Borders divide people and enforce cruelty. In this conversation with Owen McDonald, we look at how the far right exploits immigration panic, how liberals reinforce the same narratives, and how austerity and capitalism depend on scapegoating migrants.

Owen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@owenmacdonald7428 •

Owen on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/owenmacdonald.bsky.social

Find all my links here: https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

Nick Girard came back on the show to talk about everything from Russian genocide rhetoric and Canadian arms exports to Gaza, to AI giving deadly advice, to workers fighting back against unpaid labor. It’s another week of capitalism’s most deranged stories, and why solidarity is the only way through.

Nick’s work: In the Beginning

Buy Nick’s book in Canada https://a.co/d/bbtJsT4

Buy Nick’s book in the US https://a.co/d/czu4Maw

Nick on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/nickdgirard/ 

My links: https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist 

Sources + Mutual Aid

Russia/Ukraine

• https://meduza.io/en/news/2025/07/31/russian-state-media-runs-op-ed-titled-no-one-should-remain-alive-in-ukraine 

• https://ria.ru/20250730/ukraina-2032235759.html 

• https://irepod.com/podcast/silicon-curtain/breaking-shocking-russian-article-calls-for-genoci

• https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/trump-putin-ukraine-alaska-peace-talks-where-when-b2804968.html 

Canada’s continued arms shipments to Israel

• https://www.castanet.net/news/Canada/565901/The-controversy-over-Canada-s-rules-on-military-exports-to-Israel-explained

• https://player.captivate.fm/episode/0f272101-9e2c-42b2-863a-e50ec89bb26e 

• https://youtu.be/sIFmhdMTLog?si=mqUxvmL3Eo7NM_Bo 

Journalists murdered in Gaza

• https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/al-jazeera-correspondent-anas-al-sharif-killed-gaza-city-israel-1.7605557

• https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/10/al-jazeera-journalist-anas-al-sharif-killed-in-israeli-attack-in-gaza-city?taid=68990bdaef705d00017cb1f8

Bad AI Medical Advice

• https://gizmodo.com/man-follows-diet-advice-from-chatgpt-ends-up-with-psychosis-2000640705 

AI Content Used to Spread Hate

• https://globalnews.ca/news/11328903/artificial-intelligence-hate-content-videos/ 

Cuomo Sucks

• https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/cuomo-mamdani-should-move-out-of-rent-stabilized-apartment.html 

Fires Spread Across Europe

• https://apnews.com/article/heatwave-france-red-alert-fires-0041a4f17e22eaa205964ed5c01d6c24 

Air Canada Flight Attendants plan to Strike - (we will cover the updated version of this on Aug 26)

• https://globalnews.ca/news/11329492/air-canada-flight-attendants-pickets-day-of-action/ 

Marjorie Taylor Greene is corrupt as fuck

• https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thedailybeast.com%2Fmarjorie-taylor-greene-suffers-outburst-over-report-exposing-massive-wealth-jump%2F 

Mutual Aid and support shout outs

• Support KJ’s fight against a brain tumor — donate to the GoFundMe campaign for Eric’s nephew: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kj-with-his-battle-against-a-brain-tumor
  

• Regina Cathedral Community Fridge — volunteer-run, 24/7 mutual aid fridge in Regina; feeding local neighbours every day. Help them here: https://www.cathedralcommunityfridge.com/
  

• The European Heat Aid Great Walk (2025) — a grassroots campaign walking 20 marathons across Austria, Belgium, and Spain in August to provide heat relief and support to people experiencing homelessness. Donate, follow, or participate: https://www.homelessentrepreneur.org/en/solidary-projects/the-great-walk apartmenttherapy.com+6homelessentrepreneur.org+6donorbox.org+6
  

• Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF) — offering medical care, food, and humanitarian aid to children and families in Gaza and the West Bank: https://www.pcrf.net/donate

Also check out https://bsky.app/profile/lefttexascongress.bsky.social 

 Democrats keep losing the narrative, and it’s costing them real political ground. I talk with writer Osita Nwanevu about why the party struggles to connect, what it would take to inspire voters, and how they could win people back by standing for something.

Find Osita here: https://x.com/ositanwanevu  | https://bsky.app/profile/ositanwanevu.com  | ositanwanevu.com Support my work and find all my links: https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

In this episode, I talk with Tori Glass about the rise of Christian fascism in the U.S., how evangelicals laid the groundwork for Trumpism decades ago, and how media manipulation, nationalism, and artificial scarcity all play a role in keeping people compliant. We also get into Canada’s role in this mess, some harsh truths about social media, and why it's not enough to gloat when people start changing their minds. We need real compassion, even when it's hard.

