Mark Pellegrino is a unique actor in modern Hollywood. For a guy who has played Lucifer (Supernatural) and an abusive ex (Dexter), you could call him something of a unicorn for his politics. Pellegrino is a committed Objectivist, an adherent of Ayn Rand and the founder of the American Capitalist Party. He believes deeply that emotion, altruism, and instinct are not good guides for a healthy politics or society. Stephen Kent speaks with Mark Pellegrino, and Robby Soave (Reason) author of Tech Panic, about how COVID reshaped the world and challenged the claims of Ayn Rand about the virtues of self-interest.

Pellegrino, Kent and Soave cover masking policies, vaccines, Fauci-ism, surviving cancel culture in Hollywood, the rush to regulate big tech companies and Pellegrino dishes on some details of “Lost” regarding his crucial character, Jacob. Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below.

Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now. Newsletter signup: https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-10-10-21-805538

---- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode Start
00:05 The Yaron Brook v Vaush debate
04:37 Mark Pellegrino’s objectivist views of the pandemic
08:30 The ongoing debate over masks
10:30 What it really means to be selfish
16:42 No, the pandemic did not unravel Atlas Shrugged
22:35 Social media CEOs don’t have to answer to Congress
27:27 Living in The Republic of Feelings
33:30 Mark isn’t against cancel culture, even though he’s been a target
37:10 Does Netflix’s defense of Dave Chappelle mean the tide is turning?
42:04 Shooting American Rust in a pandemic took all the fun out of it
43:26 Lost superfan Robby Soave gets an exclusive on Mark’s character Jacob 46:48 Good news about the pandemic

---- Reading List ----
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand https://aynrand.org/novels/atlas-shrugged/

---- Plugs for our Guests ---- "
American Rust" on Showtime
https://www.sho.com/american-rust

"Tech Panic: Why We Shouldn’t Fear Facebook and the Future" by Robby Soave https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Tech-Panic/Robby-Soave/9781982159597

The bad news is that a lot of today's popular comedy still makes sure to apease the woke left. The good news is that more and more people are becoming anti-woke, and that there is a bright future for conservative comedy.

On a new "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with comedian Lou Perez to discuss socialist comedy; the Pandora Papers; why taxing the rich won't solve all of society's ills; why more people are waking up from wokeness; and more.

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now.

--- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode Start
01:35 Meet Comedian Lou Perez
03:55 That time when Lou was misidentified as a far-right radical
08:28 The question that comedians always get asked
14:12 Our comedy era is a double-edged sword
17:25 The PR guys got to socialism
21:23 About those Pandora Papers...
25:43 The Swedes are smart about taxes and other things 

Newsletter signup: https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-10-3-21-794277 

In an interview from "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen and Brad Polumbo sit down with Sen. Rand Paul to discuss his views on the COVID-19 vaccine, government mandates, the long-lasting effects of lockdowns, and more.

For background information related to this conversation with Senator Rand Paul, we'd like to include links to resources mentioned in the interview so you can be as informed on the public policy debate and scientific understandings of COVID immunity as it evolves.

The latest CDC's guidance on issues of immunity can be found here: https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/s0806-vaccination-protection.html

Myths and Facts about COVID-19 https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/facts.html

Senator Paul references here research on immunity out of Israel, published here: Comparing SARS-CoV-2 natural immunity to vaccine-induced immunity: reinfections versus breakthrough infections https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.24.21262415v1

Paul had a confrontation last week with HHS Secretary Javier Becerra on the Israeli study and the issue of immunity: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ml1W0k0yaJk

Study Suggests Lasting Immunity After COVID-19, With a Big Boost From Vaccination https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2782139

Natural Immunity vs. Vaccine-Acquired Immunity: Which Is Better? https://www.healthgrades.com/right-care/vaccines/natural-immunity-vs-vaccine-acquired-immunity-which-is-better

Senator Rand Paul Speaks About Natural Immunitiy And Why Its Important To Recognize
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFbmtMSUxIg

'You're a lawyer with no scientific background': Rand Paul attacks Sec. Becerra on vaccine mandates https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ml1W0k0yaJk

Rand Paul Fights For The Truth On Natural Immunity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7KrHBU1hsc

Yes, an Israeli study did find natural immunity is effective in fighting COVID-19, but health expert https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbFt2ox6WcQ

New CDC Study: Vaccination Offers Higher Protection than Previous COVID-19 Infection
https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/s0806-vaccination-protection.html

Subscribe to Rightly and make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now.

