We can't help but wonder what happened to California; and today's guest has not only been writing about it for years, but is running for governor in hopes of administering a cure. Michael Shellenberger is confident he can take on Gavin Newsom and restore the Golden State to health. (Visit here to donate to his campaign!) He talks about his vision, the growing support he's receiving, and the big victory for eco-modernists at the Diablo Canyon Power Plant.
Then Steven Hayward, who's filling in for Peter, switches from host to the guest chair to talk about his new biography, M. Stanton Evans: Conservative Wit, Apostle of Freedom. The guys also talk about the 70s, and the movies that inspired a lotta lunacy.
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The California Syndrome

Weekly episodes of Ricochet’s flagship podcast feature our hosts James Lileks, Rob Long, Peter Robinson, and guests discussing the issues of the week.

News

Politics

News Commentary

Business may be booming these days for the great Andy McCarthy, but the judicial corruption and cockamamie prosecutions are all a bit wearying. Nonetheless, he has time to join his Ricochet Podcast buddies to discuss the lawfare against the former president, the ever-waning confidence in an impartial justice system, and the political consequences that will result.James, Rob, and Charlie Cooke also argue about the slump of the entertainment industry.

Broken Justice

In writing his memoir, Glenn Loury recognized the game that would go on between author and reader. To get his audience to trust him as a person, he'd confess his past misdeed and defects in character; to gain your confidence in his integrity as a thinker, he'd have to acknowledge the many times he's changed his mind on the stances he's taken. Today he joins to James, Rob and Steve Hayward to explain himself.The hosts also consider the broken pier in Gaza, compare this administration's incompetence with past calamities, plus last weekend's IDF strike in Rafah and the tent camp fire.- This week’s audio: Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh on whether or not the Gaza pier was a failure.

Glenn Loury's Late Admissions

The Ricochet Podcast is back, and jam-packed with chatter on sex, comedy, food and fun... and the lack thereof we find among our postmodern youth. Noah Rothman, author of The Rise of the New Puritans, returns to discuss the war on fun in America along with the war on Hamas in Gaza. Plus, James, Rob and Steve Hayward show their age as they canvass the finer points of flag etiquette. - Sound from this week's open: ABC’s Terry Moran with Sen. Dick Durbin’s comments on the Justice Alito flag “controversy.”

Heaven Forfend!

In 2020 ordinary parents learned an important lesson: the so-called public school system felt perfectly free to ignore the public's wishes. This set in motion a backlash that's breathed new life into the school choice cause. Corey DeAngelis has paid close attention, and he joins Rob, Peter and James to explain the political whirlwind as laid out in his new book, The Parent Revolution: Rescuing Your Kids from the Radicals Ruining Our Schools.The fellas also cover the peculiar controversy of a Catholic commencement speech delivered at a Catholic university; along with the latest instances of an inept Democratic Party which seems determined to help its top opponent.Opening sound this week: Kansas City Chiefs PK Harrison Butker delivers the commencement address at Benedictine College

The Parent Revolution

John Yoo returns to the Ricochet Podcast, joining James and Rob for a discussion on prosecutorial overreach. The gang cover the unprecedented lawfare being waged against a former president, and consider the executive statesmanship that's kept the lawyers in check over our history. Plus there's some discussion of Biden's move to withhold congressionally approved arms to an ally at war; and, naturally, John has a few things to say about porkchops, bacon and Texan barbeque.- This week’s sound: Donald Trump comments from outside the NYC courtroom and Joe Biden reads the stage directions from the teleprompter.

The California Syndrome

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