Another shooting at a synagogue, because we live in a normal, healthy, well-adjusted country. The Supreme Court looks set to help the GOP rig the census, make it legal to fire gay people, and keep screwing American workers. And our nation turns its lonely eyes to...Joe Biden?!?!?!

Plus, continued fallout from the horrible Easter attack in Sri Lanka: how do the privileged and well-off end up becoming suicide bombers? And how are American Evangelicals' grievances over things like cake-baking minimizing the real persecution faced by Christians around the world?

The Hawaii Legislature refused to increase the minimum wage or pass automatic voter registration (clearly they aren't listening to our show -- so much for the Blue Hawaii Bump), but there is one nice piece of local news: Jahlani Tavai (Detroit Lions) and John Ursua (Seattle Seahawks) are going to the big show!

Like, tag, share, and stay tuned for more! PS: Shame on you, Prince William.

Back by popular demand! After such a positive reaction to last year's epic sportschat (Episode 20 - Let's Go Bows!), we brought back friends of the show and UH aficionados Peter Boylan and Danny Cup Choy to help us do a review of the truly epic (and distressing) year it's been in the world of sports (and politics). After friend of the show Jon Schoenfeld makes Josh say nice things about the New England Patriots (shudder), we each share our greatest sporting heartbreaks of 2018-19: Auburn basketball in the final 4, the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game, Liverpool in the Champions League final, and the Detroit Lions... existing.

We also discuss some of this year's key questions: What the hell happened to LeBron and the Lakers? How many Nancy Pelosis would it take for you to do a "Pete Rose?" Dirk Nowitzki or Hakeem Olajuwon? Can Rolo take Cole McDonald (EIEIO) and UH football to the next level? How can UH basketball coach Eran Ganot get better recruits and more Eastern European wonderkids? Why is Max Holloway so much better at 145 pounds than at 155 pounds? When will meathead human thumb Dana White bring the #UFC to Aloha Stadium? Why does Conor McGregor insist on validating every toxic stereotype about the Irish? And WHY THE HELL AREN'T WE PAYING COLLEGE ATHLETES???

Finally, we host our first-ever award show, and hand out some trophies for Human Achievements Of Legendary Excellence, (also known as H.A.O.L.E.'s). Honorees include:

Golden State Warriors

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Bruce Pearl

Tiger Woods

Pete Buttigieg

Clay Travis

Diego Maradona

J.R. Smith

Gritty

Rand Paul's neighbor

Attorney General William Barr

Tom Brady kissing his kids on the mouth

Patrick Mahomes

Zion Williamson

and many more!

PS: Congrats to the UH Rainbow Warriors Men's Volleyball team -- after our recording, they beat Long Beach State to win the Big West Championship and punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament!

If you like what you hear, subscribe and listen for more audio goodness coming soon!

We're definitely having another normal, stress-free week! Josh and Ryan discuss the daily deluge of bad-faith garbage streaming out of our nation's capital, with last week's kerfuffle over Ilhan Omar and "white nationalism" being the latest example. (PS: Stephen Miller is definitely a white nationalist, and Lee Zeldin is an embarassment). We also talk about Bibi's return to power in Israel, Brexit's new Halloween surprise, and Luke O'Neil's (@lukeoneil47 on Twitter) New York Magazine article about how the Fox News fear-and-outrage machine is ruining lives and destroying families around the country.

In the sports world, Dirk, D-Wade, and Magic all concluded their NBA careers last week, but former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville is looking for a new job carrying water for Donald Trump in the U.S. Senate! If you think Roy Moore's defeat was our last foray into Alabama politics, you were sadly mistaken. As much as Ryan hates it, if it's #WarEagle vs. #RollTide for Mitch McConnell's job...then #RollTide and #RollDougJones!

PS: Shoutout to friend of the show Jun Shin for our quote of 2019 so far: “'Land and Power in Hawaii' is not meant to be an instruction manual!” Listen, discover, enjoy, subscribe, share, get in touch, and stay tuned for more!

Josh and Ryan sat down with an all-star team to talk about the KĀKOU App, which aims to increase civic engagement in #Hawaii by making it easy for users to contact elected officials, weigh in on hot button issues, and collaborate with community partners. Hear from State Representative Della Au Belatti, Laura Nevitt of the Hawaii Children's Action Network, Will Caron of Hawaii Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice, and Melanie Kim of PRP - Pacific Resource Partnership, as they share how the KĀKOU App is helping them to engage with voters, stakeholders, and volunteers to build a more informed and politically engaged community. (Don't worry though, we still get up to our usual hijinks!)

Why are Josh and Ryan so worked up? Well, The Atlantic published a pearl-clutching #boomer screed about the so-called "radicalization" of the Democratic Party (by a #NeverTrump Republican who worked for Reagan, both Bushes, and now for a Koch-funded thinktank, so you know he really cares!), and we had to digest it line-by-line.

From the #GreenNewDeal to #Medicare4All to #AbolishIce to #FreeCollege to #Taxes to #Israel to abolishing the electoral college and packing the Supreme Court, we discuss why you don't have to be "radical" to know that huge changes to the status quo are needed for young people in the US and around the world to have a real shot at a better future.