Newsletter signup:
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#Covid19 #RandPaul

Is it possible to ever see the world and its events free from your own personal distractions or biases? What is "political mindfulness" and how can we practice it in our day-to-day lives?

In this episode of "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with Shaun Cammack of The Narratives Project to discuss how social media skews our political and personal preferences; how narratives work and how they are different from facts; and why it's important to try to understand things from other people's perspectives

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now. Newsletter signup: https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-9-25-21-781263

---- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode Start
00:05 If news organizations were people
04:42 The mission of The Narratives Project
06:15 Applying mindfulness to news & politics
09:40 Are you ignorant or brainwashed?
12:00 How social media skews our choices
17:19 It all started with a tweet
19:52 We don’t need facts, per se, to form a narrative
22:55 What is a narrative anyway?
25:10 Falling into blue v red traps
29:54 The case for diversity at a local level
31:55 The immigration “crisis”
39:50 What to do with our narratives
40:45 Good news about rocks

---- Plugs for our Guest ----

Follow Shaun Cammack and The Narratives Project on Twitter: https://twitter.com/shaunjcammack
https://twitter.com/NarrativesProj

Why are some people targeted by Cancel Culture and others are ignored? Will free speech and opinion ever be able to exist peacefully on the internet?

On the latest episode of "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with Gothix and Nick Gillespie of Reason magazine to discuss why some people become prime targets for Cancel Culture; the ongoing battle for free speech on social media and across the internet; what the public reception of Allen Ginsberg's famed "Howl" reveals about censorship today; and if and how we can actually triumph over Cancel Culture and attacks on free thought.

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now.

Newsletter signup:
https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-9-17-21-769625

---- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode Start
00:15 Nick Gillespie’s cancel story (it’s a short one)
03:20 Three levels of cancellation
07:00 Parallels with China’s struggle sessions
08:45 About that Nicki Minaj tweet
10:15 A perpetual state of exception
16:15 Gothix on changes to internet behavior
18:20 Exit, voice or loyalty
21:37 Companies applying the wrong fix
30:00 Free speech ground rules amid platform proliferation
36:45 Partisan divide over restricting misinformation
39:24 We have some solutions
47:51 Good news on coffee, pharmaceuticals and school

---- Reading List ----
"Self-Cancellation, Deplatforming, and Censorship" (Nick Gillespie for Reason) https://reason.com/2021/09/07/self-cancellation-deplatforming-and-censorship/

"Partisan divisions have widened over role of government, tech firms in restricting misinformation" (Pew Research Center)
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/08/18/more-americans-now-say-government-should-take-steps-to-restrict-false-information-online-than-in-2018/ft_21-08-16_techgovtmisinfo_2/

"Priyanka Chopra Jonas on 'The Activist': 'The show got it wrong'" (CNN) https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/17/entertainment/priyanka-chopra-the-activist/index.htm

l "Why The Left Is Developing Into A Bunch Of Prudish Tramps" (The Federalist) https://thefederalist.com/2019/03/21/left-developing-bunch-prudish-tramps/

---- Plugs for our guests ----

Follow Nick Gillespie on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/nickgillespie

Follow Gothix on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/gothixTV

Is there any generation that deserves more blame for the current state of our world? Is there anything that Boomers and Zoomers can learn from each other?

On a new "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with Hannah Cox of the Foundation for Economic Education and Larry Sharpe, former candidate for New York Governor, to discuss the generational differences between the Baby Boomers, Millennials, and Gen Z; how Boomer leaders and policies are impacting the country today; the malaise that comes from taxing one generation to pay for another; why vaccines are good but mandates are bad; and if there's any way for the generations to get along.

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now.

