The Fifth Column

It’s an Independence Day Miracle (if a few days delinquent). As another US Supreme Court term draws to a close, we tap in with our favorite SCOTUS obsessive, Damon Root (currently Freethink/Big Think, previous Reason, and author of books you really should buy).We discuss Presidential absolute immunity, Chevron deference, the pitiful state of SCOTUS journalism, and the obviously-super-serious effort in the US Congress to impeach/pack/scorn the highest court in the land on account of its *various crimes against democracy* (or something like that).ALSO: Frederick Douglass's on Independence Day… and Juneteenth?!“With flowing ROBES, grace, bald, striking.”- (Caddyshack - 1980)* Supreme Court and Presidential Powers* Chevron Deference, Executive Authority, and Legislative Inaction* Checks. Balances.* Judicial Perspectives on Recent Cases* Social Media and the First Amendment* Supreme Court's Conservative Majority* Frederick Douglass and American Ideals* Channeling Frederick Douglass (for Juneteenth)Recorded: June 3rd 2024Published: June 7th 2024 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Miracles of indigenous science* Why is Matt talking about Kevin Costner so much?* Aaron Sorkin solves January 6th * Norm on Bob Uecker* Matt revisits his…bad night* The Biden sitch * James Carville on masculinity and “communities of color”* How do you guys manage to watch this crap?* QAnon all the time* Sam and Diane, but not funny * The block of humans called voters* “Total…

Oh dear. Yeah, that debate. Obviously. One would have to be a very successful, very delusional Substacker to think otherwise. But the night was about to get much, much worse. Moynihan, Welch, and Friend of the Fifth (former Rep.) Peter Meijer decided to record a quick reaction pod at 1am, after a collective 542 drinks. That…didn’t work. And that’s not what you are about to hear, although some devious editor appears to have dropped random clips of one particular Fifth host (Matt) into this episode, purely to bully him and amuse our bullying listeners. So as Welch recovered today, Kmele and Moynihan (a champion drinker, at this point immune to hangovers) grabbed star Axios reporter Alex Thompson, just back from the spin room in Atlanta, to try to make sense of it all. Note: This was supposed to be a subscriber-only episode, but between the clips of Matt doing his Foster Brooks impression and Alex being insightful and entertaining, we opened it up to all. You’re welcome. Now go subscribe so we can get Welch into a fancy Malibu rehab. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

So our podcasting platform just launched an AI feature that scans your recording and automatically generates “show notes.” We gave it it try. These are the results, with a few important corrections.“The conversation begins with some light banter and discussion about rap music. [Human ed note: This was before we started, so it isn’t included in the episode, but it did feature Kmele speculating about John Lennon shooting Bob Dylan]. They then transition to talking about the upcoming presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. They discuss the format of the debate and their expectations for how each candidate will perform. They also touch on the COVID-19 pandemic and the conflicting information about masks and vaccines. The conversation ends with a humorous discussion about Matt Welch being a 'MAGA' supporter. [Human ed note: Humorous??] The conversation then shifts to the recent primary race between Jamaal Bowman and Eliot Engel, [sic] with a focus on the role of AIPAC and the effectiveness of negative ads. The hosts also criticize the performance and tactics of certain politicians in the 'squad'. Finally, they mention the fire alarm incident and the overall lack of support for Bowman in his district. [Human ed note: Here, the AI produced 800 words about our Julian Assange conversation]. The hosts end the conversation with some lighthearted banter about upcoming episodes. [Human ed note: Incorrect. We talked about Crocodile Dundee being a cokehead who created the crack epidemic] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comEvery second Sunday of the month, the lads fire up Zoom and do a (mostly) Q&A show for subscribers only. It’s very fun, often a bit messy and chaotic, and full of listeners expressing love, disbelief, dismay, and often delivering Strom Thurmond- like filibusters. So for you subscribers who couldn’t make it on June 9, we revive the Zoom recording just to…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Imagine if Bill Cosby was an Islamophobic dog* Cringefest in the Bronx* Jamal and AOC * Sleeve rolled up, stool in hand, unemployment on the horizon* AIPAC is everywhere!* Violent psycho extremists for peace* The war won’t end until Jake Tapper’s kids are properly harassed* Shift back to the center, Dems* Laying hands on homeless people* Homeopathy is fake, btw * Geniuses …

After a very brief hiatus—apologies, but all is explained in the first five minutes of this episode—the lads are back. And there will be a flood of new content in the coming days, to make up for our testicular tardiness (also explained in the first five minutes of this episode). Also note: this episode was plagued by technical difficulties, but we hope, through the magic of editing, that you won’t notice.* The procedure * The politicization of late night continues apace* This is our territory* Alt weeklies that weren’t alt * Trump’s long “All In” interview* Could the debate move voters?* Don’t pretend to be working class* Louisiana and the Ten Commandments * Actually, covet your neighbors wife* Tell us about your culture: “Diet Coke and Starbucks and Dunkin’s”* Who did MM see at dinner?* Happy Juneteenth? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

* Getting Drudged* Getting the spray* This new color isn’t working* Olivia amongst the Hamasniks in Union Square* Tearing up notebooks, airhorns in the ear…stuck in the middle of a protest * Hey hey ho ho shitty chants have got to go* Did any journalists reach out?* What if this was a Trump rally?* Legally blonde* You’ll be in a Trump camp * “Racial conspiracy theories” * I mean, you gotta understand where they’re coming from… This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

