Current Affairs

Julia Serano is a PhD molecular biologist, writer, and musician whose books include Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity, Outspoken: A Decade of Transgender Activism and Trans Feminism, and the surrealist novel 99 Erics. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, TIME, The Guardian, The Daily Beast, Salon, and elsewhere.Dr. Serano is a patient debunker of anti-trans talking points, and has written a number of articles patiently taking apart common misconceptions. Her "transgender glossary of sorts" is also an essential resource for those who find gender and sexuality terms confusing or imprecise. Dr. Serano joined to go through some of the most common arguments made about trans people in the popular press and show why they are pernicious, factually incorrect nonsense. Having previously spent two decades as a professional biologist, she corrects the laughably ignorant claims that transgender people misunderstand or ignore "biology." In fact, it is the critics who are unacquainted with the basics of science. In this episode, we look at claims made by J.K. Rowling, Helen Joyce, Deborah Soh, Abigail Shrier, and Ben Shapiro. Julia applies the same kind of patient and informed explanatory approach that characterizes her prolific writing on the subject. We didn't get to all of the major talking points but you can check out Julia's writings on some of the common ones here:- Bathrooms and Sexual Predators - examining the claim that allowing people to use the bathroom of their choice will increase instances of sexual victimization. In fact, the opposite is the case. - Extinction of Lesbians - examining the claim that increased trans identification is a threat to the existence of lesbians - Social Contagion - examining the claim that young girls are experiencing "rapid onset gender dysphoria" and becoming trans because of peer influence - Autogynephilia - examining the claim that trans identities are built around sexual desire - Desistance and Detransition - examining the claim that trans children will grow out of it or are being pressured to - "Trans Women Aren't Women" - examining the claim that trans people are delusional about their biology- "Biological sex" - examining faulty claims made about biologyIn Current Affairs you can read Nathan's own articles on J.K. Rowling, Abigail Shrier's Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters, and the debate about trans women in sports. Natalie Wynn's video about Ben Shapiro is here. The Current Affairs article about a lack of access to supportive medical interventions for trans youth is here.

Dean Preston represents District 5 on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. A tenants' rights attorney and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, he was the first democratic socialist elected to the board in 40 years. Recently, a campaign by a group called the "YIMBYs" has accused Preston of denying housing to thousands of people. In this episode, we talk about why San Francisco has a housing crisis and how to solve it. We also talk about how pro-developer groups produce propaganda that portrays affordable housing activists as "opposed to affordable housing." Dean responds to the YIMBY charges and shows how corporate disinformation against socialists works. We discuss:- Why rent control is actually a very good thing - How the hypocrisy of San Francisco rich people has driven inequality spiraling out of control in the city- How the "YIMBY movement" paints anyone who opposes developers' interests as an anti-housing "NIMBY"- The things cities need to actually be affordable - How elected officials can use their positions to exact concessions from developers (and why this shouldn't be considered "opposing the development of housing")- How disinformation campaigns try to massage the facts to manipulate voters (and why voters are often too smart to be fooled) Nathan's article on YIMBYism is here. '

Aziz Huq is an expert in constitutional law at the University of Chicago law school. He is the author of the book The Collapse of Constitutional Remedies, available from Oxford University Press. Prof. Huq's book focuses on the fact that constitutional rights are meaningless unless there are remedies for violations of those rights, and that while we ostensibly have the same rights as always, courts have steadily eroded our ability to get anything if the government chooses to violate our rights. We discuss:- Why cops get away with brutality and lying- How the US court system is not set up to protect people's rights, but we still did have some once- How the right-wing turn of the courts has meant strong protections for corporate rights and few protections for personal rights against state violence - How we can perhaps one day have some rights that are more than just words on a piece of paper Our "cynical know-your-rights poster," mentioned in the episode, is here.

Today's guest is Glenn Loury, professor of economics at Brown University. Prof. Loury has had a distinguished career—he was the youngest-ever tenured Black economics professor at Harvard and is known for coining the term "social capital." Prof. Loury is generally associated with political conservatism, but his books The Anatomy of Racial Inequality and Race, Incarceration, and American Values actually offer a rebuke to conservative "color blindness" rhetoric and sketch precise explanations for why contemporary racial inequality can only be understood in the context of historical racism. In this interview, Nathan tries to get at some of the seeming contradictions between Prof. Loury's written work on systemic racial inequality and his public statements heavily emphasizing the role of "culture." It is a contentious and challenging conversation. The Anatomy of Racial Inequality was recently reissued with a new preface. Prof. Loury's 2012 lecture "Race, Incarceration, and American Values," can be found here.

