Call It Like I See It

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss the use of debunked claims by the Trump campaign about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio eating pets for political gain (01:09).  The guys also react to the revelation that Onlyfans has become one of the most popular and profitable websites (32:12).

Trump and Vance Are Harming the People They Claim to Care About (The Atlantic)

Calls for J.D. Vance to resign after he admits that he created pet-eating story about immigrants (NJ.com)

Haitian immigrants helped revive a struggling Ohio town. Then neo-Nazis turned up (The Guardian)

Two Springfield, Ohio, hospitals locked down as more bomb threats rock city amid migrant crisis tensions (NY Post)

Stochastic terrorism (Wikipedia) 

OnlyFans figured out the best porn business on the internet (Business Insider) (Apple News Link)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss the Apalachee High School shooting in Georgia and what it really means if one believes that stuff like this is now just “a fact of life” (1:16). The guys also consider why Russian propagandists seem to be so keen on secretly amplifying right wing voices in America (22:29) and react to the question of whether marijuana has become too strong since big business has now gotten in the business of growing and selling it (34:59).

'Great' dad. 'Caring' brother. Families mourn Georgia high school shooting victims. (USA Today)

JD Vance says he laments that school shootings are a ‘fact of life’ and calls for better security (AP News)

Illinois law banning concealed carry on public transit is unconstitutional, judge rules (AP News)

How Russian operatives covertly hired U.S. influencers to create viral videos (NPR)

Right-wing US influencers say they were victims of alleged Russian plot (BBC)

What to know about Tenet Media, Tennessee company linked to Russian propagandists (The Tennesseean)

Marijuana Is Too Strong Now (The Atlantic) (Apple News Link)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss the sharp decline in encounters at the southern border with people wanting to come to the US and why some who oppose immigration are not thrilled about the development (1:14). The guys also react to the banning of Twitter/X in Brazil (28:14) and consider if dolphins really are evil (55:43).

July Immigrant Border Arrests Lower Than Trump’s Last Month In Office (Forbes)

GOP senator reveals threat he received working on border bill (CNN)

Senate Republicans block bipartisan border deal and foreign aid package following months of negotiations (CNN)

Fentanyl scanners that were sitting idle for lack of federal funds can now be installed at the border to catch smugglers (NBC News)

X goes offline in Brazil after Elon Musk’s refusal to comply with local laws (The Guardian)

Social media loves to villainize dolphins. Here's why it's wrong. (National Geographic) (Apple News Link)

Much Like Humans, Dolphin Pods Have Complex Social Structures (Discover Magazine)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana react to some recent comments by JP Morgan Chase CEO Jaime Dimon about the looming national debt crisis and whether the rich need to pay more taxes (1:14). The guys also weigh in on what many have said is a recent uptick of people in right wing circles trying to mainstream race pseudoscience (33:24).

Jamie Dimon wants to hit millionaires with the ‘Buffett Rule’ to tackle national debt - Fortune (Yahoo! Finance)

What is the national debt? (Treasury.gov)

U.S. Debt by President: Dollar and Percentage (Investopedia)

Reaganomics (Wikipedia)

The Far Right Is Becoming Obsessed With Race and IQ (The Atlantic) (Apple News Link)

How we fail black patients in pain (Association of American Medical Colleges)

Streaming Between the Lines – “The Eugenics Crusade” - Call It Like I See It (Apple Podcasts)

Netflix's "Behind the Curve" and the Belief in a Flat Earth - Call It Like I See It (Apple Podcasts)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss “It Was All a Lie: How the Republican Party Became Donald Trump,” the 2020 New York Times Bestseller written by longtime Republican political consultant and strategist Stuart Stevens which looks the lies the modern Republican Party built itself on and how that led to the party’s complete submission to former president Trump.

It Was All a Lie: How the Republican Party Became Donald Trump (Penguin Random House)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss X Corp.’s recently filed lawsuit against advertisers for what it calls an illegal boycott relative to what its owner, Elon Musk, says he’s about (1:04).  The guys also discuss Ice Cube’s flirtation with figures like Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson, particularly in light of his particular legacy in hip hop music and culture (21:37).

