OwnsidE.org Podcast

As is stated in the title, in this episode, Spencer meanders down the rabbit hole. This hole; conspiracies & conspiracy theories. He lays out his views on the traits & characteristics of the "Military-Industrial-Complex" vs. the "Deep State". Is it a 500+ year old secret cult that has mystical orgies & ritual chants or is it a modern blending of wealthy individuals & self-interested corporate CEOs who are members of the same country clubs & extoll essentially the same political & economic ideologies regardless of the label & title next to their name. Spencer's bet is on the later.

This is Part 2 of the 3rd American Allegories episode, "The Oxymoronic Paradox of Taxes" --- so if need be, that episode is in the archive for refreshing. In this episode, Aldous & Spencer get a little more philosophical & abstract in their approach to economics. They look for deeper underlying issues & ask if there are some better structures that would help more equitably distribute labor's fruits & profits. Where Part 1 may have been heavy on oxymoron, part 2 maybe more paradoxical. What do you think?

What happens when Spencer & Darrel disagree about something? Find out as they discuss how to deal with the rise of various flavors of racist right-wing groups & individuals. From punching & egging racists to ignoring & isolating them: What works, what does not & what is the threshold for free-speech vs. yelling "Fire-in-a-crowded-theater"? Not sure that we stumble on the answer but sadly this discussion seems to be more relevant all the time -- and also doesn't seem to be going anywhere any time soon.

Spencer provides an update on why there haven't been any episodes uploaded lately, lays out the plan for the next "season" of the podcast & gets a little personal about his own struggles with manic-depression. He chats about the Hebbian Theory that neurons-that-fire-together-wire-together & uses his own life to make the argument that mental health is part of health care.

Spencer & Darrel discuss the Mueller Probe, the Barr summary and how the Democrats have wasted the lasted two years. Spencer explains why he thinks the Russia-Trump story has been pushed so hard, what is really behind it & who are the actual beneficiaries of Trump Inc's corruption. They also tease the upcoming debate and their upcoming trip down the Rabbit Hole.

Episode Sources List

Taxes, taxes, taxes… Edit, edit, edit…

The first 'Aldous Orwell' visits for a chat about taxes, tax policy, tax brackets, tax rates and then some more tax stuff. In this part 1 of 2, Aldous & Spencer start with some basic linguistics, definitions and establish that -- at a minimum -- 'taxes' are more complicated than simply what fits on to a postcard.

While it'd be hard to believe that anyone would see this episode's title and not be super psyched by the tax-chat; there is effort to acknowledge the layers of complexity while also making the topic accessible without a tax degree. We also try to dispel some myths & cut through some rhetoric. Hopefully, listeners will feel we accomplished those tasks.

Sources List "The Oxymoronic Paradox of Taxes"

Ownside.org Podcast

Darrel asks Spencer what he thinks about the 2020 presidential candidates; Thankfully Darrel has a list. Spencer posits a couple different possible scenarios for November 2020, they question the generic interpretation of 'socialism', the myth of 'self-made success', ponder some of the ethics of tax distribution and ask whether multi-billionaires should even exist.

In honor of the memory of El-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz -- aka, Malcolm X -- Spencer sits down with Lazone Greys to discuss what Malcolm's teachings mean today. We touch on what can be done to solve the lack of trust across racial groups, what has improved since Malcolm & what are some things that still need to be done. This was a fun discussion to have & hopefully this part 1 of 2 will also be fun to listen to.

Darrel & Spencer talk about some real chill stuff like abortion, immigration, racism, AIPAC and Palestine -- no touchy topics there {wink wink}. Then Trump's National Emergency interupts Spencer's epilogue & the Orange Authoritarian's lie-laden "Idiot-Speak" makes a beautiful fact-checking tortilla to wrap the whole episode up.

In honor of Black History Month, Spencer sets forth his 'thesis' on the issue of racism by citing genetics, alleles, homo sapien migrations & melanin. He emphasizes the layers of the issue while also damning the racists to hell. He also shares a fun story about how he learned of the old minstrel shows, gives props to all those making beautiful multi-cultural children & proposes that a number line with decimals is a better illustration of racism than simplistic dichotomies.