What are the early signs of discourse for 2025, and what might they signal in politics and culture for the year ahead?

This episode’s co-hosts
Kyle, Ginny, Simone

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

1:25 Christopher Nolan’s Homer’s Odyssey

12:05 “Historic Western” Content

28:35 Capitalism Art

35:56 SEO Art

39:11 Nosferatu The Movie 

44:09 Handing Out Cookies

46:19 Imperialism Come Home

54:11 Ship of Nation State

1:04:00 Winston Peters Prediction 

1:07:45 Closings

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

Will the rightwing implode in 2025 or is it all theatre? What’s on the cards for Western and NZ politics as we enter a new year.

This episode’s co-hosts
Simone, Kyle, Ginny

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

1:39 Leopards Eating Blue Checks

11:58 Deindustrialization

22:49 Soldier Worship 

29:20 Sinophobic Rhetoric 

37:14 Worst Government Since ‘91 

48:55 What Can I Do

54:48 Start-Up Investments

1:00:45 Everyone Wants to go Back

1:08:22 Closings

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

In the final(??) current events episode for the year we discuss the ways in which western politics, especially on the rightwing, is intentionally creating a policy framework to support fascism. We talk education, criminality, the alignment of capital with the far right, and try to think of some high points.

This episode’s co-hosts
Ginny, Simone, Kyle

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

2:13 Police Charges

6:47 Illiteracy 

14:50 Elon Backs AfD

28:00 Te Pati Maori Song

31:02 Greens and Media Outlets

38:53 Israel Sanctions and Embassies

42:19 Simone’s Short Film

45:53 Closing

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

Oliver Neas spent months this year investigating and conducting interviews to reveal what happened behind the scenes before & after the Wellington council debated selling shares in their own airport. We discussed what processes & principles were at play, how the issue connects to local economy governance, and how best to treat these debates in your community.

Before listening, please read all 3 parts of Oliver's investigation here: Part 1: https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/27-11-2024/privatisation-lost-how-the-wellington-airport-saga-split-the-left

Part 2: https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/28-11-2024/privatisation-lost-the-green-party-vs-the-green-party

Part 3: https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/29-11-2024/privatisation-lost-inside-the-final-vote-for-the-future-of-wellington-airport

And for a description of the issue framed by Wellington council staffers: https://wellington.govt.nz/your-council/projects/airport-share-sale

This episode’s co-hosts
Philip, Oliver, Max

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

2:38 Selling the Airport

8:52 Staff Power

14:03 Auckland Privatisation

19:27 Wellington Distinction 

22:35 Counsellors 

24:58 Broad Positions

28:22 Subservience to a Party

32:27 Flipping Decisions

38:55 Auckland Blocks

43:53 Progressive Privatisation

45:50 Conflict of Interest

50:11 Other Sectors

52:04 Private Insurance

56:55 Closing

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

Pmax’s thoughts on students and teachers at the TPB hīkoi.

The Commerce Commission gets slightly more aggressive as the supermarket duopoly and government lean into failed, repressive carceral policy. The alleged UHC shooter has been caught -what does this mean for populism? TPM’s vote share looks to be on the rise, Māori continue to be the most likely electoral party for driving change. And the spectre of climate change is becoming a very violent poltergeist.

This episode’s co-hosts

Finlay, Kyle, Philip, Simone

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

2:10 Charging Woolworths

4:43 Facial Recognition

11:47 Te Pati Maori Polling

16:03 Tapped Out Voters

23:34 Produce Season

26:39 Luigi Got Got

36:21 One Point Five Degrees 

44:49 Three Strikes 

53:52 Closing

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

We host freelance reporter Glen Johnson and genocide researcher Kieran Kelly to discuss the recent events in Syria and what it might mean for the region.

This episode’s co-hosts
Kyle, Philip, Glen, Kieran

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

1:25 Background on Syria

5:29 US Hegemony in the Region 

8:12 Unexpected Pace

11:45 Regime Plausible Deniability 

15:20 Regional Politics

19:57 Impact of Rapid Collapse 

23:26 Terrorist Designation

28:17 Claiming Land

30:02 Secular Nationalists

32:15 Forecast of Power

36:25 Imperialism

39:43 The Role of Oil

42:35 Building a Regime

45:08 The Role of International Orgs

50:59 Closings

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

Join us for the week that was! We talk about the death of the United Health Care CEO, the concept of Social Murder, political issues in South Korea and France and the (willing) appropriation of legacy media as a propaganda network alongside Western government authoritarianism.

https://mickhall.substack.com/p/nzs-foreign-interference-bill-repressive

This episode’s co-hosts
Kyle, Ginny, Simone

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

1:48 United Healthcare Shooting

10:13 Redacted 

14:12 Social Murder

21:04 South Korea

33:34 Shortest Premiership in French History

39:21 Five Eyes Future

49:01 Crime Reporting

53:55 The Propaganda Network

59:12 Closings

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

We’re joined by Jathan Sadowski, AI critic and co-host of This Machine Kills to discuss his “ruthless criticism of AI and Capitalism and how it fits into the NZ context.

Jathan is visiting NZ next week and you can register for free here:
https://jathansadowskitour.lilregie.com/booking/attendees/new

This episode’s co-hosts
Ginny, Jathan, Kyle, Mandy, Mark

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

3:52 Dishonesty in AI

5:46 AI is an Imperative

13:57 Making AI a Consumer Product

19:11 Requirements of AI

23:56 Nobody Wants This

28:58 Why Has This Been Successful 

36:58 Damages

42:32 Drawing the Line of Intent

45:39 Fighting Back

1:01:27 Making a Wedge

1:15:59 A Bust to a Boom

1:18:18 Closings

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

Back with current events after a few midweek episodes! We talk proxy wars, the fascist turn, and the increasing propensity of “centre left” parties in the west to be the ones moving towards authoritarian policy - particularly in regards to immigration and freedom of speech.

This episode’s co-hosts
Kyle, Ginny, Pmax, Simone

Timestamps

0:00 Introductions

2:13 Proxy Wars

9:31 Black Friday (Bad) 

14:45 Management Consultants 

20:58 Overspend 

22:58 75% Hitler 

29:26 Capacity of People

31:33 Doxxing Offenses 

36:25 Arcane is Over and Hamilton is Good

38:16 Riana Te Ngahue 

40:21 Winston Peters

47:42 Black Friday (Good)

49:11 China

49:48 Closings

Intro/Outro by The Prophet Motive

Support us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200