Clearing the FOG with co-hosts Margaret Flowers and Kevin Zeese

This is Part II of an interview with Al Glatkowski, a revolutionary activist and merchant marine who successfully diverted the SS Columbia Eagle carrying thousands of illegal napalm bombs away from Vietnam in the late 1960s. Listen to Part I where he talks about the mutiny here. In this episode of Clearing the FOG, Glatkowski describes his time in prison and how he endured it. He speaks about the sacrifices he made, his activism both in prison and when he was released, and what is needed in the current revolutionary moment. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

The Pentagon recently announced that the United States has deployed weapons in space, in defiance of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty that declares space as a commons. The US has had plans to dominate space for decades for mineral extraction and military control of the planet through its offensive Golden Dome Project. Bruce Gagnon of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space joins Clearing the FOG to explain what the US intends to do, the dangers involved, how the rest of the world is responding, and what people are doing to stop US domination of space. October 3 to 10 is the Keep Space for Peace week. Find resources at Space4Peace.org. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

In 1970, two merchant marines, Al Glatkowski and Clyde McKay, successfully commandeered the SS Columbia Eagle carrying nearly 5,000 500- and 750-pound napalm bombs, safely evacuated the crew, and sailed the ship to Cambodia, where it was surrendered. This act was done in opposition to the genocide occurring in Vietnam. Al Glatkowski joins Clearing the FOG for this first installment, in which he describes what led him to take the action and how it was conducted, as well as the aftermath. In this time of total disregard of international law by the United States, and as more members of the military question their involvement in what the US is doing, we remember the bravery and resolve of Al and Clyde. For more information, visit PopulasrResistance.org.

On this Labor Day, while we celebrate the gains of the Labor Movement in the United States, it is also critical to assess the state of that movement today as we face many of the conditions that led to a surge in labor power during the early 20th century. In his new book, "Unions, Race and Popular Democracy," labor expert Dr. Kim Scipes compares two labor organizing committees that formed in the Midwest, one by the steelworkers and another by the meatpackers. Scipes joins Clearing the FOG to discuss the differences between top-down trade unions and grassroots industrial unions and how Social Justice Unionism confronted White Supremacy and won victories for all workers. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

The US Federal debt recently climbed to $40 trillion, double what it was just ten years ago. The United States is borrowing at an unprecedented rate, putting itself and the whole world at risk of financial collapse. Professor Richard Wolff joins Clearing the FOG to discuss why the debt is rising so quickly, how it impacts our daily lives and more signs of a US empire in decline. Wolff explains that the election of Donald Trump and progressive Democrats are "votes of alienation" rather than being based on a political ideology. Wolff expresses optimism in the face of a rising interest in socialism and whether the US can transform away from capitalism or rescue it, as was done under FDR. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

Data center fights arose organically and are having victories, with 500 laws passed in the last year, because they are grassroots, broad and militant. This has put them on the radar of political parties and large 'nonprofits' who seek to exploit them for their own gain. This week, Clearing the FOG speaks with Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright, an international climate and environmental liberation advocate, about the potential of this movement to expand and have greater successes and the risks of involvement by the nonprofit industrial complex that commodifies social justice for monetary gain. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

As the climate crisis intensifies, bringing extreme weather events, fires, droughts and flooding to our communities, and governments refuse to take effective action, a growing movement is amending state Constitutions to codify the right to clean air and water and a healthy environment. Clearing the FOG speaks with the founder of the Green Amendments For The Generations campaign, Maya van Rossum. An environmental lawyer, van Rossum explains how communities can win these amendments and use them to change the legal system that currently legalizes the expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure. She also talks about how Green Amendments strengthen the fights against data centers. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

As the climate crisis ravages the planet with wildfires, droughts and floods, the wealthy are using private jets, which spew carbon into the atmosphere, more and more frequently. Not only does this exacerbate the climate crisis, but it is putting a strain on air travel infrastructure. Through a powerful private jet lobby, the cost of private air travel has been shifted to those who use commercial airlines and taxpayers. Chuck Collins of the Program on Inequality and the Common Good at the Institute for Policy Studies, which recently launched its Tax Private Jet campaign, speaks with Clearing the FOG about the many reasons why we need to curtail private jet use and the growing movement to do that. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

It has been nearly four and a half years since the Russian intervention into Ukraine instigated by the United States and other Western nations. Ukraine, through its alliances with terrorist organizations on the African continent and in Syria, and now through its attack on an Iranian civilian ship, is demonstrating that it is a tool of Western imperialism. Clearing the FOG speaks with Phil Wilayto of the Odessa Solidarity Campaign about the long history of Ukraine's far right white supremacy elements, the 2014 US-backed coup and the West's efforts to prolong the war on Russia to serve their imperialist interests. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

Surveillance systems and infrastructure are being built at an alarming rate in the United States. Often, contracts are signed with surveillance corporations without public input or oversight. At the same time, a national movement that spans the political spectrum is rising up to challenge the security state. Communities are removing infrastructure, canceling contracts and passing moratoria. Clearing the FOG speaks with Ed Vogel of Southerners Against Surveillance Systems and Infrastructure about the extent of surveillance on the streets, in our schools and elsewhere, and how people are investigating what systems are in their communities and are organizing to end mass surveillance. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.