The Republic of Texas Radio w/ Steve OBrien

We’re pulling the thread on four topics that sound unrelated until they don’t. Blockchain — the technology that was supposed to set you free and who took it from you. Insurance — the mandatory surveillance subscription most Americans are already enrolled in and don’t know it. The price you pay at the store — and why that price may not be the same as your neighbor’s. And interest rates — the lever they pull on all of it. We’ll close with the one thing that binds us all together. It’s not what you think — and by the end of the show, it won’t be funny either. Republic of Texas Radio

This week on Republic of Texas Radio, Steve O’Brien takes a hard look at how Americans lived leaner and smarter in the 1950s, and why those habits matter more right now than any survival fantasy you’ve seen on YouTube. Then it gets strange: meet Larry the Lobster, an AI agent programmed to spy on other AIs — and what happened when he grew a conscience. Steve breaks down the real hardware behind home-built AI systems, why Microsoft just issued a critical Secure Boot warning your computer may already be flashing at you, how the big AI labs are quietly driving your RAM prices up, and what it means that Anthropic shut the door on the very tools developers were building with Claude — until they found the back window. This is your 2026 AI reality check, Texas style. Unfiltered.

This week on Republic of Texas Radio, Steve O’Brien takes a hard look at how Americans lived leaner and smarter in the 1950s, and why those habits matter more right now than any survival fantasy you’ve seen on YouTube. Then it gets strange: meet Larry the Lobster, an AI agent programmed to spy on other AIs — and what happened when he grew a conscience. Steve breaks down the real hardware behind home-built AI systems, why Microsoft just issued a critical Secure Boot warning your computer may already be flashing at you, how the big AI labs are quietly driving your RAM prices up, and what it means that Anthropic shut the door on the very tools developers were building with Claude — until they found the back window. This is your 2026 AI reality check, Texas style. Unfiltered.

Steve takes a hard look at whether lying has become so normalized in media and politics that nobody even flinches anymore. And what does the current conflict in the Middle East have in common with the COVID lockdowns? More than you’d think.

Later, the Dark Skies movement, the Hoover Dam power crisis, and a second hour covering Ukraine, Israel, the Middle East, Texas, and the USA.

Steve takes a hard look at whether lying has become so normalized in media and politics that nobody even flinches anymore. And what does the current conflict in the Middle East have in common with the COVID lockdowns? More than you’d think.

Later, the Dark Skies movement, the Hoover Dam power crisis, and a second hour covering Ukraine, Israel, the Middle East, Texas, and the USA.

Everything is bigger in Texas, but lately, it feels like our circles are getting smaller. Today, we’re diving into the heavy cost of conviction—specifically, the friends we lose when we refuse to trade the truth for a quiet life. It’s a lonely road sometimes, but it’s the only one worth walking.

From the personal to the political, we’re turning the spotlight on City Hall. It’s time for a real conversation about City Council accountability. If they want the seat, they’ve got to take the heat, and we’re bringing plenty of it today.

Looking abroad, the drums of war are beating again, and the target is Iran. We’ll break down the headlines, the hype, and what an escalation in the Middle East actually means for those of us right here at home.

And finally, you won’t want to miss my closing segment: ‘AI and the Dipstick.’ It’s a story about a ‘genius’ Large Language Model, a simple mechanical problem, and why common sense will always beat an algorithm in a fair fight.