Description: Rachel, Kelley, and Bill discuss the passage of the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act and its effects against US labor unions, as well as the potential role of white-collar workers in organized labor’s future. Links and notes for Ep. 340 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/AFD-Ep-340-Links-and-Notes-Taft-Hartley.pdf Theme music by Stunt Bird.

Unlocked bonus episode: Patrick from “Conspiracy You Can Believe In” joins Bill and Nate to talk about planned obsolescence, the interwar Phoebus Cartel, the “right to repair” movement, and the ecological peril of a wasteful economy. Subscribe at Patreon for more bonus episodes. Links for Ep. 339 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Bonus-AFD-Ep-339-Links-and-Notes-The-Future-of-Planned-Obsolescence-feat-Patrick.pdf Theme … Read more

Description: In 1934, an army of the unemployed rallied to the defense of a new labor union in one of the hardest-hit cities of the Great Depression, facing down the Ohio National Guard. Bill and Rachel discuss. Links and notes for Ep. 338 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/AFD-Ep-338-Links-and-Notes-The-Toledo-Auto-Lite-Strike-of-1934.pdf Theme music by Stunt Bird.

Description: Nate read the highly influential but now largely forgotten 1888 utopian futurism novel “Looking Backward” by Edward Bellamy, and he discusses it with Bill. Links and notes for Ep. 337 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/AFD-Ep-337-Links-and-Notes-Edward-Bellamy’s-“Looking-Backward”.pdf Theme music by Stunt Bird.

Description: The US criminal justice system depends heavily on the presumed credibility of police testimony. Prosecutors not only regularly fail to tell defendants an officer witness has a credibility problem but often don’t keep track themselves. Bill and Rachel discuss. Links and notes for Ep. 336 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/AFD-Ep-336-Links-and-Notes-Brady-Lists.pdf Theme music … Read more

Description: William B. Wilson, the first U.S. Secretary of Labor, began union organizing at age 12. He went on to serve in Congress before leading the department he helped create to aid the interests of workers. Bill and Rachel discuss. Links and notes for Ep. 335 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/AFD-Ep-335-Links-and-Notes-William-B-Wilson.pdf Theme music … Read more

Description: On November 19, 1915, legendary IWW songwriter and migrant worker Joe Hill was executed by firing squad in Utah for a murder he did not commit. Bill and Rachel discuss. Theme music by Stunt Bird. End music by the subject of today’s episode. Links and notes for Ep. 334 … Read more

Description: In 1902 and 1919, US coal miners undertook huge strikes and both times they won. In one case, the intervention of a US President sealed the win. But what happened in the other? Bill and Rachel discuss. Links and notes for Ep. 333 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/AFD-Ep-333-Links-and-Notes-The-Coal-Strikes-of-1902-and-1919.pdf Theme music by Stunt … Read more

Description: Bill and Rachel discuss pedal-assist e-bikes, the rise of bicycles during the Second Industrial Revolution, and the historic role of bikes in feminism and the military. Links and notes for Ep. 332 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/AFD-Ep-332-Links-and-Notes-The-Rise-of-Bicycles.pdf Theme music by Stunt Bird.

Description: In the late 1500s, a slave in Mexico led a guerrilla slave rebellion into the mountains of Veracruz that proved so durable that Spanish authorities had to recognize a peace treaty by the 1610s. Bill and Nate discuss. Notes and links for Ep. 331 (PDF): http://arsenalfordemocracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/AFD-Ep-331-Links-and-Notes-Gaspar-Yanga.pdf Theme music by … Read more