Senator Jessica Bateman represents the 22nd District in the Washington State Legislature. She is the chamber’s most outspoken housing advocate.

She joined us for a conversation about the wins, losses, and unfinished work on housing in the 2025 legislative session.

She is a champion for new housing (of all types) and was the lead sponsor of this year’s rent stabilization legislation. Senator Bateman’s prior appearances on the podcast are linked below.

Cast of Characters: Senator Bateman – Legislative Website

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Bill Fitzgerald is a privacy activist and vociferous critic of the data protection practices of Big Tech.

In this week’s episode Bill came on to talk about the data privacy implications of putting AI in everything (and putting everything, as in your data, into AI), and the wider societal implications.

Bill also did an episode of Off-the-Record about data privacy precautions to take when transiting through customs and immigration. Channel 253 Members can check the member only podcast feed and Member Slack for that conversation.

Cast of Characters: Bill – Mastodon

Going Further: Protecting Your Online Privacy — Bill Fitzgerald, Privacy Activist — #161

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After seventeen emails, dating back to December, we finally have the conversation I’ve been chasing with Diana Kuprych.

Diana is a Ukrainian student doing her graduate studies at the London School of Economics. Her thesis focuses on security guarantees between states, with an obvious emphasis on events in and around Kyiv. This is a conversation about the war, but also about the past, present, and future rebuilding of Ukraine.

She joined us on the recommendation of three time past show guest Jeff Hawn.

Cast of Characters: Diana – email

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Melissa Santos is a reporter for Axios covering Seattle and the State Legislature. We’ve been podding with Melissa since 2017. She is a regular on the show and one of our most requested and re-requested guests by listeners.  

She joined us to talk about the recently concluded Washington State Legislative session, the punt on the wealth tax, and the leadership of Governor Ferguson in his first term as governor.

Cast of Characters: Melissa – Bluesky

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Tori is an anti-racist educator and writer. She grew up in a deeply conservative evangelical family and is now an out-spoken critic of racism and misogyny that lurks within in some Christian communities.  

She joined us to talk about the influence of 90s far right religious ideology, now at the center of the current administration’s policies.

She also joined us in 2022 for a very prescient conversation about Black Conservatism and the Democratic Party.

Cast of Characters: Tori – Website

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This is a conversation about tariffs—with an economist who is an expert in making it plain. We’re starting with the basics: Tariffs are taxes on imports, and they’re usually passed on to consumers. So, in plain terms, a tariff on China is really a tariff on you.

By the end of this episode, you’ll understand what tariffs are, how they affect trade, and why the current tariff policies in the US are shaping up to be a drag on both the American and global economies.

Our guest today is Abdullah Al Bahrani—better known as Dr. A. He’s a full professor of economics and associate dean at the Haile College of Business, where he leads graduate programs, research, and outreach initiatives. His own research focuses on household finance and how people make financial decisions.

He previously joined us in April 2021 to talk about personal finance education in schools.

Cast of Characters: Dr. A – Website

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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts and is brought to you by Libro FM 

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Marguerite Martin is a co-founder of Channel 253 and creator of Move to Tacoma. This is an update to her and my ongoing conversation about housing policy and real estate. You can find my previous conversations with her and many of our other conversations about housing below.

Join the #NerdFarmRead book club! We’re reading How to Stand Up to a Dictator by Maria Ressa. Members, also check the Slack Channel #Books for details of our upcoming discussion on Parable of the Sower.

Nerd Farmer Housing & Real Estate Conversations

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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts and is brought to you by Libro FM 

Consider supporting the podcast by joining Channel 253 as a member

Amanda Willams is a former teacher in Seattle Public Schools and is the creator of the Seattle Green Book, an online listing of Black Owned Businesses in the Seattle Area. She joined us to talk about creating the Green Book and her work with Denkyem Finance, a Seattle Based community development financial institution.

Join the #NerdFarmRead book club! We’re reading How to Stand Up to a Dictator by Maria Ressa. Members, also check the Slack Channel #Books for details of our upcoming discussion on Parable of the Sower.

Going Further:

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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts and is brought to you by Libro FM 

Consider supporting the podcast by joining Channel 253 as a member

This week’s episode is a change of pace for the show. 

Film critic Chase Hutchinson joined us for a conversation about the upcoming 97th Academy Awards. We talked through who we think will win each of the major categories and who we think should win. 

You’ll hear a breakdown of the Oscar frontrunners and why the rise of Anora seems to be breaking Nate’s brain.

Join the #NerdFarmRead book club! We’re reading How to Stand Up to a Dictator by Maria Ressa. Members, also check the Slack Channel #Books for details of our upcoming discussion on Parable of the Sower.

Cast of Characters: Chase and Andrew (only for a little bit tho)

Going Further:

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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts and is brought to you by Libro FM 

Consider supporting the podcast by joining Channel 253 as a member

Following the inauguration of Donald Trump last month, reactions in the U.S. ranged from jubilation to alarm—depending on one’s political leanings and level of engagement. But how is the new admin being received beyond American borders? In this episode, we flip the “local lens” outward to examine how the new administration is being viewed in this neck of the woods.

Our guest is Willy Lowry, Washington correspondent for The National. He joins us to break down the regional response to the news admin. We discussed how the US’ growing reputation as an unreliable partner is pushing Middle Eastern nations to explore new alliances, the moments that have strained relations over the past decade, and whether Washington is even aware of the shifting dynamics. 

Join the #NerdFarmRead book club! We’re reading How to Stand Up to a Dictator by Maria Ressa. Members, also check the Slack Channel #Books for details of our upcoming discussion on Parable of the Sower.

Cast of Characters: Willy Lowry

Going Further:

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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts and is brought to you by Libro FM 

Consider supporting the podcast by joining Channel 253 as a member