Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Snarkiness

Aaron and Jason continue their “Great Leaders You Should Know” discussion, this time examining Saladin, the famed opponent of Richard the Lionheart during the Crusades. Along the way, they discuss the background of the Crusades themselves, how looking to ancient figures can inform our attitudes and behaviors in the modern socio-political arena, and what a Kurdish sultan has to teach us today.

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

Aaron and Austin look over the recently re-examined case of Sedley Alley, a man executed by the State of Tennessee who might be posthumously exonerated thanks to DNA evidence. The hosts discuss the various things that went wrong in Mr. Alley’s case, the importance of examining such cases if we want criminal justice reform, and what we can learn from the various and sundry exhibitions of incompetence, malfeasance, and blame-shifting that have been exhibited by the State in the entire affair.

The NYT article read in the episode: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/09/opinion/dna-death-penalty-sedley-alley.html?fbclid=IwAR10jSmnHI6lH5fjOIXOgxGZF6jjUboNfG7-ik2PasbUOvr3pp-QPFht-PY

Brandon Garrett’s (author of “Convicting the Innocent”) website: https://www.brandonlgarrett.com/

Prof. Garrett’s take on conservatism and criminal justice: https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2017/03/conservatives-could-help-derail-trumps-tough-on-crime-policies.html

The case of Damon Thibodeaux: https://innocenceproject.org/cases/damon-thibodeaux/

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

A long episode for a big topic! As one of the newly-inaugurated President Biden’s first acts was to abolish and retract the report from the 1776 commission, we figured we should revisit the 1776 commission not only because of its fundamental undermining of good teaching of history, but also because of what their published report represents more broadly. Rachel Yerke, a museum curator, joins Aaron to discuss the 1776 Commission Report, including what it represents societally, specific problems with what it reports as “history,” and why it is so dangerous to the study of history more broadly.

A link to the actual 1776 Commission Report, now hosted by the Heritage Foundation: https://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/2021/The-Presidents-Advisory-1776-Commission.pdf

Victor Davis Hanson on the 1776 report: https://www.abqjournal.com/2196748/thoughts-on-the-nowcanceled-1776-commission-report.html

Mike Gonzalez on why President Biden’s revocation of the 1776 project is a “war on history”: https://www.heritage.org/american-founders/commentary/bidens-disbanding-1776-commission-shows-lefts-war-us-history?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=thf-fb&fbclid=IwAR3ekBURrGtHFcB3GJFxdgLoEWrrVt2LlRuu3Iy7mSZAmmwC7jLGuq5oaWA

Former Oxford Historian Richard Carwardine on the 1619 Project: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/31/carw-d31.html

Stanford Historian Clayborne Carson on the 1619 Project:https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/15/clay-j15.html

Clarence Page on the 1776 Unites project - a non-nationalist, rigorously researched alternative to former President Trump’s efforts: https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/clarence-page/ct-column-trump-1776-report-history-slavery-page-20210122-gabpnpb2vrfoxhzn3u636jiree-story.html

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

As we wait with baited breath to see what next act of stupidity/treason might or might not occur in the wake of the election, Aaron and Jason decide to take a step back into history to see what we can learn from great leaders beyond America. In the first of this ongoing series, the hosts discuss precisely why we should study such leaders, the criteria for how we’ll be engaging with and evaluating these figures, and finally, our first great leader you should know, King Alfred the Great of Wessex.

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

Continuing our discussion of last week’s coup attempt, Aaron, Austin, and David discuss Trump’s pathetic attempts at “condemning” the violence, the whattaboutism comparisons between the coup and the BLM rallies over the summer, the right-wing argument that the capitol “belongs to all of us” and thus the coup was acceptable, the slippery slopes presented by the banning of Trump from Twitter in consequence of the coup, and why Aaron thinks the Capitol rotunda should be turned into a bouncy ball pit.

The actual video of Trump’s “rebuke” : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8PHImxb8Po

International military allies on their view that Trump shares responsibility for the coup: https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-attempted-coup-federal-law-enforcement-capitol-police-2021-1?fbclid=IwAR0HhJSYzGYGwVChGda9Qm2bI2Ldqr-W0wmgbhjBbFK-gfDwm9R33TaQlCQ

An interview with Professor Loretta Ross: https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2020/12/03/feminist-scholar-loretta-ross-is-calling-out-cancel-culture

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

The events of last week’s riots in DC are too much for one episode, so we’re using it as an opportunity to catch up on the episodes we missed over the holidays! In Part 1 of this two-part discussion, Aaron, Austin, and David discuss the causes of the riots, including whether or not they count as a coup, whether or not Donald Trump is responsible for them, and

Also brought up are Vegans and Sausages, “A-Women,” American Christianity’s refusal to acknowledge Hebrew, and David and Austin having a cross-denominational discussion of the history of Christianity in America.

