Pointcast

A Reflection on OJ Simpson, Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman (Unscripted)

Since the death of OJ Simpson, we reflect through three different generations on the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman and things we missed in the 1990s and what we have learned since the "trial of the century".

Carl's in love with his AI girlfriend. The Dalai Lama asks a boy to suck his tongue; and a doctor calls the Department of Child Protective Services on one of his patient's parents. How far is too far? Let's talk about it.

This week's challenge is the watch the movie "The Last Repair Shop" a documentary on Disney and Youtube about the unexpected upside of repairing musical instruments. Find out what we both think of this film and whether or not you should give it a shot.

Taxes, What They Are and How They Work. According to a poll from the University of Chicago and the Associated Press, only 2 out of 10 Americans say they understand local property tax, one out of 4 say they understand federal income tax, and only 3 out of 10 understand sales tax. So this episode is going to be a very mini primer on taxes. One that, hopefully, gets you to think a little bit deeper about the your money and the part you give to your government.

Do Guns Solve Problems?

Our poll, trends and discussion focuses on how guns have affected different situations; and asks if guns are useful in resolving conflicts.

"The Killer"

This week's challenge is the watch the movie "The Killer" on Netflix. Find out what we both think of this film and whether or not you should give it a shot.

The Legacy of Desantis. Recorded a year ago, this pod takes us back to Governor Ron Desantis' efforts to become president, but focuses on the long term implications of some of the laws he has signed and the impact those laws may have have on the lives of Floridians today.

Big Pharma Infinity Drugs. Pharma companies aren't known for putting patients first. Abusing the patent system to increase profits at the expense of patients. Paying doctors in the hopes of driving more sales to patients, a practice that’s alive and well with Ozempic by the way. Everything involving the opioid crisis. Which may not be all their fault, but last year 112,000 Americans died from fatal overdoses, and their greed and lack of responsibility is partly to blame. But even with all that being known, we’re still quick to trust the next “miracle drug.”

Randolph, Rustin and the Black Socialists Movement, and Why It Still Matters Today.

In this episode we’re going to expand our worldview of the civil rights era, by focusing not just on Randolph and Rustin, but in particular on the document they helped to produce a few years after the March on Washington called “A Freedom Budget for All Americans.”

Iran and War

Iran has long provided both money and arms to Hamas, without controlling their actions overtly. This allows them to claim, truthfully, that they aren’t responsible. In the same way that the U.S. claims not to be whenever a group we arm does something we don’t like.

While this may sound ridiculous, it provides just enough political cover to make a direct attack on them unacceptable domestically, and unsupported internationally.

But when a response targets some other group, Iran then casts us and our allies as illegitimate aggressors anyway, highlighting the very real carnage and death that’s happening.

And if we do nothing? Or leave, as we did in Afghanistan?