Today's guest is Stephen Bright, one of the best criminal defense attorneys in the United States. Prof. Bright teaches at Yale Law School and Georgetown Law, but has spent most of his life working as an advocate for poor people accused of serious crimes. During his decades in charge of the Southern Center For Human Rights, he argued multiple times in front of the U.S. Supreme Court and represented defendants some of the most difficult death penalty cases. Today we discuss the status of the right to a lawyer in the United States. Constitutionally, everyone is guaranteed an adequate defense, but in practice, the amount of representation one gets is based on the amount of money one can spend, and public defenders offices vary wildly across the country. Nobody is better familiar with the situation than Prof. Bright, whose writings include:Counsel for the Poor: The Death Penalty Not for the Worst Crime But for the Worst Lawyer (1994)Fifty Years of Defiance and Resistance After Gideon v. Wainwright (2013) (w/ Sia Sanneh)Prof. Bright has produced an entire 40-part online course on issues of race and class as they apply to capital punishment, which is available for free on YouTube:Capital Punishment: Race, Poverty, and DisadvantageMore of his work defending capital cases can be seen in the 2005 documentary film Fighting For Life In The Death Belt, which can be viewed free online. His lecture to Stanford law students on the ethical responsibilities of lawyers can be viewed here.

In this, the second part of our look into the realities of abortion in the contemporary United States, Nathan talks to Prof. Diana Greene Foster, Director of Research at the Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) collaborative research group at UC-San Francisco. Prof. Foster is the author of the new book The Turnaway Study: Ten Years, a Thousand Women, and the Consequences of Having―or Being Denied―an Abortion. The book is based on a remarkable study that followed a thousand women over a decade, some of whom had abortions and some of whom were denied abortions. The study compared life outcomes for the two groups and found that not only does having an abortion not cause lasting regret or harm, but not having a desired abortion creates a host of negative life outcomes. We also discuss: - How those who are denied abortions accurately predict the negative life consequences they will face from the denial - Why access to contraception is still a long way from being universal - How the need to quickly gather enough money to pay for a procedure can mean the difference between having an abortion and not having one - Why, regardless of debates over the moral status of the fetus, we need to acknowledge that allowing people choice objectively makes them better off

Carol Joffe is one of the foremost experts on reproductive rights in the United States. A professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco, she has been studying and writing about the battle over abortion rights for decades and received lifetime achievement awards from the Abortion Care Network and the Society of Family Planning. She is the co-author of the book Obstacle Course: The Everyday Struggle to Get an Abortion In America, and joined Nathan to discuss the various ways that the anti-abortion movement has already succeeded in creating obstacles to having abortions, as well as: - What a post-Roe America will actually look like: why it may not be quite as bleak as the pre-Roe era thanks to abortion pills, but will be worse if criminal punishments are widely deployed - The sneaky tactics that anti-abortion campaigners often use, including placing fake clinics next to real ones - Why the volunteer actions of ordinary people are essential to ensuring the protection of the right to choose Edited by Tim Gray

Andrew Cockburn is a veteran journalist who serves as the Washington Editor of Harper's magazine. His new book, The Spoils of War: Power, Profit, and the American War Machine, available from Verso collects his reporting on the military-industrial complex and the way the public coffers are looted by profiteers. He joined Nathan to discuss why he thinks the ever-bloating military has become an out-of-control "virus," as well as: - The bureaucratic waste that means the US military isn't even good at defense - Why profit, rather than war, is what the military is built for - The defense companies that depend on constantly manufacturing new threats, which conveniently pop up just when it looks like the military budget might be scaled back - Why the new stories about Chinese hypersonic missiles are exactly this kind of self-interested threat inflation - The alarming situation with nuclear weapons, which are far too close to being used for anyone's comfort - Why defense spending isn't even a good way to "create jobs" - Why progressives should not just focus on critiquing "militarism" and disastrous wars but on scaling back the giant institution that channels so many of our social resources into manufacturing "weapons that don't work for threats that don't exist"

