Welcome to the ModState Podcast. On this episode John and Nate explore the valid question that Ted Cruz proposed to Mark Zuckerberg regarding Christian view points being removed from Facebook. So this is an interesting question...Who makes the decision in regards to content removal on Facebook? Is this a better case for AI and algorithm creation instead of relying on human bias? What is hate and who decides what that is? This can get a bit complicated so please tune in for some discussion.

Please find this episode with video version on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWFbks7iEbs

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Welcome to the 116th episode of the ModState Podcast. Video version available at https://youtu.be/x-hpz1SkeGM on YouTube.
On Friday the 13th President Donald Trump ordered the second round of airstrikes in Syria because of chemical weapons by President Assad. The western world woke up and decided that this was a red line crossed.
The UK, France and the United States launched a coordinated airstrike on chemical weapon research facilities and other targets. This strike could be the first of many strikes in Donald Trumps "sustained" vision of countering Assad's use of chemical weapons on his people.
This podcast episode breaks down the complexities of the Syrian conflict as well as a broader question. What is the long game and is the American public ready for it?
Tune in and have a listen!

Show Notes:

1)Complexity of Syrian conflict https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2018/04/12/syria-civil-war-key-players-lon-orig-vstan-expl-sdg.cnn

2) Airstrike overview
https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/13/politics/trump-us-syria/index.html

Welcome back to the ModState Podcast and the 115th episode.
Earlier this week Donald Trump's personal lawyer Mr. Cohen had his office raided in a very rare no-knock raid of a law office. This typically doesn't happen as there is lots of attorney-client privileged information.
Well the US Attorney in the Southern District on a "referral" from special investigator Mueller, a judge and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein sure thought there was enough evidence of SOMETHING to get a warrant.
John and Nate dive into this and talk about this ongoing investigation. Tune in and have a listen.
For a video clip of this podcast please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07y-vExQuY8

Welcome back to the ModState Podcast.
*Edit: in the episode it was stated that Steve Bannon started Cambridge Analytica. In fact he co-founded it as a strategic US Branch of SCL (Strategic Communication Laboratories) with funding from right-wing hedge fund billionaire Robert Mercer. Cambridge Analytica was designed to create "behavioral changes" in foreign countries.
This episode is a discussion about the implications of data received by Cambridge Analytica. Roughly 50-87 million profiles were harvested and then used to swing cultural perspectives in the US during the 2016 election.
Nate makes the argument that political campaigns should be using social media, but unethically procuring data from millions of people without their explicit consent is problematic to say the least.
Sarah's background is in digital marketing. She elucidates upon some of the practices of how digital marketing companies target you based many different metrics.
So where does this lead us next? Will someone be held accountable for the geo-political psychological warfare that Cambridge Analytica used on the US population? Where does the Steve Bannon link to the Donald Trump administration play into this? Please tune in and have a listen.

This episode is available at YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huPc7qvrAIo&t=106s

Show Notes
1) Cambridge Analytica and Steve Bannon
https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/30/politics/bannon-cambridge-analytica/index.html

2) Propaganda Used During 2016 Presidential Campaign
https://qz.com/1245777/trump-funder-robert-mercer-also-paid-for-islamophobic-facebook-and-google-ads/

Welcome back to the ModState Podcast. On this episode special guest Nate, Nate Wellein, and John all discuss a forever relevant book 1984: By George Orwell. This masterpiece sheds light on a society pushed so far to extremism that the government controls every aspect of life. Of note this doesn't mean that the society in 1984 is because of socialism or fascism. It is a world where the radical tenants of an ideology wins.
Lastly, the team begins to discuss the current administration and how 1984 is relevant. Please tune in and enjoy!

Welcome back to the 112 episode of the ModState Podcast. In this episode the team and special guest go over the spending bill that President Donald Trump signed funding the government until September.
Nate believes this speech was incredibly painful to listen too. The president, he claims, so poorly articulated his points on the spending bill that Nate almost turned off the radio. Is this true? Did Nate over-react to the president's speech? Or is he the only one that believes it is painful to listen to the president talk?
Thanks for tuning in!

Show Notes:
What is in the spending bill?
https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/21/politics/what-is-in-the-omnibus-spending-bill/index.html

Oddest lines from speech
https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/23/politics/spending-bill-trump-announcement/index.html

Welcome back to the ModState Podcast. On this episode we stick to a topic discussion and what topic couldn't be more pertinent than tariffs.
President Donald Trump had decided to impose tariffs on Chinese goods while a 7 month investigation is done into intellectual property theft...SO the question is...does the idea of tariffs, and potentially starting a trade war, seem more palatable under the guise of an investigation into intellectual property theft?
Learn a bit about tariffs and its relation to US history. Our free-trade history is very recent.
Are we destined for a global trade war? Probably not, but tune in and take a listen!

Welcome back to the ModState Podcast. This is the 110 episode after a brief hiatus from John and Nate.
It is nice to come back on a mid-week episode to talk about the important topics of the past week.
First, it sounds like the Austin bomber killed himself with his own bomb-device. Good riddance.
Secondly, John and Nate discuss the hypocrisy and non-issue of the Stormy Daniels case with Donald Trump. What do we (as a US population) actually care about regarding this case? Is it the right-wing hypocrisy as they try to jump through hoops explaining how they are okay with Donald Trump's actions? All this while they hold the necessity for exceptional morality on a pedestal? Or is the main-stream media trying to make a bigger issue out of this while giving a pass on someone like Hillary Clinton calling inner city African American's "super-predators?" Does the what-about-ism have merit here?
Lastly, Facebook finds themselves in hot water as it is discovered that a data company "Cambridge Analytica" data mined 50 million FB users information without their consent. Worse FB knew about this and did nothing. What does this mean for the future of social media in terms of what we (as a population and consumer base) except from these tech giants? Tune in and find out.

With another shakeup at the State Department, Rex Tillerson will be replaced by hawkish CIA director Mike Pompeo. Donald Trump has continued to communicate that Mike Pompeo shares his values and understands him. This may be an important move with potential talks with North Korea BUT this beg the question.
Should we be enacting diplomacy with strength and fear or cooperation and "love".
The Foreign Service is going through growing pains during the Trump administration and funding is decreasing to the State Department whilst an increase in funding is being felt at the Department of Defense.
How do we best gain the cooperation of our allies? How do we manage the relationships we have fostered over the years, that stand the test of time through presidential tenures? Well tune in and hear about this and the CIA's next potential leader and what?? Military parades? Yes John and Nate discuss that too.

Welcome back to the 108th episode of the ModState Podcast.
It is a new week and the prevailing thoughts in host Nate Wellein's head is this slippery line of nationalism and patriotism. What does patriotism look like to you? What is the definition and what does it entail as a citizen?
To often today our culture quarantines those who do not believe exactly like we do to the far outskirts of their ideology. 2nd amendment supporter? Nazi, anarchist, and complicit in the murder of innocent children. Raise the minimum wage? Communist, lib-tard, snow-flake and Orwellian supporter of an eventual 1984 state.
Is this seriously true of each side if you have a belief that is different from yours? Probably not..but we push that narrative hard. What are the consequences? Tune in and get the ModState perspective.