Follow Tori:

https://www.instagram.com/gohomebible/ https://www.instagram.com/whitehomework/ https://bsky.app/profile/toriglass.bsky.social

Support my work & get full episodes early: https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

Gaza is starving and the aid isn’t getting through. Trump wants to jail the unhoused and pretend it’s compassion. And some tech startup let an AI delete live code, then lied about it with fake test results.

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

Follow AnComSciComm: https://twitter.com/AnComSciComm

Sources:Israel -  Palestine

• https://www.huffpost.com/entry/israeli-gunshots-strikes-kill-at-least-25-gaza-some-seeking-aid_n_6884bfe1e4b07c2af0282bfa

• https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/25/mark-carney-israel-gaza-aid-flow-humanitarian-disaster-00476658

• https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-news-07-26-2025-8eca83b00e50f1e6d78a0cce877b3b90

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaza_Humanitarian_Foundation

• https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/gazas-suering-must-stop-keir-starmer-to-tell-trump-mv9mh97pw?region=global 

• https://apnews.com/article/gaza-blockade-activist-ship-seized-24c32eafd80d08a63e5bed8b83d5972f

• https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/palestine-state-uk-israel-starmer-emergency-cabinet-meeting-b2798191.html

Trump’s anti-homeless people executive order

• https://patch.com/california/across-ca/democrats-advocates-criticize-trumps-executive-order-homelessness

• https://fox40jackson.com/mississippi-organizations-react-to-president-trumps-executive-order-on-homelessness/

US may abandon trade talks with Canada 

• https://www.benzinga.com/news/politics/25/07/46647776/us-may-ditch-trade-negotiations-with-canada-trump-says-havent-really-had-a-lot-of-luck 

This story has some new developments as the August 1st deadline came and went with Trump saying that he can’t negotiate with Canada because Parliament voted to acknowledge the state of Palestine under various conditions. Here is a video from Rachel Gilmore about it

• https://youtu.be/uwsgjcD4Vj8?si=f4Q_o564VbSiiZ4H 

Trump, Epstein, and the Search for the Truth That Never Comes

• https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-says-he-turned-down-invitation-epsteins-island-2025-07-28/

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Epstein#Legal_issues

• https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/23/trump-epstein-photos

• https://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/us-politics/a-timeline-of-the-trump-administrations-shifting-stance-on-releasing-the-epstein-files/news-story/f2f86243a57b86951a0c686e965e011a

• https://archive.is/20250729000705/https://www.wsj.com/politics/trump-jeffrey-epstein-birthday-letter-we-have-certain-things-in-common-f918d796

• https://apnews.com/article/trump-epstein-justice-department-bondi-e7a5e41ba4fa3a88736cc384078c3215

• https://time.com/7305146/trump-name-epstein-files-republicans-maga-supporters-react/

• https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/7/epstein-no-client-list-died-suicide-justice-department-says

• https://www.vox.com/politics/2024/1/4/24025802/jeffrey-epstein-list-unsealed-documents-bill-clinton-donald-trump

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relationship_of_Donald_Trump_and_Jeffrey_Epstein

Replit’s AI Coding Tool Deletes Database and Lies About It

• https://www.benzinga.com/markets/tech/25/07/46538388/replit-ceo-apologizes-after-ai-coding-tool-wipes-core-database 

Danish Registry Study Shows Most Mental Illnesses Occur Without Familial Links

• https://ground.news/article/study-challenges-prejudice-heredity-only-explains-part-of-mental-illness_5b7268?utm_source=mobile-app&utm_medium=newsroom-share

• https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-prejudice-heredity-mental-illness.html

Canadians Say Reconciliation Is Progressing—Poll Suggests Disconnect

• https://www.sasktoday.ca/national-news/most-canadians-think-the-country-is-making-progress-on-reconciliation-poll-10995451

Mutual Aid: Help KJ: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kj-with-his-battle-against-a-brain-tumor Oxford Mutual Aid: https://www.oxfordmutualaid.org Indigenous Climate Action: https://www.indigenousclimateaction.com Regina Cathedral Community Fridge: https://www.cathedralcommunityfridge.com

Solidarity is the strategy.