Tara Isabella Burton is the author of Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World. She joined Current Affairs editor Nathan Robinson to discuss changing religious practices in the United States. Traditional organized religion has been on the decline for years, as more and more young people are identifying as nonreligious. But are we really? Tara's book looks at the way that new communities and spiritual practices, from SoulCycle to astrology to online political communities, have arisen in the place of churches. We discuss: - To what extent these are identities versus beliefs - What a "religion" is and whether the term should apply to these other kinds of beliefs and practices - How charlatans sell people the promise of spiritual fulfillment - The pluses and minuses of having "bespoke" religions for everyone. On the one hand, everyone gets the faith that suits them best. On the other, we may lose our sense of belonging in the broader human community Edited by Tim Gray Nathan's audio is absolutely horrible for reasons unknown. Many apologies for this. Figuring out the problem so it can be fixed in future.

Today Nathan is joined by Oxford University philosophy professor Henry Shue, author of Climate Justice and most recently The Pivotal Generation: Why We Have a Moral Responsibility to Slow Climate Change Right Now. Prof. Shue's new book is about the moral obligations conferred on people by the historical circumstances they find themselves in. The actions of living people have huge consequences for those born to subsequent generations. What responsibilities do we have to those who come after us? We discuss: - The important questions of justice that need to be central to the climate discussion - Why people living in the future are just as morally important as people living now - What elementary principles of moral philosophy can tell us about the political action we need to take on climate - Why individual lifestyle choices are insufficient to fulfill our moral responsibilities - What those countries most responsible for the climate crisis owe to those who will suffer the most from it Edited by Tim Gray

Ross Barkan, author of The Prince: Andrew Cuomo, Coronavirus, and the Fall of New York, joins Nathan to discuss the career of the infamous ex-New York governor. We talk about: - How an un-charismatic and unpleasant bully made his inspiring journey from humble beginnings as the son of the governor of New York to become the governor of New York - How Cuomo managed to keep a blue state from actually passing progressive legislation - How his Machiavellian ruthlessness, and New York's broken election system, kept him in power for so long - How the media allows politicians like Cuomo to portray themselves as heroes when their actual policies are disastrous Ross' book is an important document of the lies and manipulation of one of our time's shadiest state leaders. It offers an important case study in how centrists govern and the kind of politics we need to overthrow. Edited by Tim Gray

Current Affairs editor and physician Dr. Lily Sánchez joins Nathan to discuss her new (and first) Current Affairs article, "Continuing The Pandemic Is A Choice." Lily explains: - the many things the U.S. could do differently if it was actually trying to get COVID-19 cases as close to 0 as possible - the weird lack of a serious public education and messaging campaign around vaccination - why having 50 different state policies makes no sense when you're trying to control a pandemic - the need for us to refuse to accept the status quo, and demand the elimination of preventable suffering Correction: the horrifying Rosa Parks tweet is in fact from contrarian writer James Lindsay, not a Daily Wire writer. Nathan was thinking of a different horrifying recent tweet that was from a Daily Wire writer. That one was in defense of genocide. Point of clarification from Lily: "I did not mean to imply I endorsed a "vax or test" approach when I was talking about vaccine outreach and testing. "Vax or test" doesn't really make sense because anyone can spread the virus regardless of vaccination status. I do support a universal testing approach. What I meant was that doing a universal testing program can keep people safe even if you cannot convince everyone to get vaccinated." You can follow Lily on Twitter @lefty_md

Ben Burgis is the author of the upcoming book: Christopher Hitchens: What He Got Right, How He Went Wrong, and Why He Still Matters, as well as the host of "Give Them An Argument" on YouTube. His previous book Give Them An Argument: Logic for the Left was covered in Current Affairs and he and Nathan have co-written before. In today's episode, Ben and Nathan discuss Hitchens' career, writings, and beliefs, including: - The enduring value of Hitchens' leftist polemics against Henry Kissinger and Bill Clinton - The roots of Hitchens' repugnant and despicable views on Islam and the Iraq War - The question of how useful his strident "anti-theism" was - The way the 80s and 90s neoliberal consensus caused certain socialists to lose their way - The need for the left to avoid Hitchens' worst tendencies while learning from his erudition, debating flair, and love of skewering overrated sacred figures The Trial of Henry Kissinger can be seen on YouTube. Ben's book on Hitchens is now available for pre-order. Edited by Tim Gray

