The Missing Piece [International]

Brazil has made history: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has secured an unprecedented fourth term, narrowly defeating Flávio Bolsonaro in a runoff that underscored a deeply divided nation. For Lula, the future hinges on balancing ambitious social agendas against a hostile, right-dominated Congress and pressing fiscal constraints.

On the global stage, Lula's victory complicates Washington's regional strategy. While Trump initially backed the Bolsonaro family, he later struck a warmer tone, calling Lula a leader he gets along with—even as the two remain at odds over trade and sovereignty. Meanwhile, Brazil's economic gravity is undeniable: China remains its dominant partner, absorbing nearly 30% of exports and deeply embedding itself in Brazil's infrastructure and energy sectors. For Lula, maintaining that lucrative ties while asserting strategic autonomy will define his next four years.

Guest Info: Kurt Weyland is the Mike Hogg Professor in Liberal Arts in government at the University of Texas at Austin. His research interests include democratization and authoritarian rule, social policy and policy diffusion, and populism in Latin America and Europe. Book name:Democracy's Resilience to Populism's Threat: Countering Global Alarmism

Beef prices in the US are soaring, and the blame is as tangled as a feedlot queue. The core issue is supply: the US cattle herd has shrunk to a 75-year low, crushed by years of drought and soaring input costs, even as demand remains stubbornly strong. Trump’s trade war has poured fuel on the fire. Tariffs on steel and machinery have driven up ranchers’ operating expenses, while the chaotic back-and-forth with China—briefly locking US beef out of a key market—has added volatility rather than relief. To be fair, blaming Trump alone oversimplifies things; the herd crisis predates him. But his interventions, from tariff whiplash to a hasty import quota that tanked cattle prices, have made a bad situation worse.

Guest Info: Dr. Derrell Peel holds the Charles Breedlove Professorship of Agribusiness in the Department of Agricultural Economics. He has served as the Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist since 1989. His extension programs focus on livestock market situation and outlook and marketing/risk management education for producers. Additionally he works on meat demand and meat supply chain issues and beef product marketing. He also works in the area of international cattle and beef trade and have particular expertise in the Mexican cattle and beef industry.

Today we're tackling two loaded questions that dominate the headlines but rarely get honest treatment. First: how is religion reshaping American politics right now—and why should you care? From Christian nationalism's long march through institutions to the White House using bishops as campaign props just days before the midterms, the separation of church and state is being tested in real time. Then: why does Washington keep poking Beijing with thorny issues like Taiwan and Xinjiang? We'll cut through the rhetoric on arms sales as "leverage" and forced-labor narratives that crumble under scrutiny. Stay with us—this is the context you're not getting elsewhere.

The war in Ukraine grinds on, and the Kremlin is now floating a trial balloon: a trilateral summit with Putin, Trump, and Xi on the APEC sidelines . Moscow denies any concrete deal is ready, yet the mere suggestion is designed to fracture Western unity—making Kyiv and Europe fear a great-power bargain struck over their heads . Meanwhile, Trump faces fresh domestic criticism, not over Russia alone, but over the company he keeps. Former MAGA allies like Tucker Carlson have publicly accused him of betrayal, saying the anti-war movement he championed has been hijacked by interventionists . The question for listeners: when old friends become liabilities, who exactly is steering the ship?

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1sCv2FRl8yAI1ri8X4T4ss

This week's Special Talk, we're diving into a political landscape that feels increasingly fractured. A record 45% of Americans now identify as independents, driven by deep frustration with a two-party system that many feel no longer speaks to their daily struggles . We'll explore why younger voters, in particular, are abandoning party labels in droves .

We're also looking ahead to 2028, where a potential new movement is brewing. Former MAGA allies, including Tucker Carlson and Marjorie Taylor Greene, are reportedly laying groundwork for a third-party bid, united by a belief that the current system is a "complete and total failure" . How about the voices from the Independent Party? Finally, we'll examine how current policies are failing ordinary people—from soaring energy bills and grocery costs to a healthcare system that feels increasingly out of reach for working families .

Guest Info: Ms. Diane Sare is a declared independent candidate for the United States Presidency in 2028. Diane has been a 30+ year associate of the late American economist and statesman Lyndon LaRouche and continues to be a leading political organizer with his movement, the International Caucus of Labor Committees.Diane is the founder of the Schiller Institute NYC Chorus and is a former two-time independent candidate for the U.S. Senate from New York State.