Newsletter signup: https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-9-11-21-760771

---- Content of This Episode ----

00:00 Episode start
01:06 Reminiscing over Freedom Fest
03:55 Starting positions
08:25 Why Gen Z votes for Boomers
14:30 Pushing back against “isms”
16:40 Generational politics of taxing & spending
20:05 The case for age limits
21:48 Ownership of furniture – and the future
23:35 Peeling off the labels
28:30 Pandemic divide
36:00 You had one job
38:09 Getting the pandemic response right
42:06 Good news about cats, books & movies

---- Plugs for our guests ----

Follow Hannah Cox:
Articles for the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE): https://fee.org/people/hannah-cox/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HannahDCox

Follow Larry Sharpe: https://twitter.com/LarrySharpe

There's the narrative you've probably heard about the opioid crisis. And then there's the truth about what's actually happening.

On a new "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with policy analyst Jacob Rich and Shoshana Weissmann of the R Street Institute to discuss whether Big Pharma or the federal government is to blame for the opioid crisis: why it is impossible to stop illegal drugs from entering the US; what is actually causing the high price of prescription drugs; and if there is any solution to the opioid crisis beyond convincing people to not take drugs.

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now.

Newsletter signup: https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-9-4-21-750697

---- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode start
00:05 Reminiscing about Freedom Fest and Mt. Rushmore
04:43 Math is the most concentrated form of truth
05:44 The unexpected relationship between opioid prescription and deaths
09:56 Here's what's wrong with the "Big Pharma is causing the opioid crisis"-narrative
12:36 We simply cannot stop illegal drugs coming into the US
14:50 A brief history of drug prohibition
19:31 Why a law mandating drug pricing transparency can be counterintuitive
25:50 We see the same problem with drug pricing, we just can't find a common boogeyman
32:07 Why Jacob doesn't support medical marijuana
36:34 The good news about people relocating to rural communities

---- Plugs for our guests ----
Follow Jacob Rich and Shoshana Weissmann on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/jacobjamesrich
https://twitter.com/senatorshoshana

(This episode was taped on July 27)

It's uncertain what the future holds for Afghanistan. But what is certain is that the US will continue to embrace militarism in the years to come.

On a new "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with Abby Hall Blanco, co-author of "Manufacturing Militarism," Fiona Harrigan of Reason magazine, and Brad Polumbo of the Foundation for Economic Education, for a discussion about the concept of paid patriotism; the tools governments use in crafting effective wartime propaganda; and if the withdrawal from Afghanistan could have been conducted more effectively.

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now.

Newsletter signup:
https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-8-27-21-740292

---- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode start
00:05 The end of the “endless” war
02:40 Some credit where credit is due to Pres. Biden
04:41 Response to Afghanistan withdrawal – it’s complicated
08:57 Abigail Hall Blanco America’s pro-war posture
14:25 Paid patriotism
18:09 Countering the messaging
23:30 Sports metaphors
27:30 Unchecked and not balanced
29:50 Messaging around the TSA
35:25 Brad Polumbo, TikTok, and Karl Marx

---- Reading list -----

Manufacturing Militarism: U.S. Government Propaganda in the War on Terror (By Christopher J. Coyne & Abigail R. Hall)
https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=33558

The Afghanistan Papers (By Craig Witlock, The Washington Post) https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/investigations/afghanistan-papers/afghanistan-war-confidential-documents/

---- Plugs for our guests ----
Follow Abby Hall Blanco, Fiona Harrigan, and Brad Polumbo on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Abigail_R_Hall
https://twitter.com/Fiona_Harrigan
https://twitter.com/brad_polumbo

Would you prefer a reassuring lie about the situation in Afghanistan? Or an uncomfortable truth?

In the latest episode of "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with Fiona Harrigan of Reason magazine to discuss the US withdrawal from Afghanistan; the rise of the Taliban; the media's partisan divide between getting Americans out vs. getting Afghans out; if there was any true reason or justification for US invasion in the first place; and what the future may look like for both Afghanistan and the world.