Rod Dreher’s coverage of the Jericho March: https://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/what-i-saw-at-the-jericho-march/

Rod Dreher’s further thoughts on the Jericho March: https://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/defense-of-jericho-march-criticism/

Videos of the “Sausage Roll” incident

First, the stampede that Aaron mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt3WAQ2nOuo

Next, the chanting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zP4mf-O-tkM

What could be crazy enough to make both Aaron and Austin break the no swearing rule? The answer is Josh Hawley and Lin Wood’s bouts of authoritarian insanity. Aaron and Austin begin by discussing the variety of bizarre and slanderous statements made by attorney Lin Wood about everyone from Mike Pence to Chief Justice John Roberts, and continue by discussing Josh Hawley (of “Nationalism is actually really a good thing you guys!” fame) and his cabal’s attempt to delegitimize the election results.

An account of Lin Wood’s tweets: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/pro-trump-lawyer-lin-woods-claims-against-mike-pence-prompt-calls-for-fbi-secret-service-scrutiny/ar-BB1cqc06

An overview of Josh Hawley’s actions to vote against certifying the electoral votes: https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/nearly-a-dozen-gop-senators-announce-plans-to-back-josh-hawley-in-voting-against-counting/article_0ca10e21-fd10-5f51-83bf-b9d468534dbc.html

Peter Wehner on Josh Hawley and his shaping the Republican Party’s legacy: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/12/cowards-are-destroying-the-gop/617534/

The Rod Dreher article that Austin mentions: https://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/defense-of-jericho-march-criticism/

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

Tomorrow is Festivus, meaning that it’s time to air our grievances, and this week, Austin and Aaron air a lot of grievances with Trump’s legal team and election result challenges. Austin talks about why everything about this affair offends him as a lawyer, from the actors within it to the legal claims made to the rhetoric used outside the courtroom. Aaron brings up the dangers of the rhetoric used by Trump’s legal team, especially in their press briefings, and why this should worry all of us, regardless of our political affiliation.

Also, “Big words, your honor” needs to become a meme and we are calling out to you to help us make this happen.

AP Article with a list of the election challenges and results: https://apnews.com/article/judge-throws-out-trump-suit-pennsylvania-87eaf4df86d5f6ccc343c3385c9ba86c

The NYT on Trump’s Legal Team: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/03/us/politics/jenna-ellis-trump.html

An amusing tale about the actual military of Lichtenstein that we think actually implies that Trump might have been better off actually trying to hire the Lichtenstein navy. Even though the actual country of Lichtenstein has no military, their imaginary fighting forces would be well suited to fight Trump’s imaginary foes: https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-history/liechtenstein-army-81-men-returned/

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

In the spirit of the philosophy that “there is no bad time to talk about Good things,” Aaron and Jason decide to do a post-Thanksgiving autopsy of the Pilgrims and their legacy in America for the issues of self-government and religious freedom.

The Lawrence Reed article quoted by Aaron: https://fee.org/articles/the-mayflower-compact-as-an-idea-america-began-in-1620-not-1776/

An overview of King Philip’s War, one of the major reasons that Aaron takes issue with the Pilgrims’ legacy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNXDplgft_g

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0

After our two-week Thanksgiving break, Aaron and our Costco-brand Neuhaus discuss the recent comments from Evangelical intellectual Eric Metaxas, who claims that Trump won the election in a landslide and that Jesus is on Trump’s side. Aaron and David discuss the harmful nature of Metaxas’s comments, how his comments reflect on Christianity and Evangelicalism, and what David thinks should be the Christian response to the election results.

An overview of Eric Metaxas’s statements: https://religionnews.com/2020/11/30/eric-metaxas-christian-radio-host-offers-to-lay-down-his-life-for-trump-election-triumph/

Dr. Joe Pierre on what distinguishes conspiracy theories from worldview such as religion: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/psych-unseen/202001/understanding-the-psychology-conspiracy-theories-part-1

Theme-song information:

Music from YouTube Audio Library [Aka YAL]

Music provided by RFM: https://youtu.be/hMLSa6-cXT0