Scoop: X sues major brands, ad industry group for antitrust (Axios)

Elon Musk’s X sues advertisers over alleged ‘massive advertiser boycott’ after Twitter takeover (AP)

Musk’s Twitter ‘Boycott’ Lawsuit Is a ‘Hideous Joke’: Former FTC Official (Rolling Stone)

What Happened to Ice Cube? (Slate)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana take a look at Project 2025, what it represents, and why Republican nominee Donald Trump has started distancing himself from it (1:15).  The guys also react to the gender controversy involving Algerian boxer Imane Khelif at the Olympics (32:04) and discuss a recent story on technological advancements in cloud seeding and making it rain on demand (48:02).

Project 2025: The myths and the facts (Vox)

Project 2025 - Mandate for Leadership (PDF from Project2025.org)

Project 2025 (Wikipedia)

Project 2025: A wish list for a Trump presidency, explained (BBC)

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif clinches medal at Olympics after outcry fueled by gender misconceptions (AP)

Imane Khelif is just the latest case of female athletes being questioned over their sex (NPR)

Fact check on Algerian fighter Imane Khelif, DSDs, biology and Olympic boxing (USA Today)

The New Gods of Weather Can Make Rain on Demand—or So They Want You to Believe (Wired) (Apple News Link)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss California’s move to raise the minimum wage to $20/hour for workers at large fast food chains and the hollow predictions of doom and gloom (1:17).  The guys also discuss the lack of negative incentives in police hiring in America in light of the murder of Sonya Massey (20:20) and react to the theory that has been making the rounds that our known universe may be a black hole in some larger universe or multiverse (41:38).

California put up its fast-food wage to $20. Its governor is adamant it's not causing employment to fall. (Business Insider)

Southern California fast food jobs hit record high despite minimum wage hike (Orange County Register)

The Unintended Consequences Of California’s $20 Minimum Wage For Fast-Food Workers (Forbes)

What Are the Pros and Cons of Raising the Minimum Wage? (Investopedia)

Body camera video focused national attention on an Illinois deputy’s fatal shooting of Sonya Massey (AP News)

Deputy who killed Sonya Massey was removed from the Army, had DUIs and needed ‘high stress decision’ classes, records show (CNN)

Deputy who killed Sonya Massey drew concerns over his aggression and integrity issues in previous jobs (NBC News)

DeSantis’s $13.5m police program lures officers with violent records to Florida (The Guardian)

We're all living in a black hole: The bold theory scientists can't disprove - BBC Science Focus (Apple News Link)

Why NASA Think We Might Live Inside a Black Hole - Bright Side Universe (YouTube)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss Neil Postman’s “Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business,” the 1985 book that looks at how various mediums of communication used by societies influence the messages people receive in the society and details the way television, which presents all content as entertainment, handicaps our ability to engage in serious matters like self-governance.

Amusing Ourselves to Death (Penguin Random House)

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana consider the rush to conspiracy theories following the assassination attempt of Donald Trump (1:34).  The guys also discuss the death of privacy and whether companies should be allowed to keep archives of so much data about us after a second huge data breach from AT&T (27:55) and react to the record breaking heat being seen across the US (43:59).

At the Trump rally, it was evening sun, songs and blue sky. Then came bullets, screams and blood (AP News)

The Trump Shooting Conspiracies Outpaced Reality (The Atlantic)

Trump Shooting Conspiracies Are Coming From Every Direction (Wired)

After assassination attempt, Trump and Biden seek calm, unity (Reuters)

The Russian "Firehose of Falsehood" Propaganda Model (RAND)

AT&T says criminals stole phone records of ‘nearly all’ customers in new data breach (Tech Crunch)

Nearly all AT&T cell customers’ call and text records exposed in a massive breach (CNN)

AT&T's Major Data Breach Sparks Another Class-Action Lawsuit (PC Mag)

Millions face extreme temperatures as heat dome covers US midwest and east (The Guardian)

The Climate Is the Economy (Slate)

New study calculates climate change’s economic bite will hit about $38 trillion a year by 2049 (AP News)