Lee McIntyre is a philosopher of science who serves as a research Fellow at the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University and an instructor in Ethics at Harvard Extension School. His new book, How to Talk to a Science Denier: Conversations with Flat Earthers, Climate Deniers, and Others Who Defy Reason, is about how we can actually successfully talk people out of dangerous erroneous beliefs. Lee recognizes that merely providing people with correct facts does little, but also believes it's a terrible idea to let bad ideas go unrebutted, or conclude that there's "no point trying to reason with people." His book discusses the importance of building relationships and trust as part of the process of getting people to be open to new ideas, and shows why it's essential in an age of vaccine skepticism and climate denial that we learn how to effectively defend scientific truths. He joined Current Affairs editor Nathan J. Robinson to discuss what works and what doesn't when it comes to talking people out of irrational beliefs. Nathan's article on QAnon is here. The story of the QAnoner who gave up his beliefs is from the Washington Post. The George Orwell piece about flat earth beliefs that Nathan quotes is here. If you enjoy the Current Affairs podcast, consider subscribing to our glorious print magazine. Current Affairs is entirely funded by the donations and subscriptions of readers and listeners, and depends on your support to survive.

Thom Hartmann is the #1 progressive talk radio show host in the country. Today, he joins Current Affairs editor in chief Nathan J. Robinson to discuss the world of talk radio, as well as his book "The Hidden History of Monopolies: How Big Business Destroyed The American Dream." Nathan asks why the right has been so dominant in talk radio, and how leftists can effectively counter them. We talk about: - Why Rush Limbaugh was so good at what he did - Whether there is anything about talk radio as a medium that is inherently favorable to conservatives - How giant radio corporations limit the reach of progressive voices (including the billionaire station owner who once told Thom "I won't put anyone on the air who wants to raise my taxes") - What it takes to hold people's attention for 3 hours straight on the air - How to do a professional "radio voice" - How the left can produce successful radio (and why we need to) Thom's book on big business is here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49195416-the-hidden-history-of-monopolies Thom's Nation article about why the left should enter the talk radio field is here: https://www.thenation.com/article/society/conservative-talk-radio/

Author Jim Freeman discusses his book "Rich Thanks To Racism: How The Ultra-Wealthy Profit From Racial Injustice." Jim looks at three issue areas, education, policing, and immigration, and how in each, the ultra-wealthy have found ways to make vast fortunes off the suffering of Black and Brown people. Jim directs the Social Movement Support Lab, which provides multidisciplinary assistance to communities fighting for racial justice. He was formerly a Senior Attorney at Advancement Project, a national civil rights organization, where he directed the Ending the Schoolhouse-to-Jailhouse Track project. He served under President Obama as a Commissioner on the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans. His book is available here: https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501755132/rich-thanks-to-racism/ Nathan's audio quality is crap because he accidentally used his computer microphone instead of his podcasting mic. He will try to avoid doing this again. Edited by Tim Gray.

Seattle city council member Kshama Sawant was elected as an open socialist in 2013, long before the present wave of local socialist political victories began. During her time in office, she has taken on Amazon and helped make Seattle the first large city in the country to adopt the $15 minimum wage. In this interview, she discusses how she was able to get elected as a socialist during the Obama years, how movements can successfully pressure useless centrist Democrats to do what they are otherwise disinclined to do, why she doesn't think it's a good idea to associate with the Democratic party under any circumstances (but she supported Bernie anyway), and why she has recently joined the Democratic Socialists of America.