The AI race between China and the US—two superpowers sprinting toward the same horizon, driven by different incentives, data regimes, and visions of control. But beyond the geopolitics lies a deeper question: can humans and AI actually co-exist? Not just safely, but meaningfully. We're still debating this because the stakes aren't technical—they're human. Who decides? Who benefits? Who gets left behind? AI isn't just a tool; it's a mirror reflecting our values, our fears, and our assumptions about intelligence, labor, and dignity. So today, we cut through the noise—balancing competition with coexistence, and asking not just what AI can do, but what we should let it become.

Guest Info: Mr. Alvin Wang Graylin helps leaders understand how AI is reshaping competition, risk, and the global economy. He is a Digital Fellow at Stanford's Institute for Human-Centered AI, a Senior Fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis, and Professor of AI and Technology Policy at the University of Washington.

His 35-year career spans AI, semiconductors, data centers, cybersecurity, enterprise applications and edge devices on both sides of the pacific, including senior roles at Fortune 100 firms and have founded four venture backed startups. One of his startups was an AI driven conversational search system in China like ChatGPT which was deployed with all three Chinese mobile carriers, but he did it in 2005.

Today he advises governments, multilateral organizations, and Fortune 100 boards on AI strategy and governance. He is the author of Our Next Reality and co-hosts the Big Bang Tech Report, a podcast on the business impact of advanced technologies.

This week, we're talking about a quiet revolution happening across China—one led by women who are rewriting the rules of marriage, family, and ambition.

For generations, Chinese women were expected to follow a familiar script: marry young, prioritize family, and put their own dreams on hold. But today, that script is being torn up. Women are marrying later—or not at all. They're choosing careers over compromise, pursuing graduate degrees, launching businesses, and redefining what a fulfilling life looks like.

They're not rejecting tradition so much as rewriting it on their own terms. And in doing so, they're reshaping families, workplaces, and an entire society.

So stick around—because today, we're exploring how modern Chinese women are claiming their ambition and changing the game.

Guest Info: Lina Ma is a Chinese-born freelance journalist and research writer based in New York. She covers gender, digital culture, and social change in contemporary China, She is also a contributing writer to Global Voices.

Brazil votes this Sunday in a deeply polarized election, and President Lula da Silva is fighting for a fourth term against Flávio Bolsonaro. So why is Lula facing so many obstacles?

Voter fatigue after 44 years in politics, rising costs, and public security fears have eroded his standing—nearly half of Brazilians disapprove of his government. To stand out, Lula is leaning on his legacy of lifting millions out of poverty and framing himself as the defender of Brazilian sovereignty against US tariffs.

Meanwhile, trade with China tells the real story. China is Brazil's largest partner, with two-way trade hitting $188 billion, and Lula has called Beijing Brazil's "best partner". As Washington pressures Latin America, Lula is pushing a Mercosur-China trade deal that could reshape the region's economy. Stay tuned—this election matters far beyond Brazil.

Guest Info: Professor Marcus Vinicius De Freitas is a Visiting Professor at the China Foreign Affairs University (Beijing), a Senior Fellow at the Policy Center for the New South (Rabat).

We’re diving into the US-Iran standoff, where the only constant is chaos. President Trump keeps shifting the goalposts—one day threatening to resume bombing after the midterms, the next floating a deal, then rejecting Iran’s own ceasefire proposal. Tehran, meanwhile, has walked away from the table, saying it no longer trusts negotiations and is waiting for a US response to its terms.

Why does this matter? Because the Strait of Hormuz—through which 20% of the world’s oil flows—is the pressure point. Iran wants sanctions relief and frozen assets released; Washington demands nuclear concessions first. With both sides dug in and Trump’s strategy in constant flux, we’re left asking: is this brinkmanship, or a prelude to something far worse? Let’s break it down.

Guest: Professor Jamsheed K. Choksy is a Distinguished Professor, former Chair of the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, former Chair of the Department of Central Eurasian Studies, and current Director of the Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center at Indiana University - Bloomington.

President Trump is intensifying diplomacy to end the war. He's urged Zelensky to negotiate with Putin before winter, even proposing a Moscow meeting. Envoys Witkoff and Kushner have shuttled between capitals, and Trump has signaled readiness to provide Ukraine security guarantees. But with Russia rejecting unconditional ceasefires, a breakthrough remains elusive.

With November looming, Republicans face a tightrope. The war is largely absent from the convention stage, yet 60% of Americans distrust Trump's Ukraine decision-making. Experts warn his foreign policy could cost the GOP. The party must pivot to kitchen-table economics while crafting a coherent Ukraine message—or risk a midterm rebuke. That's the briefing.

Guest Info: Dr. Alexander John Motyl is an American historian, political scientist, poet, writer, translator, and painter. He is a resident of New York City. He is professor of political science at Rutgers University in Newark, New Jersey, and a specialist on Ukraine, Russia, and the Soviet Union.