At 31:15, our guest is author, wordsmith, and visionary Michael Poore. His latest novel, Reincarnation Blues, was named one of National Public Radio’s Great Reads of 2017 (https://www.npr.org/2017/08/26/543933403/take-a-walk-on-the-wilder-side-of-death-with-reincarnation-blues). You can visit him at michaelpoore.live and follow him on Twitter at @mikepoore227.

PS: Shoutout to our dear friend Delilah Asterales (a.k.a. @HawaiiDelilah on twitter) for coming down to Honolulu to hang with us, shoutouts to Bar Leather Apron and Bethel Union for showing the three of us a good time, and shoutout to the fine folks at Hawaii Public Radio for letting us join them and answer phones at their pledge drive! What a fun week.

Listen, discover, enjoy, subscribe, share, get in touch, and stay tuned for more!

BONUS SUPER SPECIAL SECRET PROMO EPISODE ALERT!

Josh sat down with Cathy Lowenburg and Dave Hayakawa, the organizers of Rock for Justice III, a rip-roaring rager starring musical acts from all over Honolulu's legal community and the courthouse ohana. (https://www.facebook.com/events/590346724817468/). All proceeds will benefit Advocates for Public Interest Law at the University of Hawaii at Manoa William S. Richardson School of Law. 4/18, 5:30 PM, at Artistry Honolulu in Kakaako. Be there or be square!

*Recorded before Auburn's win over Kentucky and Duke's loss to Michigan State*

Surprise! It's been another insane week. We extol the virtues of Bruce Pearl, refer Devin Nunes to our favorite constitutional law scholar, and debate the merits of student loan forgiveness.

Then, at 19:30, we sit down with Cindy Ng and Kaʻimi Cambern, two University of Hawaii undergrads who host The Social Manoa podcast, which highlights the many cool happenings around UH's social science departments (https://soundcloud.com/user-741700868). Spoiler alert: their restaurant recs are Olive Tree and Fook Yuen!

Shoutouts to: Zippy's for making big moves, Brian Piotrowski and the Colgate Pep Band for beating the drum of truth, and Carolina King (and friend of the show from episode 22) ReUp843 for dropping his FIRE new music video.

Listen, discover, enjoy, subscribe, share, get in touch, and stay tuned for more!

Ryan is still on the continent, but Josh is taking us international with this week's news. Instead of telling you about New Zealand's reaction to the Christchurch tragedy, we decided to bring on an actual Kiwi on to share his perspective with us (starting at 13:00) -- Dr. Simon Gray of the University of Waikato, who specializes in international relations and security studies with a focus on violent extremism and radicalization. He tells us about what's happening on the ground and where he expects New Zealand to go from here.

*At the time we spoke with Dr. Gray, his understanding was that 51 people had been killed, but later confirmed this to be 50, with a number still in intensive care.

We've also got updates on Brexit and the love affair between Donald Trump and Bibi Netanyahu. Which is more cringey and damning? You decide!

Closer to home, a Hawaii case makes it to the Supreme Court, there's another series of questionable government expenditures, and one 2020 candidate puts some skin in the game and takes a stand against harmful cuts. Plus, an update on the one thing holding our fractured nation together: College Basketball. And don't forget to mark your calendars for 2 great events: Island Soldier screening on PBS Hawaii (3/28) and Rock for Justice III (4/18)

Listen, like, subscribe, and share -- you know what to do!

Have you ever thought about running for office? At 9:38, Josh sits down with Aria Juliet Castillo, who manages the Hawaii Alliance for Progressive Action (HAPA)'s Kuleana Academy. We talk about some of the big issues facing our state and discuss how the Kuleana Academy is training the next generation of young leaders and advocates to help shape Hawaii's future. (We also have some great 2020-related banter, because it's never too early!).

If you apply (by April 15) for HAPA's Kuleana Academy, not only will you get crucial lessons on public speaking, campaigning, fundraising, organizing, and a myriad of other topics -- you'll also have the chance to join a distinguished group of alumni that includes amazing local changemakers like Keani Rawlins-Fernandez, Amy Perruso, Will Caron, Tiare Lawrence,Tina Wildberger, Daniel Anthony, and many more. Visit hapahi.org for more info!

PS: This week's restaurant recs are Opal Thai, Kauai Beer Company, Hukilau Lanai, Il Tappo, and Il Buco. Shoutouts to the happy folks of Pearl City (96782), Sha Ongelungel and #BeingMicronesian, and Stephen Tsai of the Star-Advertiser!

Listen, like, subscribe, and share -- you know what to do!

Special Episode Alert!!! Aloha, listeners! Tommy Waters, a.k.a. Tommy Aloha, a.k.a. Braddah Tommy is in the studio this week to talk about the upcoming Special Election for City Council District VI (East Honolulu).

He talks about why we're having this election at all, what the issues he cares about, and what separates him from his opponent. Be sure to listen, and as always, LIKE, TAG, SHARE!