In this episode, I sit down with my friend Eric, a blue-collar poet and Indigenous worker living just across the border in North Dakota. He opens up about what it means to struggle under a system that fails working people—from being denied healthcare to watching lawmakers vote against free school lunches.

Eric reads his poem Tax Me More for Freedom and shares a heartfelt vision of a better world built on community, care, and solidarity.

Support Eric and his family:

GoFundMe – Help KJ with his battle against a brain tumor Instagram – @standing348

YouTube – @ericstanding9898

Facebook – facebook.com/eric.road

My links and support options: https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

What if Sam Harris is completely wrong about free will? In this episode, I talk with Damien Marie AtHope about why the hard determinist view doesn’t hold up, and why believing in change is not only possible but necessary. Damien shares his own story of transformation, breaks down the difference between biological pressures and actual control, and gives a crash course in emotional intelligence, axiology, and why therapy works. We’re not robots — we’re just bad at using the will we do have.

Links:

damienmarieathope.com

linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

ICE raids in LA are starting to look more like kidnappings, agents in masks, no ID, no accountability. We break down what’s really going on and how it fits into a system in decline.

Also: Mamdani wins in NYC, Bezos’s wedding antics, and the WEF’s dystopian wishlist.

Co-host: @ancomscicomm.bsky.social

Support the show: linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

Sources

https://thenarwhal.ca/trouble-in-the-headwaters-documentary/?mc_cid=e57e3cde1c&mc_eid=4476f4fb86

https://zeteo.com/p/breaking-zohran-mamdani-wins-nyc?r=17zg6&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_New_York_City_Democratic_mayoral_primary

https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Fcalifornia%2Fstory%2F2025-06-24%2Fmasked-immigration-agents-local-law-enforcement-tension

https://apnews.com/article/protesters-immigration-raids-masks-ice-trump-c601c5dc55ce4aecb36998ee15b47772

https://www.weforum.org/press/2025/06/from-asteroid-mining-to-democratizing-quantum-world-economic-forum-announces-2025-technology-pioneers-leading-new-wave-of-global-innovation/

https://www.anarchistcommunism.org/2025/06/26/the-march-to-war/

https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/israel-stocks-currency-shekel-iran-war-conflict-military-economy-outlook-2025-6

https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/trumps-war-thinking-israel-controls-u-s-imperialism-would-be-a-mistake/

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2025/06/michael-hudson-why-america-is-at-war-with-iran.html

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/robocup-building-team-robots-will-beat-world-cup-champions-180951713/

https://www.policyalternatives.ca/news-research/why-did-canada-just-cave-to-trump-by-scrapping-the-digital-services-tax/

https://therealnews.com/why-venetians-want-jeff-bezos-to-choke-on-his-wedding-cake

Watershed Security Fund (British Columbia)https://watershedsecurityfund.ca/Supports Indigenous-led flood resilience and watershed restoration across B.C.

KTown for All (Los Angeles)https://www.ktownforall.org/donate Legal aid, groceries, and protest support for unhoused and immigrant residents.

Aquí Para la Comunidad / InnerCity Strugglehttps://www.innercitystruggle.org/donate Mutual aid and organizing in Boyle Heights—supporting undocumented families.

Mutual Aid LA Network (MALAN)🔗 https://linktr.ee/mutualaidlanetwork 

Decentralized hub coordinating food, housing, and protest solidarity efforts

Graphic artist and leftist content creator Lucretia McEvil joins me for a deep and honest conversation about escaping the corporate grind, building a media practice rooted in storytelling, and rediscovering revolutionary optimism in a system designed to crush it. We talk about what it means to sell your labor but not your soul, how office life shapes our thinking, and why mutual aid and media are powerful tools for reclaiming collective power. Plus: Zohran Mamdani, class betrayal, and why “they don’t want you to feel free” might be more literal than it sounds.

Follow Lucretia:YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@lucretia_macevil Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/lucretia.mcevil/ SoundCloud – https://soundcloud.com/mamacakes Patreon – http://patreon.com/lucretiamcevil 

Support the show:https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist

City buses are hitting 40 °C, gig apps still want their cut, and cops keep buying shiny new toys. I connect the dots between a boiling planet, precarious work, and the prison-industrial cash machine—and ask what it’ll take to snap the circuit.

Want the 35-minute after-show? Patrons get it: https://patreon.com/SkepticalLeftist 

Links • socials: https://linktr.ee/skepticalleftist • Owen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@owenmacdonald7428  | Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/owenmacdonald.bsky.social