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now. Newsletter signup: https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-8-20-730588

---- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode start
00:05 A little white lie
05:50 Giving the Taliban legitimacy – or not
10:55 Throwing good money after bad
12:57 How to help Afghans now
18:30 Afghans still looking for ways out
21:33 The refugee debate feat. Sasse & Vance
33:00 It didn’t have to be like this
34:21 For Gen Z 9/11 is history, not memory
43:10 Good news on film school and audio books

---- Reading list -----

We Need To Get Afghans Out of Afghanistan Too (Reason) https://reason.com/2021/08/16/we-need-to-get-afghans-out-of-afghanistan-too/

Withdrawing From Afghanistan Is Still the Right Thing To Do (Reason) https://reason.com/2021/07/14/withdrawing-from-afghanistan-is-still-the-right-thing-to-do/

Denied American Visas, These Afghans Were Forced To Make a Perilous Escape After Helping U.S. Troops for Years (Reason)
https://reason.com/2021/07/08/denied-american-visas-these-afghans-were-forced-to-make-a-perilous-escape-after-helping-u-s-troops-for-years/

AT WAR WITH THE TRUTH: The Afghanistan Papers, A secret history of the war (Washington Post) https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/investigations/afghanistan-papers/afghanistan-war-confidential-documents/

WHAT WE NEED TO LEARN: LESSONS FROM TWENTY YEARS OF AFGHANISTAN RECONSTRUCTION (Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction) https://www.sigar.mil/pdf/lessonslearned/SIGAR-21-46-LL.pdf

Tony Blair: Why We Must Not Abandon the People of Afghanistan – For Their Sakes and Ours (Tony Blair Institute for Global Change)
https://institute.global/tony-blair/tony-blair-why-we-must-not-abandon-people-afghanistan-their-sakes-and-ours

---- Plugs for our guests ----

Follow Fiona Harrigan:
https://twitter.com/Fiona_Harrigan
https://reason.com/people/fiona-harrigan/

Is redemption possible for individuals like Ryan Adams and Andrew Cuomo who were the subject of #MeToo allegations? How should react when individuals are accused of sexual misconduct and other inappropriate behavior?

On a new "Right Now with Stephen Kent," Stephen sits down with Liz Wolfe of Reason magazine and Katie Herzog of the Blocked and Reported podcast for a conversation about the cancellation of Ryan Adams; the resignation of Andrew Cuomo; if and how one should apologize when facing a Cancel Culture or #MeToo mob; how the coverage around sexual harassment cases is continuing to evolve; and what we can and should do when encountering stories involving allegations about sexual harassment and other misconduct.

Subscribe to Rightly and catch more details about the episode below. Make sure to sign up for Unfettered, our new newsletter, available now.

Newsletter signup: https://www.getrevue.co/profile/rightlyaj/issues/right-now-unfettered-8-12-722224

---- Content of This Episode ----
00:00 Episode start
00:05 Andrew Cuomo, Ryan Adams & #MeToo
01:14 Katie Herzog on “Blocked & Reported” success
04:28 Details of the Ryan Adams saga
10:07 Limits of fan engagement
13:55 Ryan Adams lives up to his reputation
15:30 Power dynamics and responsibility
17:30 We need more follow-up reporting
20:44 Transactions and transitions
26:50 #MeToo and skepticism
31:45 Bad behavior a career-ender?
37:35 Redemption and forgiveness
43:42 “Handsiness” the final straw for Andrew Cuomo
51:20 Finding good news in a difficult week

---- Reading list -----

Cuomo Resigns as New York Governor at Long Last (Reason)
https://reason.com/2021/08/10/cuomo-resigns-as-new-york-governor-at-long-last/

Ryan Adams Dangled Success. Women Say They Paid a Price. (The New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/13/arts/music/ryan-adams-women-sex.html

Exclusive: Ryan Adams: ‘I Felt Like They Were Asking Me to Die’ (Los Angeles Magazine)
https://www.lamag.com/culturefiles/ryan-adams/

Cuomo Sexually Harassed 11 Women, Retaliated Against 1 Female Employee, According to A.G. Report (Reason)
https://reason.com/2021/08/03/cuomo-sexually-harassed-11-women-retaliated-against-1-female-employee-according-to-a-g-report/

Read the full transcript of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's resignation speech (The New York TImes)
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/10/nyregion/cuomo-resignation-speech-transcript.html

---- Plugs for our guests ---- 

Listen to the Blocked & Reported podcast
https://barpodcast.fireside.fm/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/thebarpod

Follow Liz Wolfe on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/lizzywol