How We Do It

Branko Marcetic, author of Yesterday's Man: The Case Against Joe Biden, joins us once again to talk about Trump the Loser, Joe the Enigma, Kamala the Cop, and what kind of clusterfuck progressives and socialists will be up against over the next four years.

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This week, we're joined by Joe Guinan, VP at the Democracy Collaborative, to discuss the fate and the prospects of the Trans-Atlantic Left. Feeling adrift in the wake of thee Sanders and Corbyn moments? We've got your antidote (and you might even like it).

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My good friend Nick Kiersey was kind enough to invite me onto his podcast, Fully Automated. Part 2 of our chat will be available for patrons of DPS, so be sure to support DPS on Patreon for full access:

http://www.patreon.com/deadpundits

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Here is the original write-up:

Hey everyone! Welcome to Episode 26 of Fully Automated… or, at least, Episode 26, Part One!

This is a super long overdue episode with a guest I have wanted to have on the show for a long time: Adam Proctor, the host of Dead Pundit’s Society. Adam has been doing his show FULL TIME for the last four years, delivering not only on his commitment to evangelizing “socialism for ordinary ass’ed people” but to making an incredibly important (and often misunderstood) contribution to the critique of political economy.

In Part One of this episode, we discuss Adam’s background, and the story behind the Dead Pundit’s Society. DPS emerged as part of the 2016 leftist podcast wave. Some I suppose would associate Adam with the “dirtbag left,” and shows like Chapo Trap House. But the story is more complicated than that.

One of the interesting things about DPS is the niche it has always occupied, between audience accessibility and issues-driven programming, on the one hand, and a commitment to rigorous academic thought, on the other. There’s a certain public intellectual function to the show. So, in this episode, we discuss the role of the left intellectual. And the question of how to balance this sort of awkward relationship, of being neither an entertainer nor an academic, but something in between.

DPS covers a wide range of themes — everything from state theory through race essentialism. These are less controversial topics today, perhaps, but in 2016 Adam was taking huge risks by trying to mainstream them among an American left that was still largely committed to horizontalist or “occupy” style ideals. Four years into this project, it is clear that DPS has played a major role in articulating these ideas to a wider audience that one might have imagined possible, back in 2016.

In Part One, you’ll hear us address the early days of the show, and Adam’s notorious attempts to take on freedom of speech issues, cancel culture, and race essentialism. We also talk socialist strategy, and the application of work by Sam Ginden and Leo Pantich to the Grexit question. And as if these takes weren’t controversial enough, wait ’til you see what we get into in Part Two! (Coming later this week).

[Source: https://www.occupyirtheory.info/2020/10/20/episode-26-rise-of-the-dead-pundit-with-adam-proctor-part-i/?fbclid=IwAR2IFq402_y8vwADBvq_pRhTQYZNfRFITRwGFHILX0GuGVSiULxxtAW8zlI]

This week the gang is joined by Jared Abbott to talk about his latest Jacobin essay titled, "The Two Paths of Democratic Socialism: Coalition and Confrontation," which attempts to lay out the progressive vs. democratic socialist debate regarding the capture of political power. Should progressives (and the left) engage in coalition with mainstream Democratic Party coalitions, or should they be more adversarial and confrontational regarding these coalitions?

*** Become a patron of DPS to hear the entirety of this episode: http://www.patreon.com/deadpundits ***

Find the essay here: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/08/the-two-paths-of-democratic-socialism-coalition-and-confrontation

The gang is joined by Christian Parenti, who talks about the birth of actually-existing capitalism narrated in his latest book, Radical Hamilton. We open by discussing a series of new cancellations and why this moralistic approach to politics lets institutions and the powerful off the hook. Next, we're joined by Christian who makes a spirited case for revisiting the Developmentalist model of Hamilton's "American School."

*** Become a patron to hear the remainder of this interview: http://www.patreon.com/deadpundits ***

Find out more about this book here: https://www.versobooks.com/books/3186-radical-hamilton

The Good Doctor Reed joins us to finish off Episode 1 of our new Black Political Thought Series. We hone in on his debate with fellow Marxist, Ellen Meiksins Wood, re: the role of race in capitalism and what it means to develop a historical materialist account of race and class.

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Once again, you can find that debate linked here: https://advancethestruggle.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/how-does-race-relate-to-class-a-debate/

Welcome to Episode 1 of our new "Black Political Thought" Series! The Good Doctor Reed is back on DPS to talk current events, the idea of "race as caste," and, finally, to discuss a very important debate around crafting an historical materialist account of race an class.

Slight change of pace: ** The B-Side will land for patrons tomorrow -- catch it by becoming a patron at: http://www.patreon.com/deadpundits **

Find the Reed/Wood debate here: https://advancethestruggle.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/how-does-race-relate-to-class-a-debate/

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We've got a packed cast of characters today to discuss the latest assault on the Post Office and what that means for the socialist and trade union movements, along with sharing with some amazing labor history and organizing advice. First up, the gang is joined by Paul Prescod to discuss the Post Office and its role in furthering the mission of racial justice. Next up, we've got UE General President, Carl Rosen, to talk about the proud and militant history of United Electrical and its latest efforts to build and radicalize the labor movement.

See "Them and Us Unionism" pamphlet here: https://www.ueunion.org/ThemAndUs/

To hear the entirety of this amazing interview with Carl Rosen, join the Dead Pundits Society today: http://www.patreon.com/deadpundits

This week, Adam and Ben are joined by Shawn Gude, editor-extraordinaire at Jacobin Magazine, to talk about the legacies of Michael Harrington and Eugene Debs and how some former DSA members are transforming them into the shape of Elizabeth Warren.

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Jo-Ann Mort's essay can be found here: https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/unlike-mike/

This subscriber-only episode has been unlocked due to the strong endorsement of our patrons. It's too important to stay behind a paywall, folks! Join the Dead Pundit Society to support this project and get access to exclusive weekly episodes like this one: http://www.patreon.com/deadpundits

The squad is joined by Dustin Guastella, who is an organizer for the Teamsters, a member of Philly DSA, a frequent contributor to Jacobin Magazine, and owner of the best mustache on the socialist left. We discuss the post-Bernie moment and address the most pressing demands facing the socialist left in 2020 and beyond.