Author Jeremy Lent discusses his new book "The Web Of Meaning: Integrating Science and Traditional Wisdom to Find Our Place In The Universe." Jeremy's book shows how the individualistic philosophical underpinnings of capitalism destroy our ability to find meaning and our appreciation of the wonders of nature. He shows us the environmental horrors that are unleashed by free market thinking, but then begins to construct an alternative worldview that can help us live harmoniously and sustainably in the universe. He integrates both the insights of the hard sciences and wisdom from traditional religious and cultural practices around the world, showing how even slime molds have something to teach us. The Web Of Meaning can be purchased from New Society Press: https://newsociety.com/books/w/the-web-of-meaning Jeremy's demolition of Steven Pinker can be read here: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/transformation/steven-pinker-s-ideas-are-fatally-flawed-these-eight-graphs-show-why/ and the article in which Nathan J. Robinson cites Jeremy is here: https://www.currentaffairs.org/2019/05/the-worlds-most-annoying-man https://www.jeremylent.com/

Current Affairs is joined this week by Jacobin staff writer Luke Savage! Together, the panel asks if there are countries that exist outside the US and if they are bad, investigate the trope "the left are so crazy that they drove me to the right", and give some TV recommendations. The flock this week was made up of Luke Savage, senior editor Brianna Rennix, business manager Allegra Silcox, and bird-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The Current Affairs flock investigate how the right created a moral panic around "critical race theory", dare to make all tax records public, and dream of utopia. The flock this week is made up of senior editor Brianna Rennix, finance editor Sparky Abraham, editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. Your host is Lyta Gold. "How a Conservative Activist Invented the Conflict over Critical Race Theory": https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-inquiry/how-a-conservative-activist-invented-the-conflict-over-critical-race-theory/amp "Solidarity Never" by Current Affairs lyrebird Danny Bradley. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Studio H3 of the Current Affairs World Headquarters is closed for renovations this week, so instead of the usual panel format, we have something different for you. Aisling, Allegra and Lyta discuss Aisling's article "Satanic Panic and the Death of Mythos" and use it as a jumping-off point for a freewheeling conversation about the current cultural landscape, including overly literal readings of art, fandom, moralizing, and YA...just, YA in general. "Satanic Panics and the Death of Mythos": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/02/satanic-panics-and-the-death-of-mythos Red Letter Media video on Darth Vader lore: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVzc20Bm8Xo "The Buzzfeed-ification of Mental Health": https://mentalhellth.xyz/p/the-buzzfeed-ification-of-mental Allegra's favorite tweet: https://twitter.com/ambientGillian/status/1391880931724648451?s=20 Petscop: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZKQv0ZFHpeIUkOtNjtq4KA This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

This episode was originally on our bonus feed, but as Tiffany's election is tomorrow we're putting it out today for everyone! Pete speaks to Tiffany Cabán, public defender and organizer with the Working Families Party, whose campaign for Queens County District Attorney drew national attention last year, and who is now running for New York City Council in District 22. https://www.cabanforqueens.com/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The panel give their NFT takes, propose a universal database of all human knowledge, and share some hard-earned life lessons. The nest this week was inhabited by finance editor Sparky Abraham, poet-at-large Cate Root, editor-in-chief Nathan Robinson, and amusements and managing editor Lyta Gold. "The Truth Is Paywalled But The Lies Are Free": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2020/08/the-truth-is-paywalled-but-the-lies-are-free/ "As Google Fights Fake News, Voices on the Margins Raise Alarm": https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/26/technology/google-search-bias-claims.html This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

You've been asking for it, you've been waiting for it. Now, episodes 6 through 12 of Is MMT Real? are available to our Patreon subscribers. They will eventually be made free to the public, but for those who can't wait, you can pay just $5 to subscribe to our bonus feed and gain access to all the episodes now, as well as all our other bonus episodes. Go to www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs to learn more! Episode 6: https://www.patreon.com/posts/49309389 Episode 7: https://www.patreon.com/posts/49366210 Episode 8: https://www.patreon.com/posts/49413998 Episode 9: https://www.patreon.com/posts/49433441 Episode 10: https://www.patreon.com/posts/49516234 Episode 11: https://www.patreon.com/posts/49796660 Episode 12: https://www.patreon.com/posts/51225458

