Radically Human

The Comet is Definitely Coming

The Radical Secular is sponsored in part by Kanibal & Co., Jersey City, NJ

(00:00) Intro and T-Shirts.

(05:30) Christophe, Joe and Sean and special guest Pen Occhipinti analyze the #1 global Netflix hit film "Don't Look Up." We discuss the social, political implications of the film, as applied to the climate crisis.

(01:06:10) Wrapup and Outro.

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Show notes:

"Don't Look Up"

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Labor Rights Now!

(00:00) Intro & T-Shirts

(06:35) "Colin in Black and White." In-depth discussion of the Netflix docudrama series about the life of Colin Kaepernick, its connection to our shared history, and its implications for race and class and labor in America.

(40:02) Labor and politics and race. The history and importance and decline of labor unions. The Sum of Us, by Heather McGhee, a discussion of Chapter 5, "No One Fights Alone." The topic is the UAW's failed 2017 attempt to unionize the Nissan plant in Canton, Mississippi. How the unionization drive foundered because of the racial tensions at the plant, combined with Nissan's corporate sabotage of worker racial solidarity. The Fight for $15 and what was different about that successful organizing effort.

(01:32:48) The high stakes of non-union work. Unions don't just deliver higher wages and better hours and benefits. Unions also protect worker safety. Lack of unionization plays a role in keeping workers in danger. The deadly 2021 tornado workplace disasters, contrasted with the infamous 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Fire.

(01:49:25) Wrapup and Outro

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Show notes:

Colin in Black and White

The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee

Corporate wage theft

The Amazon warehouse disaster

The Mayfield Consumer Products factory disaster

The Triangle Shirtwaist fire

The Economic Impact of the Black Death

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Fascism in Today's America - Abortion and Power

(00:00) Intro and T-Shirts

(03:26) Abortion rights at unprecedented risk. Christophe leads Joe and Sean in a discussion of the legal history of Roe v. Wade and SCOTUS jurisprudence. Judicial vs. legislative protection for the right to privacy which includes abortion and birth control. The viability standard. Republican hypocrisy on child care budgets, and cynicism about the abortion issue in general. A humanitarian analysis of the timing of legal abortion, and some of the bad arguments against it.

(37:51) Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Heath is the case that will likely result in overturning Roe. How many people will be impacted? Workarounds if Roe is overturned. Further discussion of the depth and scope and stakes of right wing attacks on women's and civil rights.

(55:53) Joe discusses the appropriateness of using the word "fascism." An exploration of the agenda of the new "National Conservative" wing of the Republican party that has become the inheritor of Trumpism, through the lens of an Atlantic article by traditional conservative David Brooks. Sean outlines the 14 defining characteristics of fascism, as they currently exist in modern America. Christophe commentary.

(01:13:00) Joe describes the objective measures of the global decline of democracy. The US is now officially a "flawed democracy."

(01:17:19) Wrapup and Outro

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Show notes:

How Other Nations Pay for Child Care. The U.S. Is an Outlier.

The Terrifying Future of the American Right

American democracy is tottering. It’s not clear Americans care.

Fourteen Defining Characteristics of Fascism

US score falls in Economist's annual Democracy Index

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Oh...My...Cron - Fighting Omicron and White Male Fragility

(00:00) Intro and T-shirts

(06:07) Omicron: Joe explains what we know about the Omicron variant so far. Christophe and Joe discuss the role global capitalism and old imperial dynamics have played in the character of the COVID-19 pandemic.

(26:35) Family Dynamics: Christophe and Joe discuss the challenge of loving a family member when that person’s ethics makes doing so difficult. They identify the roles that “nature” and “nurture” may play in family relationship dynamics.

(01:05:57) Masculinity: Christophe and Joe challenge Conservatives’ myopic concept of “manhood” and “masculinity” and identify why it is important for Progressives to develop an effective counter narrative.

(01:27:29) Wrapup and Outro.

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Show notes:

Omicron variant could outcompete Delta, South African disease expert says

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A Theocracy of Disinfo - with Jim Stewartson

(00:00) Intro and T-shirts

(03:25) The global reactionary assault on democracy and secularism. The irrevocable loss of the "old America" and the end of the post-war era. The end of traditional electoral politics and policy-driven constituencies.

(17:09) The multi-decade liberal campaign to control firearms has failed. Recognizing the "world that is," and the need for liberals to come to terms on a personal level with the increasing menace of American gun culture.

