Call It Like I See It

How someone responds in the face of crisis is telling, so with societies around the globe in crisis mode dealing with COVID-19, James Keys, Tunde Ogunlana and Rob Richardson take a look at the type of characteristics in a leader can make them effective in times of crisis (02:09) and discuss some positive things they have seen from leaders at various levels during this crisis (09:26). They also explore some bothersome or concerning things leaders have said and done during the current crisis (18:46) and contemplate how we as a democratic society can pick better leaders (36:44).

As COVID-19 continues its rapid spread in the U.S. and around the world, James Keys, Tunde Ogunlana, and Rob Richardson take a look at the practice of social distancing, how has been presented by many authorities as a way to make the spread of the virus more manageable (01:42), and how some have seemingly disregarded the practice (12:26). The guys also discuss some of the serious economic concerns that come with social distancing and potentially a national lockdown (24:51), what they see in the panic buying trends sweeping the nation (42:23), and what they would stock up on if there was a national lockdown (48:00).

After seeing Super Tuesday shake up the Democratic primary, James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss what they see in Bernie Sanders’ sudden skid (02:01) and examine whether Bernie’s reliance on young people and traditionally disengaged voters is a faulty strategy (17:20). Also considered is the extent to which there are parallels between Bernie’s insurgency movement in the Democratic party and Trump’s insurgency movement in 2016 in the Republican party (25:27) and how well the respective party establishment’s dealt with these insurgencies (47:15).

As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to spread across the globe and begins to make its prescence felt in the United States, James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana look at the response in the United States, including how it seems that some in the leadership seem more concerned with deflecting blame than understanding and dealing with the problem (01:06) and whether the loss of credibility in the executive branch of the government makes the new gag rule on scientists look shady (20:10). We also try to make sense of how the financial markets have reacted to the continued spread of the virus (33:02).

Understanding that the Internet can overload you with what you want to see, and also make it impossible to avoid things you don’t want to see, James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss the role the Internet research played in a tragic story of an attempted ‘freebirth’ that went wrong (01:11), the role trolling on the Internet played in the death of one of the UK’s most famous TV stars (18:54), and singer Billie Eilish’s claim that social media was ruining her life (24:32). We also consider whether black conservatives, such as Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas are unfairly excluded from Black History Month celebrations (31:05).

As there are power dynamics in most human interactions, we explore Robert Greene's masterpiece, 48 Laws of Power. James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss how many of the individual laws seem to tie into some broader concepts, noting particular laws that seem to relate to changing minds (01:48), avoiding trouble (11:19), moving crowds (26:47), and making moves (40:13).

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana look at how societal will and innovation has allowed driven progress in the environmental movement alongside continued growth in a way that was seemingly unimaginable 50 years ago (01:09) and consider in this light whether our current climate concerns are overblown (14:11). We also discuss what we see in the efforts of some cisgender females to keep transgender competitors out of women’s track competitions (19:01) and what the identification of another ancient human species that that modern humans apparently interacted and interbred with means in our modern society (38:44).

Now that voting has begun for the Democratic Party’s Presidential Primary, James Keys, Tunde Ogunlana, and Rob Richardson discuss what we has stood out so far (01:33) and whether the primary process, which has some visible flaws, can deliver a viable candidate (11:22). We also consider whether Michael Bloomberg is making a mockery of the process by jumping in so late and spending so much (27:57) and debate whether we think the threat posed by the Trump Administration to the Constitution and the rule of law is serious enough to support any eventual Democratic nominee (41:36).

With Georgetown University's decision divest from fossil fuel investments, James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss what we see with the massive amounts of carbon that is and has been released from the burning of fossil fuels (:48) and wonder whether it's too late to prevent catastrophe (10:38). We also take a look at Clearview AI's building and selling of a massive facial recognition database from online pictures and data (26:54) and big tech's demands to Clearview AI to get its hands off "their" data, recognizing of course that "their" data is us (34:49).

James Keys and Tunde Ogunlana discuss what we see generally with the cost of living squeeze being felt by many American families (0:55), looking first at some of the factors which may be influencing the excessive rise in housing costs (7:22). We also touch on what may be going on with the increase in other common costs, such as student loan debt and child care (19:44), try to reconcile the perceived strength of the economy in general with the struggles of the workers (30:10), and consider how the actions of government and the operation of our capitalist system can play a positive or negative role in addressing this crisis (36:33).