This episode was originally released on our Patreon feed last year, but we've decided to release it to everyone. Aisling McCrea and Oren Nimni discuss that time the American police firebombed Philadelphia. Along the way they discuss the stigma against communal living, death row, black liberation, the military-to-police pipeline, and the way the left deals with the more problematic aspects of its past. Please note that even though it happened in 1985, the story of the MOVE Bombing is still ongoing; in April it was revealed that the Penn Museum had kept the remains of some of the victims, and used them for research and teaching rather than return them to the grieving family. https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/penn-museum-city-of-philadelphia-to-investigate-move-bombing-remains/2792675/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Once again, we dig into your voicemails. (We hear you, and we see you.) Topics include personality tests, cryptids, political arguments with relatives, and rebooting the left after the pandemic. The bird's nest this week was made up of five eggs: amusements and managing editor Lyta Gold, finance editor Sparky Abraham, senior editor Brianna Rennix, editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson, and business manager Allegra Silcox. "An Oral History of Cryptid Currency": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2019/08/an-oral-history-of-cryptid-currency This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The Current Affairs flock discuss the right to live wherever you want, the dubious value of patriotism, and the things we love to do even though we're terrible at them. (Please note this episode was recorded before the recent escalation of violence against Palestinians, hence why it doesn't come up despite being relevant to some parts of this episode.) The flock this week are senior editor Brianna Rennix, editor-in-chief Nathan Robinson, finance editor Sparky Abraham, and baby bird Charlie Abraham. Today's head bird in charge is Allegra Silcox. "Libertarian Lullaby", like pretty much all our original music, is by Danny Bradley and available here: https://dannybradleymusic.com/songsforcurrentaffairs/libertarianlullaby This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Pete returns to talk about his new book Dedicated: The Case for Commitment in an Age of Infinite Browsing. Book is here: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Dedicated/Pete-Davis/9781982140908 How a Surprisingly Anti-Capitalist Self-Help Book Could Help Deepen Our Democracy - Progressive.org This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

This episode was originally posted to our Patreon feed a month ago, but we've decided to make it free for everyone. If you enjoy this kind of content, please consider subscribing to our bonus feed at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs! Contributing editor Eli Massey begins a series of in-depth interviews with local activists. To begin with, he speaks to his friend Lesley Williams (@lesleywilliams), a librarian and activist with Jewish Voice for Peace, and based in Evanston, IL. Amongst other things, they discuss the influences of Black and Jewish culture in her life, her travails arranging pro-Palestinian programmes for the local community, and her critique of Evanston's "reparations" policy. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The panel discuss the recent slate of anti-trans bills, theorize on politics as fandom, and announce their vows for post-pandemic life. Today's flock consists of legal editor Oren Nimni, senior editor Brianna Rennix, amusements and managing editor Lyta Gold, and editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The team talk through the question of "vaccine passports", reimagine taxes, and judge whether it is obligatory to stay informed. For the vaccine passport discussion, they are joined by Magnus Jamieson, who has previously guested on the podcast to talk about risk and resilience, and who has been following the COVID situation closely in his capacity as a stats geek (not, he would like us to stress, as an epidemiologist). In some brief patches, Magnus's audio features interference due to extraterrestrial whales careening through the universe, for which we can only apologize. "Is MMT Real?" is an ongoing in-depth series that follows Sparky and Pete as they interview a series of economists and try to puzzle out the truth of MMT. You can listen to it now (along with all our other bonus episodes) for just $5 a month at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs. The panel this week was associate editor Vanessa A. Bee, finance editor Sparky Abraham, poet-at-large Cate Root, contributing editor Eli Massey, editor-in-chief Nathan Robinson, guest science guy Magnus Jamieson, and host Aisling McCrea. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Continuing our series of semi-regular immigration updates, Current Affairs' resident immigration lawyers Brianna Rennix and Oren Nimni explain the Biden administration's supposed changes in immigration policy, and what they've seen on the ground so far. This episode, like all our immigration updates, is not paywalled. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The Current Affairs panel welcomes a guest - Ryan Kekeris (@punished_ryan), director of communications of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades. In this episode, Ryan explains the ins and outs of the PRO Act, Sparky gives us a potted history of trade routes, and the team explore what it means to turn powerlessness into power. The panel this week was Ryan Kekeris, finance editor Sparky Abraham, senior editor Brianna Rennix, and host Nick Slater. Sign up for PRO Act phonebanking: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/proactphonebank William F. Buckley/Ronald Reagan Canal Debate: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1978/01/24/the-canal-debate/43b772f5-beab-48ba-bb43-25aa5782302a/ Otters helping each other over a wall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXRsjYIuP6Y This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Once again we peruse, examine and eat your voicemails. Subjects include office animals, accusations of "childishness", the nature of the self and imaginary metros. The panel this week was made up of senior editor Brianna Rennix, administrative Zoomer Kate Gauthreaux, amusements & managing editor Lyta Gold, editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson, and host Sparky Abraham. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Sparky and Eli are joined by Max Alvarez, editor-in-chief at The Real News, and a very special guest—Michael Foster, an organizer with RWDSU (Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union), who has been at the forefront of the effort to unionize workers at the Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama. Links: rwdsu.info https://therealnews.com/amazon-workers-demand-to-be-treated-like-human-beings https://therealnews.com/danny-glover-why-the-fight-against-amazon-in-bessemer-matters https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/25/business/amazon-union-alabama.html https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/02/business/amazon-union-bessemer-alabama.html This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The team discuss going to Mars, the reopening of schools and go in-depth on qualified immunity. Next episode, we'll be listening to your voicemails! If you have a question, please leave a voicemail at (504) 867-8851 and it might get played and answered on the show. The panel this week was made up of associate editor Vanessa A. Bee, contributing editor Eli Massey, finance editor Sparky Abraham, editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson and host Oren Nimni. Whitey on the Moon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goh2x_G0ct4 This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