(22:30) The Kyle Rittenhouse verdict. The McMichael / Bryan trial (otherwise known as the "Ahmaud Arbery trial.") Understanding the authoritarian concept of "justice."

(31:52) Jim Stewartson guest segment. The Radicalized Podcast. Gamification of disinformation. Online radicalization of young men. How Michael Flynn created Q. Apophenia and pareidolia. The role of trauma. The connection to Christian Dominionism and apocalypticism. Comparison to Church Universal and Triumphant's nuclear war prophecies in the late 1980s. Bothsidesing and post-politics. Maintaining relationships with cult members.

(01:16:38) The most insidious characteristic of disinfo: Making people believe it's their own idea.

(01:20:23) Sean tells the story of what it took for him to leave Church Universal and Triumphant.

(01:24:07) Disinfo is a human vulnerability, and we have to have compassion. Need to balance that compassion with the need to protect society from barbarism.

(01:27:49) Wrapup and outro: White Europeans in the post-war period of 1945-2016 have been the most free and privileged people in human history, and we're now potentially plunging ourselves into a neo-fascist hellscape. We can overcome this, but will we?

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Show notes:

QAnon resembles the games I design. But for believers, there is no winning.

Follow Jim Stewartson on Twitter

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Of God, Climate, and Countries

(00:00) Intro and T-Shirts

(03:09) Sean discusses his article in The Radical Secular Journal titled "God Doesn't Matter." The irrelevancy of God. The moral collapse of the "New Atheists." Further defining the Conservative Moral Hierarchy. The significance of calling oneself an "atheist."

(20:31) Joe and Sean debunk the right-wing psyop from Peter Boghossian and Michael Shellenberger, labeling progressive politics, including climate change activism, as a "Woke Religion." We break this chart down in detail, and expose the lies and bad faith in the graphic "Woke Religion: A Taxonomy."

(59:38) The difficult tension between the need to maintain optimism, and the widespread sense of impending climate doom. The generational anger young people feel at older generations who've benefited from burning carbon, and are now failing to either deliver corrective action, or share the wealth.

(01:05:34) The difficulty in getting wealthy countries to pay the bill for climate mitigation for poorer countries.

(01:08:40) The economic consequences of the transition away from carbon, including stranded fossil-fuel assets. The coastal real estate problem. We need a strong economy to build out the renewable energy infrastructure, with the wealthy, the largest corporations, and governments on board.

(01:17:31) The climate impact on young people, especially young girls. The relationship of climate injustice to the "free market" and the conservative moral hierarchy.

(01:24:58) Proposed solutions and who will pay? Living standards can't help but be impacted. Gas prices will be impacted. We have to bite the bullet and go through this transition. Had we acted in the 80s or 90s, it would have been much cheaper and much less difficult.

(01:36:50) Summing up the stakes of the situation. Wrapup and outro.

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Show Notes:

"God Doesn't Matter" by Sean Prophet

"Godless grifters: How the New Atheists merged with the far right" by Phil Torres

Taxonomy Of Woke Religion

How climate change is disproportionately affecting girls in low-income countries

U.S. and China sign agreement to work together on climate change

Climate scientists: concept of net zero is a dangerous trap

Countries’ climate pledges built on flawed data, Post investigation finds

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Is There Any Hope for the Democratic Party? with Lila Nordstrom and Brent Thornburg

The hosts of Brain Trust Live join The Radical Secular team for a spirited panel discussion about recent Democratic losses.

(00:00) Intro and T-shirts.

(09:21) How do we keep losing to these clowns??? Are we doomed to lose the House in 2022, and to the GOP installing Trump or a Trump clone in 2024, regardless of how the American people vote? The role of the culture war.

(26:37) Media post-mortems. Almost everyone got it wrong. What's the real culprit for the Virginia loss--and potential solutions?

(37:57) How do we balance long-term, the legitimate desire of parents to control the education of their children, with society's interest in maintaining civil rights, equality, and a common baseline for education?

(52:55) How do we push back against the claims of "woke-ism" and "cancel culture" when people hiding behind them are guilty of heinous acts?

(01:00:15) The importance of campaign finance reform. A selfish defense of socialism. The US oligarchy.

(01:03:59) Brent and Lila propose a course of action for Biden and Congressional leadership. Examples of Democratic policy and messaging failures.

(01:14:36) Rehabilitating the concept of social well-being as a political goal. Especially concerning policies that enjoy broad support, even in heavily red communities. If we want people to care about "saving democracy" what are we saving it for?

