The Velvet Hammer Episode 10: We begin this week with a celebration of the D-Line subway returning to service. There was significant construction, now finished, so if you’re traveling, the main line is ready for the commute. In other news, Argentina is considering reinstating mandatory military service for young people. Also, Milei’s currency devaluations close the gap in the black market exchange. We recall celebrity death match from TV and wonder what that would be like in our congressional chambers; while considering the state of the union address and whether the president is capable of it. In the north of the country, there’s crack downs on drug trafficking and human rights organizations respond to the treatment of prisoners. We close with more environmental damage being done in the Paraná river as developers seek to make it the “Miami of the South.”

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 9: This week, we jump into a convo about why many politicians seem to be so unfit for the job amidst their health problems. And why are so many people voting or considering themselves “uncommitted” in recent polls? In Argentina, soup kitchens are getting slammed in the wake of Milei’s shock therapy and the head of the “welfare” ministry seems to refuse to give government support to those in need, especially those that can’t afford food. Then we respond to the air transport union strike and consider that students get an extra week of vacation because teachers go on strike next. We get shocked by the number of rich people getting subsidies here–like for boats? Plus, provinces are fighting back against Milei for not receiving their subsidies–even going as far as threats to cut off energy production to the capital. In environmental news, fires are burning up Texas and Kentucky, and we’re seeing a food shortage on the horizon…

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 8: This week starts with a deep dive into who actually brews the beers we drink around the world – and it turns out to be one giant corporation! We quickly cover Argentine happenings, one of which being another strike – this time all the trains in the country stopped. Being emigrants, we had something to say about the US immigration “problem” and the practice of bussing immigrants to other states. Eventually we have a chat about affirmative action and how it lowered the ranking of a US high school because…there were too many Asians? Meanwhile in Argentina, the teachers are preparing to strike over wages and award students an extra week of summer vacation. Moving on, we discuss China’s deflation and youth unemployment and associate that to their swath of lowered tariffs here in the country. Oh, and Argentina was ranked 2024’s ultimate luxury vacation destination, so we’re on the up & up!

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 7: We’re back this week starting with a quick look at Argentine president Milei’s new policies. The tough austerity measures are being praised by many other countries, including the USA, and even other economics professors in South America. We look at the other side of the arguments, though, finding that many of the most in need are suffering and many can’t afford food. Next is a hilarious bit about the meaning of the Spanish word, “carne,” and what that means about the empanadas we eat. We cover Argentine traffic and the dangers of biking in the city, more bus fare increases, the Buenos Aires party life and more. And we get pretty worked up over states charging people for their public defenders and destroying lives for something “constitutional.”

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 6: We barely made it to the studio this week after an enormous storm hit the city and left streets surging with rivers of water. With storm drains overflowing, it was akin to the atmospheric river over California. In expat news, we discuss the local nickname for US citizens, “yankees” from “yankeelandia” before an update about Milei’s omnibus law and his visit to Israel. With a jump back to the USA, we review some of the voting results but get bored and share some of our favorite types of beer. After quick coverage of another university free-speech scandal, we celebrate South America’s first architectural award of its type. For those thinking about visiting, we cover renting a new apartment in the city and cheer Tom on with his search.

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 5: This week we’re obviously missing the USA! After some expat news info, we spent most of the episode reminiscing about our lives in the states. During the sweltering Buenos Aires heatwave, we consider the need for water tanks above buildings in the city and wonder if they’re made of asbestos. There’s an update about the omnibus going through Argentine congress, the percussion bombs during the debate, and remember watching C-SPAN in our youth. Then, our humorous commentary on the unsubstantiated claim of aliens in Miami. We recall eating alligator in Florida, mention a Nutria (or Coypu) invasion in Argentina, and remember how friendly some bikers are despite their reputation. To close, we give some tips for visiting South America, including the need to learn Spanish.

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 4: [sensitive content warning] This week after a small change in libations, we discuss a country-wide protest in Argentina against the new president’s sweeping austerity measures. We break it down further analyzing the elimination of public transit subsidies which massively increases the cost of getting to and from work (almost 3x)! The worst topic? Pumping fresh water aquifers into the sewers as a means of setting a foundation for new building constructions–when there’s so many areas worldwide in drought! Or even worse? We complain about the plight of black people and the prison system in the US.

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 3: On this third episode we open with news about new measures being taken in Argentina to improve the economy. We cover China’s new tariff rates to increase exports and how that might affect our life. We take a spot of inspiration from wild elephant life and their similarity to humans. There’s a bit about the harmful chemical DDT and its availability here in Buenos Aires, and we share our experience with the Argentinian custom of “merienda” and their curious dinner timing.

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 2: Thank you everyone who tuned in with us for the first episode and we’re back with more. This week we respond to the final GOP debate and make fun of the whole process. And shock ourselves with Trump’s last day of testimony. We share some local info about trips from Buenos Aires to Colonia, Uruguay. While on local topics, we gross ourselves out about the mosquito problem, but land happily on local theatre. We cover local politics and American imports (or lack thereof) and offend with some torrid 1920s jokes we’d never heard before.

Coming every Thursday, this is The Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brought to you by One Eleven Entertainment.

The Velvet Hammer Episode 1: welcome to the first ever episode of The Velvet Hammer. In this pilot, we open with world news and lifestyle as expats living in Buenos Aires, Argentina. We gripe about the mosquitos swarming the city and a nuclear option scientists are using to combat them. We comment about the local policies of new president Milei and the effect he's having on the local economy. We shamelessly plug a local beer and make some predictions for the coming year.

Coming every Thursday, this is the Velvet Hammer with your hosts, Jonny, Tom, & Tadeo, three American expats recording from Buenos Aires, Argentina.