This episode was originally released on our Patreon feed, but we've decided to release it for all listeners. If you enjoyed it, consider subscribing to our Patreon feed at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs for more episodes like this! Eli and Oren speak to two experts who have each been working for twenty years to bring attention to what goes on at the Guantánamo Bay detention camp: Shayana Kadidal (@ShayanaKadidal), senior managing attorney of the Guantánamo Global Justice Initiative at the Center for Constitutional Rights (@theCCR), and Carol Rosenberg of the New York Times (@carolrosenberg), winner of the Robert F. Kennedy journalism award for her peerless work on the subject. Please be advised this episode contains discussion of suicide. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

This episode was originally put on our Patreon feed back in November, but in light of the recent energy crisis in Texas, we've decided to unlock it for everyone. If you like this episode, please consider subscribing to our feed at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs! Infrastructure enthusiast Sparky Abraham is joined by Dr. Magnus Jamieson, an expert in electrical power systems, to discuss the fire which destroyed the town of Paradise, California in November 2018—the most destructive wildfire in California's history, caused by a single faulty electrical line and a whole bunch of systemic problems. Warning: this episode contains a lot of nerding out about transmission towers. The fire report: https://www.buttecounty.net/Portals/30/CFReport/PGE-THE-CAMP-FIRE-PUBLIC-REPORT.pdf?ver=2020-06-15-190515-977 This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The team uses the viral video of Handforth Parish Council as a jumping-off point to discuss the thorny concept of "community"; Sparky makes renting illegal; everyone explains something that makes them believe in the beauty of the universe. The panel this week was made up of finance editor Sparky Abraham, contributing editor Aisling McCrea, editor-in-chief Nathan Robinson, and host Nick Slater. Handforth Parish Council: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgGmYeAm0jk Windowswap: https://www.window-swap.com/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

This episode was originally released only to our Patreon subscribers, but we're making it free for everyone today! In this episode, infrastructure enthusiast Sparky Abraham speaks to Megan Milliken Biven about abandoned oil wells. "The Wreckage of the Last Energy Epoch": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/01/the-wreckage-of-the-last-energy-epoch-abandoned-wells-and-workers https://www.truetransition.org/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The panel debates whether art has been over-moralized, argues the benefits of short-selling, and airs their petty grievances. At one point, someone triggers the Dialectics Calypso. The panel this week consisted of amusements and managing editor Lyta Gold, finance editor Sparky Abraham, and editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. Your temporary host is Aisling McCrea. "Beyond the Guilt Tax": https://thepointmag.com/criticism/beyond-the-guilt-tax/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA. Music by Danny Bradley.

