Today on The Gist, a brief history of beer with William Glenn and Trish Parry. Their show A Brief History of Beer is at the Under St. Marks Theater in New York the last Sunday of every month. Plus, author Baratunde Thurston joins us from the new Panoply podcast About Race. He's the author of How to Be Black. Guidelines for talking about race include: 1. Assume good intentions, especially online. 2. Shut up. Listen. 3. Try to make it not just about yourself. "But I've never" isn't a good argument. It's about a bigger system. For the Spiel, does it matter if our politicians are out of touch? Today's sponsor: The Netflix original documentary series Chef's Table. Go inside the lives and kitchens of six of the world's most renowned international culinary talents. All episodes now streaming on Netflix. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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The other day in the Wall Street Journal, Mike Pesca saw a headline that he adored: World Awash in Too Much of Almost Everything. It wasn't a pun, just that stark truth, and it reminded Pesca of a book he read years ago called The Progress Paradox by Gregg Easterbrook. They discuss what the rising of material abundance means for the word and the possibility of a post-scarcity economy. For the Spiel, is this our last chance for a President Bernie? Every wonder how we make The Gist? Check out a special Slate Plus feature about the making of our show in this video. Today's sponsor: The Great Courses, offering engaging audio and video lectures taught by top professors. Courses like Masters of War: History's Greatest Strategic Thinkers. Right now, get up to 80 percent off the original price when you visit thegreatcourses.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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Today on The Gist, our resident vexillologist Ted Kaye explains why it's so much fun to visit micronation.org and size up the baby flags. For more flag news, we strongly recommend subscribing to the Vexilloid Tabloid, the bimonthly newsletter of the Portland Flag Association. Then, Mike asks Maria Konnikova of the New Yorker to open our eyes about insomnia, the latest in a series we call "Is That Bulls--t?" In the Spiel, Mike finds himself defending Lindsey Graham. Today's sponsor: QuickBooks. If you work for yourself, try QuickBooks Self-Employed. See what QuickBooks Self-Employed can do for you with a free 30-day trial at tryselfemployed.com/thegist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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Today on The Gist, we listen back to Billboard hits from 1984. Our regular guest Chris Molanphy explains why the year inspired so many go-to karaoke jams. He writes Slate's Why Is That Song No. 1 column. For the Spiel, it's time to name our lobstar of the antentwig. Today's sponsor: The Great Courses, offering engaging audio and video lectures taught by top professors. Courses like Masters of War: History's Greatest Strategic Thinkers. Right now, get up to 80% off the original price when you visit thegreatcourses.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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Today on The Gist, professional storyteller Matthew Dicks is here to coach our winning listener Frank Kennedy. We'll hear stories from Frank's life raising an autistic son, and hear ideas for how to better integrate them into a larger story. For the Spiel, a story of Kansas punishing people on welfare leads to an amazing stat. Today's sponsor: QuickBooks. If you work for yourself, try QuickBooks Self-Employed. See what QuickBooks Self-Employed can do for you with a free 30-day trial at tryselfemployed.com/thegist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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In a span of just 14 months, Bob Dylan wrote, recorded, and released three of the greatest albums of all time. Today on The Gist, David Kinney explains how it happened. He's the author of The Dylanologists: Adventures in the Land of Bob. For the Spiel, you can't find a better man than David Letterman. Today's sponsor: Stamps.com. Buy and print official U.S. postage right from your desk using your own computer and printer. Right now, get a no-risk trial and a $110 bonus offer by going to Stamps.com and using the promo code THEGIST. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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Today on The Gist, what does the looong campaign mean for 2016's candidates? Annie Lowrey from New York magazine joins us for a reasonable amount of time. She's part of a new Panoply podcast called Podcast for America, which debuts Tuesday on Soundcloud and iTunes. Then, in another installment of "Is That Bulls--t?" Mike asks Maria Konnikova of the New Yorker if hand sanitizer is a reasonable use of purse space. Her new book The Confidence Game is now available for preorder. For the Spiel, Mike explores the growing popularity of the breastaurant—and does it partly in rhyme. Today's sponsor: Harry's, the shaving company that offers German-engineered blades, well-designed handles, and shipping right to your door. Visit Harrys.com for $5 off your first purchase with the promo code GIST. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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Today on The Gist, we remind you of what's in that crate in the back corner of your basement. Author Zac Bissonnette tells the tale of Ty Warner and the craze that launched e-commerce. He's the author of The Great Beanie Baby Bubble: Mass Delusion and the Dark Side of Cute. For the Spiel, a Gist-vestigation into college diploma mills. Today's sponsor: Stamps.com. Buy and print official U.S. postage right from your desk using your own computer and printer. Right now, get a no-risk trial and a $110 bonus offer by going to Stamps.com and using the promo code THEGIST. And: QuickBooks. If you work for yourself, try QuickBooks Self-Employed. See what QuickBooks Self-Employed can do for you with a free thirty-day trial at tryselfemployed.com/thegist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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Today on The Gist, Mike Pesca and Slate senior editor Laura Bennett reflect on the unique career of David Letterman, and the new breed of late-night hosts. His last show will be on May 20th, and Slate's Last Laugh features include many looks at the end of an era in late-night TV. For the Spiel, lots of death. Sorry. But, the middle part has fun, great blues names!

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Today on The Gist, Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg are called out for making a notorious cliché on their hit FX spy drama, The Americans. They recently hosted a Slate podcast following Season 3 of their show, available in iTunes, or as an RSS feed. Plus, we discuss the importance of diversity in children's literature with Minnesota Supreme Court Justice and NFL Hall of Famer Alan Page, and his daughter, educator Kamie Page. They are the authors of the children's book The Invisible You, available on the Page Education Foundation website, page-ed.org. For the Spiel, please take your political commentary out of the Amtrak tragedy. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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