories about Trump's lecherous behavior on the set of The Apprentice are obviously, completely, and sadly believable.

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Who Can Check Big Tech? Feb 23, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, NBC's coverage of Olympic athletes' backstories is a little too obvious.

Slate tech writers April Glaser and Will Oremus examine the most plausible methods for reining in our tech overlords. Glaser and Oremus are the hosts of Slate's If Then.

In the Spiel, NRA honcho Wayne LaPierre's speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference was downright loony.

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The World Is Coming Up Roses Feb 22, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek will be moderating a gubernatorial debate in Pennsylvania. Mike says no thanks.

In the interview, Gregg Easterbrook is ever the optimist. Despite what your push alerts and Facebook news feed are telling you, the world is steadily getting safer, wealthier, and less afflicted by war and disease. Easterbrook is the author of It's Better Than It Looks: Reasons for Optimism in an Age of Fear.

In the Spiel, gun control advocates shouldn't compromise.

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Free Money City Feb 21, 2018

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On The Gist, Team USA's low medal count would be a bummer if these Winter Olympics weren't so goofy.

In the interview, Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs didn't campaign on universal basic income, but he's bringing it to his city. Later this year, some residents will start getting $500 a month.

In the Spiel, conservative commentators have it plain wrong when it comes to gun control.

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Ban the AR-15 Feb 17, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, the market for "how to survive a shooting spree" videos shows how far we've strayed in dealing with gun violence.

Interracial marriage on a national level has only been legal for 50 years, after the landmark Supreme Court decision Loving v. Virginia. Anna Holmes and Lacey Schwartz are two of the minds behind The Loving Generation, a video series by Topic.com on identity and dynamics within multiracial families.

In the Spiel, it's a no-brainer: Ban civilian ownership of the AR-15, and fewer will die.

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Which Side Are You On? Feb 16, 2018

Show notes

Filling in for Mike Pesca today is Leon Neyfakh, still smoldering after his first season as host of Slate's hit podcast, Slow Burn.

Leon is indulging in a new fascination lately: the latest "left Twix vs. right Twix" ad campaign and its insistence that we should all pick one.

But, of course, we insist on taking sides. Slate writer Justin Peters sheds some light on the New York Times' swift hiring and firing of tech journalist Quinn Norton.

In Leon's Spiel: We must have some moral absolutes. But what is the cost of eschewing bothsidesism?

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Runaway Military Spending Feb 15, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, names are stupidly important when it comes to getting elected.

The Trump administration is proposing a boost in military spending, but the country's defense budget actually peaked under President Obama during the troop surge for the war in Afghanistan. Bipartisan support for massive defense spending has been the norm since the Reagan era. Foreign Policy's Dan De Luce tells us about it.

In the Spiel, lawyer Michael Cohen's out-of-pocket expenses.

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Spoon-Fed by the Feds Feb 14, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, on the White House budget's effort to replace half of food-stamp funding with crappy meal boxes.

How do you fix one of the most gerrymandered states in the country? It helps to have a tireless amateur mapmaker in your ranks. Mike talks to Amanda Holt, who spurred Pennsylvania to redraw its legislative districts in 2013 and is closely watching the state's ongoing court battle over its congressional districts.

In the Spiel, the American intelligence community still has to convince the White House that Russia's up to no good.

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