This episode was originally posted on the bonus feed, but we're releasing it for everyone today! Sparky speaks to Sam Yang (@StuffFromSam) of Southpaw, a radical podcast about combat sports. In the first of this two-parter, Sam explains why he's building an alternative to the Joe Rogan universe, labor issues in the world of MMA, and exploitation and liberation in the Western practice of martial arts. Southpaw podcast is here: https://www.southpawpod.com/

Sparky and Pete took a little break from the MMT series over the holidays. (You can see one of the reasons at the link below.) But don't worry—more episodes are on their way. https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/01/welcome-babies

Finance editor Sparky Abraham is joined by contributing editor Eli Massey, activist and filmmaker Astra Taylor, and journalist Elizabeth Bruenig to discuss the American medical debt crisis—who's behind it, what's being done about it, and potential paths to eradicating it. "Churches Step In Where Politicians Will Not": https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/27/opinion/covid-medical-debt-church-charity.html "A Saint's Sins": https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/16/opinion/junipero-serra-catholic-saint.html https://debtcollective.org/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

We dip once again into your voicemails! Topics include expectations for the Biden administration, anarchic education, and aliens. Stay tuned to the end so you can be sad. The panel this week was business manager Allegra Silcox, contributing editor Eli Massey, legal editor Oren Nimni, and editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. Your host was, for the final time...Pete Davis. "Education Gamification": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2019/10/education-gamification "The Past and Future of the Socialist Sunday School": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2020/08/the-past-and-future-of-the-socialist-sunday-school This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Eli speaks to assistant professor at Michigan State University and writer for In These Times, Shireen Al-Adeimi, about the ongoing war in Yemen—its causes, its human cost, and the role of the Obama, Trump and Biden administrations. This episode is also available as a transcript: https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/01/interview-shireen-al-adeimi-on-the-u-s-backed-war-in-yemen This transcript may vary slightly from the audio, as it has been edited for clarity. "Biden Must End The War on Yemen": https://inthesetimes.com/article/president-biden-obama-yemen-war International Day of Action on Yemen (Jan 25th 2021): https://masspeaceaction.org/event/international-day-of-action-on-yemen/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Aisling speaks to journalist Libby Watson (@libbycwatson), formerly of The New Republic and Splinter, about her new Substack newsletter, Sick Note. Towards the end, Aisling gets very enthusiastic about Libby's cat, Digby. Sick Note has launched! Read it here: sicknote.co This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

With the Supreme Court very much in the news cycle, Oren speaks to Yale professor of law and history, Samuel Moyn, about why we should not "pack the court", as many leftists call for, but instead end the court as we know it. scotusreform.com Articles by Moyn: https://newrepublic.com/article/159710/supreme-court-reform-court-packing-diminish-power https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/the-case-for-ending-the-supreme-court-as-we-know-it https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/08/reform-the-court-but-dont-pack-it/614986/ https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/09/supreme-court-socialists-ruth-bader-ginsburg-death https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3665032 This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The team discuss the ensmallening of culture, women in science fiction, and reveal which things they suspect may not be real. The panel this week was senior editor Brianna Rennix, amusements & managing editor Lyta Gold, and business manager Allegra Silcox. Your host is Oren Nimni. Music, as ever, is by Current Affairs musician-in-residence Danny Bradley. If you so wish, you can support Danny by purchasing "How Was Your Year?" here: https://dannybradleymusic.com/songsforcurrentaffairs/howwasyouryear This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Hello all! We took a week off for the holidays, but now we're back—and we've brought presents! To ring in the new year, we're bringing everyone five free episodes throughout the week. Some of them will be brand-new, some will be former Patreon exclusives; some will be new episodes that would usually be Patreon-only, but that we want to share with you because we just like you that much. If you enjoy these episodes, we'd recommend you subscribe to our Patreon for more, but either way, we hope you like them. Today, we return to our Room 101 miniseries, in which two members of the CA team try and convince each other to consign their most hated objects, people and concepts to the deepest, darkest room. Nathan, Oren, Lyta and Brianna have all previously appeared in this miniseries; this time around, it's Nick and Sparky. Candidates for banishment include two geographical regions of the United States, one type of clothing, one political concept, and one beloved television show. Things get a little banish-happy towards the end. Episodes I and II of this series here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/bonus-room-101-i-21532235 https://www.patreon.com/posts/23223335 Cleveland: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysmLA5TqbIY This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.