(01:27:12) Wrapup and Outro

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Show notes:

Brain Trust Live podcast

Some Kids Left Behind, by Lila Nordstrom

The Powerful G.O.P. Strategy Democrats Must Counter if They Want to Win by Tory Gavito and Adam Jentleson

In elections across the country, candidates of color made history Tuesday night

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Stop Sitting Out Local Elections - with Scott Paul

Scott Paul is a candidate on the November 2, 2021 ballot in Sussex County, New Jersey, for a three-year term as county commissioner. He is an entrepreneur and longtime social justice activist, and a hip-hop artist.

(00:00) Intro and T-shirts

(04:12) The story of Lauren Jones-Rabbit, the H3AL coalition, and the risk to activists, who often face threats and reprisals for even mentioning issues of social justice, having to relocate their residency for their own safety.

(17:40) Elevator Pitch: Scott gives Christophe and Sean a synopsis explaining who Scott is and why he’s running for office.

(24:19) Hip-Hop Hit Job: Scott talks about the role music - especially hip-hop - has played in his life. Christophe asks Scott how hip-hop was recently used as a weapon in a Sussex GOP political hit job.

(41:03) Black in Suburban New Jersey: Scott and Christophe connect and commiserate about the experience of having been a black boy in suburban New Jersey in the 1990s and 2000s.

(50:54) Reflections on Running For Office: Scott reveals what he loves about running for office as well as the challenges associated with it.

(01:06:42) Wrapup and Outro.

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You and Chappelle Need Therapy - with Stephanie Roth-Goldberg

(00:00) Intro and T-shirts

(04:00) Capitalism’s Bait and Switch: Sean walks the audience through a summary of his most recent article at The Radical Secular Journal.

(07:50) Dave Chappelle’s Anti-Trans Rhetoric: Christophe, Sean, and Joe dispel all delusions that Chappelle’s “comedy” is anything other than transphobia, and systematically disprove the bad faith arguments proffered by Chappelle’s apologists.

(38:15) The Too Late Show Segment: Stephanie Roth-Goldberg, LCSW joins Christophe for a one-on-one discussion about the extent to which therapy can help those of us who care about justice become better Anti-Bigots.

(01:17:44) Reflections: Christophe, Sean, and Joe reflect on The Too Late Show segment, express how therapy has impacted their journeys in activism, and reaffirm their relentless commitment to social justice.

(01:25:09) Wrapup and Outro.

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Show notes:

Dave Chappelle vs. trans people vs. Netflix

Dave Chappelle: The Closer (2021) | Transcript

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Workers of the World, What's Up?

(00:00) Intro & T-Shirts

(03:58) Drew plugs his appearance on the Toy Migos podcast.

(05:32) Sean plugs his appearance on NarativTV with @ZevShalev, @jimstewartson, and @Heidi_Cuda, and discusses white Christian grievance, apocalypticism, and theocratic rule.

(11:24) A personal perspective from Joe on the issue of class, race, and economic justice.

(14:45) Joe, Sean and Drew break down the news. Booster shots. The COP 26 climate conference in Glasgow. La Nina. The US is now back on the UN Human Rights Council. The Texas abortion ban. Steve Bannon looks like he will be charged with contempt of Congress. Shitshow tidbit of the week: Holocaust denial in a Texas school district pursuant to HB 3979.

(39:55) Sean details several examples of the white Christian victimhood complex, and plays a clip of Sen. Josh Hawley's (R - Missouri), frightening speech on the National Mall calling for the "Kingdom of God" to be established in the United States, and the "greatest revival in American History."

(59:24) Main topic: The supply chain, the economy, labor, the Pandora Papers, tax havens. The pandemic-driven power shift from capital to labor. The pervasive influence of money on perception, public opinion, and politics. Political consequences of global free trade. Exploring the enormous dimensions and risks of wealth disparity. Some perceptions are changing, including record support for labor unions. "The Great Resignation."

(01:35:09) Wrapup and Outro.

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Show Notes:

Democracy in Chains by Nancy MacLean

Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber

Moneyland by Oliver Bullough

Top 1% of U.S. Earners Now Hold More Wealth Than All of the Middle Class by Alexandre Tanzi and Mike Dorning

Why The Post published the Pandora Papers investigation

(Video) What are the Pandora Papers? Sarah Hashemi, Luis Velarde. The Washington Post

Approval of Labor Unions at Highest Point Since 1965. Gallup

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