Neon Liberalism

Join Samantha and guest Kevin J. Elliott as we talk about the history of democracy as a form of government, why it has no longer has any competitors, and how the structure of our democracy has nevertheless become a site of political contestation. Elliott also swings for the fences and offers some deep reforms we need to restore fairness and competition to our system—a fascinating conversation!

Join Samantha and guest Ned Resnikoff as they discuss why Americans are so cynical about politics—and how a movement that began with the goal of returning control to the people has spiraled into the opposite outcome. Along the way they talk Robert Moses, "citizen voice" politics, how free markets and functional governments support each other—and why we have neither of them in America today.

Join Samantha and guest Will Stancil as they talk the vexed question of whether politics is driven by merely material conditions, ask why tyrants are obsessed with their own popularity, and assess why the Democratic budget standoff fizzled while Chris Van Hollen's trip to El Salvador broke through—and shifted public opinion on Trump's immigration policies.

Link to Stancil's essay, referenced in the podcast: https://www.offmessage.net/p/kilmar-abrego-garcia-public-opinion

Join Samantha and guest Professor Anna Law as they talk about the exploding constitutional crisis over Donald Trump's deportation program, exemplified by the removal of Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Along the way they address the importance of due process, the Fugitive Slave Crisis and the origins of birthright citizenship, and the meaning of American citizenship in the twenty-first century.

References:

"The Present Crisis and the End of the Long '90s": https://www.liberalcurrents.com/the-present-crisis-and-the-end-of-the-long-90s/

Professor Law's website: https://www.annaolaw.com/

Corrigendum: Professor Law adds, "I made a factual error. The 100 mile zone is only along the nation’s land borders not the airports. BUT, as this CNN article states, 'Two-thirds of the US lives inside this so-called 100-mile border zone, which includes several entire states, including Florida, Michigan, Maine and Hawaii, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.'" https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/23/us/border-zone-immigration-checks/index.html

Content warning: rape, pedophilia, and historical atrocities.

Join Samantha and guest Alan Elrod as they talk about the role of rape in conservative ideology, biopolitics as the Rosetta Stone of authoritarian reaction, and the pornographic fantasies that pervade the new right. Alan is the president and CEO of the Pulaski Institution, as well as a contributing editor at Liberal Currents.

Links to essays on the subject from Alan and Samantha:

https://www.liberalcurrents.com/guys-win-andrew-tate-rape-politics-and-the-authoritarian-right/

https://www.liberalcurrents.com/the-new-gender-synthesis/

Samantha and guest David Vatz, founder of Pro-Housing Pittsburgh, discuss the meaning of the housing crisis, the death of the "asset economy," and what we liberals can do to fix housing despite Trump.

References

Pro-Housing Pittsburgh's website: https://www.prohousingpgh.org/

The Asset Economy: https://www.amazon.com/Asset-Economy-Lisa-Adkins/dp/1509543465

The Crisis of Democratic Governance: https://www.liberalcurrents.com/the-crisis-of-democratic-governance/

Samantha and guest Jamelle Bouie talk the present crisis, the many ages of the American Constitution, and how we might set about rebuilding what MAGA is breaking.

Samantha and guest Bret Devereaux talk the fall of the Roman Republic, Elon Musk's obsession with the dictator Sulla, and what it takes to make constitutional change stick.

The posts on Musk's X mentioned in this episode can be found at:

https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1873976624812876048

https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1883417427813499158

https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1756479393470226561

https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1668673066115711011

Samantha and fellow Liberal Currents editor Paul Crider talk to Matt McManus, author of The Political Theory of Liberal Socialism, about a forgotten political tradition, the intellectual fallout of the Russian Revolution, and what this all means for how we think about the contemporary dangers of oligarchy and reaction.

Samantha and fellow Liberal Currents editors Caitlin Green and Trent Nelson talk the crisis of misinformation, taking responsibility for your own beliefs in the social media age, and their new podcast, Half the Answer.