Neoliberal economics has exposed the dark side of the American dream. It took off with Reagan and Thatcher. For most workers incomes have stagnated except for the very rich, whose incomes have more than quadrupled. Biden correctly points out that millions of people have gotten new jobs. But despite that, the typical family is actually getting paid less taking inflation into account. According to data from the Federal Reserve, real median household income has been falling during the Biden presidency. Last year the poverty rate more than doubled, and the number of people who are hungry jumped to 44 million. The ruling class, the owners of the economy and architects of policy advance and protect their interests, no matter how grievous the effect on others. Can we imagine an equitable economic system?

For years the indigenous peoples of the U.S., after having been dispersed and decimated and relegated to reservations, were reduced to caricatures. We all knew Indians and their culture. There was the familiar medicine man, the trading post, Geronimo and Crazy Horse, papooses and squaws, tepees and tomahawks, war dances and war parties. Tonto was the epitome of faithfulness and subservience. The formation and rise of the American Indian Movement, AIM, in the late 1960s and early 1970s did much to break down conventional stereotypes. AIM, through its actions at Wounded Knee, Alcatraz, Mount Rushmore and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, demonstrated that Native Americans could and would fight back against racism and oppression. Recorded at the Boulder Public Library.

The conflict between Israel and Palestine is in a new and extremely deadly period with many thousand dead, wounded and displaced. The battleground is the narrow coastal enclave of Gaza, home to over two million Palestinian Arabs. Often called the world’s largest open-air prison it is ruled by Hamas and has been subjected to an Israeli blockade since 2007. On October 7 Hamas launched a horrific attack on Israel killing some 1,200, taking over 200 hostages and triggering the latest Gaza-Israeli war. While the media focus on the Hamas attack and the Israeli response there is scant background or history. A closer examination reveals the conflict's deep-rooted causes. If they are not addressed the cycles of violence will continue. As Middle East expert Phyllis Bennis says, “We have to do the hard work of looking at context.” Interviewed by David Barsamian.

We live in a time where our connection with food and with the farmers that grow it has been undermined. The root of the problem is a growing dependence on a dysfunctional paradigm based on pesticides and monocultures, and a separation between humans and nature. How we produce, distribute, and consume food is increasingly becoming the center of the multiple crises we face today. Vandana Shiva says, “It is possible and healthy to have a whole and nutritious diet based on biodiverse plants.” But she warns, “Do not become subscribers to Bill Gates’ fake food empire.” We must, she urges “join hands with the Earth” and “return to a culture of care that provides dignity to farmers who produce real food to feed the world.”

Quickly lost in media coverage was the conflict between the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh, Artsakh in Armenian, and Azerbaijan. It resulted in the ethnic cleansing of the overwhelmingly Armenian enclave. For many months, their land was under siege and blockade by Azerbaijan. Putin and his so-called peacekeepers did nothing. The international community was silent. On September 19th Azerbaijan invaded. The outnumbered and outgunned Armenians had little chance against their more powerful neighbor. By the end of September, there were virtually no Armenians left in their ancient homeland. This is a huge blow in the history of the millennial old Armenian people who have endured massacres and genocide. But Armenians are resilient and they will heal their wounds and bounce back.

In 1970 unions represented about 30% of private-sector workers. Today that number is just 6%. As unions declined over the past half-century, workers suffered. They were paid poorly, they lost health care, retirement benefits and control over their schedules. Deaths of despair from drugs, alcohol and suicide surged among blue-collar workers. And the bosses, the fat cats? They got even fatter. CEO salaries went into orbit. After being pushed around and taking it on the chin for years, unions are back. They are a powerful force for equality, elevating the wages of underpaid non-union workers. UPS, Hollywood, Detroit automakers, Starbucks and other corporations are being challenged to raise wages and improve working conditions.

We are in the midst of a new cold war. In this go-round, the principal adversary is China with Russia taking second place. In the old Cold War, it was the reverse. Today, Russia is nowhere near China economically. And Moscow’s performance in Ukraine suggests its military has serious problems. China is already an economic superpower and is seen by the U.S. as a long-term threat to its hegemony. Washington’s so-called pivot to Asia is aimed at Beijing. Its strategy is to impose sanctions and surround it with more and more bases and to get Australia, Japan and other countries into military alliances. If the new cold war either intentionally or unintentionally, morphs into a hot war we can say goodbye to our precious planet. Recorded at KGNU.

Conspiracy. Conspiracy culture. Conspiracy theories. Just hearing those words can make some people cringe and others embrace them. Conspiracy theories are as old as the hills. But today, thanks to social media algorithms that push users toward ever more emotional, fact-adverse content, it's never been easier for wild implausible ideas and hate to go viral. It’s a rabbit hole that detracts attention from predatory economic policies that have created a gargantuan gap in wealth and power. Instead of focusing on what elites are actually doing, people are diverted into cultural wars about all-gender bathrooms, anti-racist education, non-white immigrants, and LGBTQ athletes which are all part of a deep-state cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles who control the world. Conspiracy culture makes the ruling class secure in knowing societal anger isn’t aimed at them.

A constant throughout history from Ancient Rome to today is the rich and powerful seek ever more wealth and control. If a popular leader innovates reforms that help the poor they come under sustained attack or worse they are killed. Go back to Caesar in Rome. The standard view is he was a power-hungry tyrant who was slain by the “noble” Brutus and his cohorts to save the Roman Republic. These were some of the measures Caesar implemented which so infuriated his enemies. He distributed land to thousands of veterans and poor Roman families. He began a program of public works. He pushed through rent reductions, reduced debt burdens, and granted Jews the right to practice their religion. These reforms, Michael Parenti says, were unacceptable to the ruling class. Thus, Caesar was assassinated on the Ides of March 44 B.C.

The 1993 Oslo Accords between Israelis and Palestinians. You might recall the scene. Arafat, Rabin and Clinton at the White House beaming away and shaking hands. It was a euphoric moment. Peace and stability were at long last at hand. Did that happen? Take a look at a map. Oslo enabled greater Israeli control and expansion of colonies, euphemistically called settlements. There is no peace process rather it should be called an annexation/occupation process with an ever-shrinking possibility for a viable independent Palestinian state. And Washington? One administration after another went along with this charade. And the beleaguered Palestinians and their woeful leaders? They are to be grateful if they have a few malls, direct traffic and collect garbage. Rarely in the history of diplomacy has there been such a one-sided outcome as Oslo. Recorded at UCLA. This never-before-broadcast marks the 30th anniversary of Oslo and the 20th anniversary of Edward Said's death on September 25, 2003.