Third places are neutral public spaces outside the home (first place) and work (second place) where people can gather and interact, e.g. churches, coffee shops, bars, parks, malls, movie theaters, clubs, etc. Since at least the 1990s, third places have been disappearing, leaving people nowhere to go. This week, the gang explores why third spaces are going away, what the consequences are and what can be done to get back to a world where people just simply hang out.

 

(0:00:00) - Intro (Jay's mouth got probed, to go or not to go to the doctor, news update)

(0:26:00) - Sounds of the Week:

• China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs' trade war propaganda goes viral
• Trump talks about due process for immigrant deportations

(0:49:20) - Third places

 

Songs:

"In the Mall" by Weezer

"Hanging Around" by The Stranglers

"Longview" by Green Day

 

Notes:

• Marjorie Taylor Greene's tweet about the Trump administration (0:15:05)
• House approves Marjorie Taylor Greene's bill renaming Gulf of Mexico as "Gulf of America" (0:16:30) 
• Judge bars deportations of Venezuelans from South Texas under the Alien Enemies Act (0:17:37)
• Mohsen Mahdawi, Columbia student freed by ICE, feared citizenship interview was a 'trap' (0:18:06)
• Canada's Liberals ride Trump backlash to comeback election win (0:18:35)
• Trump lashes out against "fake polls" as his approval ratings sink (0:19:30)
• Trump’s first 100 days, in 10 charts (0:19:40)
• West Coast ports see cargo decline amid 145% tariff hike; truckers struggle for loads (0:31:55) 
• Trump calls emptying U.S. ports a ‘good thing’ despite supply-chain panic because ‘that means we lose less money’ (0:32:05) 
• Mark Cuban's Bluesky post on the tariffs' effect on transportation costs (0:32:23)
• How will Trump's tariffs affect grocery store prices? We explain. (0:35:50)
• Tariffs Could Open Door for Companies to Pad Profits (0:35:50) 
• "The Great Good Place" by Ray Oldenburg (0:50:45)
• Americans are choosing to be alone. Here’s why we should reverse that. (0:59:40)
• ‘Friends’ and ‘Seinfeld’ knew the cure for loneliness (1:00:10)
• Number of pubs in England and Wales falls below 39,000 for first time (1:01:55)
• Do Yourself a Favor and Go Find a ‘Third Place’ (1:02:45)
• KC property owners push for urban upgrades as street racing plagues Crossroads District (1:04:10)
• Vanishing third places and what can be done (1:11:36)
• Message from Brian: Back to Starbucks (1:17:30)
• Where Have All the ‘Third Places’ Gone? (1:18:00)