* Some unpopular opinions * Raise your hand if you’ve ever lied to the government* Fetterman and Real Time* Are you *addicted* to Marijuana???* Who are the victims here?* Excessive sentencing is bad, even for bad people * Victims: Alex Jones? Hunter Biden? DJT???* Biden is totally fine and thinking otherwise is the end of democracy* Joe Scarborough is the worst * Let’s all pretend that everything is normal, ok?* Scarborough casually defames two journalists* Washington Post loses a trillion dollars, hires more whites * The WNBA reality show * I knew James Baldwin. Baldwin was a friend of mine. And you, Ibram, are no James Baldwin This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* No matter what it is or who commenced it…* MAGA Hawaii* Inflatable gallows * The eye of the horrible Stormy* It’s a bird! It’s a Qassam! No…it’s the Blonde Zionist!* Dronez: The Hunt for El Chigon * Listener email: Working class kid makes good. Will his kids go soft?* Your kids want to be rich* Back in my day…..* Bad IRA comparisons from supposedly smart people* Jerry Sein…

A double-album worth of great content this week. Start off with Moynihan talking to Matt and Kmele about his Free Press piece charting the collapse of Vice and him forthcoming piece charting the collapse of the Black Panther Party. Then the lads chat about the weirdness of the New York Trump trial, Israel in Rafah, and lots more. And stick around for Kmele’s conversation with the Lennon-McCartney, the Lieber and Stoller of podcasts, Matt Boll and Andy Mills, the duo who brought you The Witch Trials of JK Rowling, among other modern audio classics. They’re back with a new series called Reflector, a “show about the strange experience of being human.” We don’t know *exactly* what that means, but we absolutely guarantee that it will be a work of unparalleled brilliance. Check out episode one here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* The LP snoozer* Remembering that lady who said that gross thing about kids* You will never play in the NBA, baby* Zone of Interest redux, briefly* The Ann Landers portion begins * Should I stop being an academic and become a cop who lurks on dating apps?* The anti-Semitic date* I can’t be brave and call bullshit. So what do I do?* Well, it all depends * How to talk about…

* The most serious race controversy of 2024: that lady basketball player* “I mean, I've been a huge fan of Blackpink for years and I've never heard a single one of their songs.:* Snek and the Supreme Court * Everyone's wife is Ginny Thoma* The defense rests* Local news and crappy journalists * In defense of…Marilyn Mosby? * Israel and the ICC* Enter Sibarium: the UCLA Medical School controversy This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

* At a party * At Fenway * Losers (which is apparently already a show)* Jake, Dana, Donald, and Joe* Cui bono? * How Joe wins* How Donald wins* The NY trial continues…* Mitt Romney would pardon DT* “Attacked our legal system”* The new Noem* Post-Donald, where does the party go?* How goes it in Ukraine? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Italian bootlegs * Warm Fanta * Drinking on your European vacation * The Comfort of Strangers * Pre-internet travel* Jake Siegel: a moderate dissent…and Fifth reaction* Probability and the feminist bank teller* What happens when people call you bad names in public* 9 times out of 10, they were rapping* Awful media critics * What would CH do?* Steve Albini* “And the songs that…

So many of you have written us demanding the return of Jacob Siegel that when word got to us that he was back in New York, we hunted him down and demanded that he submit to a *third* appearance on The Fifth. We discovered that Comrade Siegel, a gravelly voiced veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq and senior writer at Tablet, is hard at work on a book, an expansion of his already expansive essay “A Guide to Understanding the Hoax of the Century.” So we sat back in our chairs, asked a few questions, and basically handed the mic to Jake for an extended peroration on the Disinformation Industrial Complex, Trump’s foreign policy, why we should end American aid to Israel, and whether or not his unified theory of censorship counts as a “conspiracy theory.” We assume this one will provoke lots of listener mail. So agree or disagree, send it over and perhaps we’ll do a special “Responding to Jake” episode over at Substack. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Shogun erasure * Revolutionary accents * A debate on Israel and a subsequent anti-Moynihan calumny* Alas, anti-Semitism is common in certain parts of the world* Pointing this out seems pretty obvious * The WAV file * My melanated baby * Teaching kids versus raising kids * Indoctrinating someone else’s kids into your way of thinking is some serious cult shit * Torturing …

* Children of the revolution* No journalists allowed!* The Italian Gadsden flag* Oh no, Matt Welch…no, no, no* In defense of …Al Sharpton?* Dead soul singers * The great Baby Huey * Forgiving student debt is insane * College is dumb but it makes economic sense…for now * The New York Times and NPR* Jihad rehab * Twitter welcomes another sexless fascist This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* The Banana genocide * Professor, professor…let’s stick to the facts * A conspiracy documentary full of cranks and losers * 60 journalism professors find a story they cannot countenance * Listeners on ADHD and Adderall* RFK in CA* Nodding along with Lemon* How to talk to an Auschwitz survivor * The trickiness of memory * Two sets of rules * Peaceful protesters get a call fr…

A two-for-one offering from The Fifth: first, the lads discuss the ongoing student stupidities, free speech and protest, Kmele at TED, and how your views are probably pretty normal (ed. note: considering the full-court coverage of the Columbia intifada, it’s sort of surprising that no one is referencing this terrible 1970 film, written by Ad-Roc’s dad). And then, some bonus content with Reason’s C.J. Ciaramella, who joins to discuss the government war on Adderall, his own ADHD diagnosis, and why it took him two months to get his prescription filled. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Swedish breakdown * Columbia breakdown* The continued rise of American extremism* The politics of “genocide”* The politics of propaganda * Chicago expectations* A newborn in the Fifdom * Our Batya episode* Trusting anti-trust?* The NPR excel spreadsheet * Books on McCarthy * Three best presidents?* The Watergate conspiracy is at least fun to believe

You asked, we delivered. Our pal Batya Ungar-Sargon enters the octagon to (politely!) fight the Globalist Fifth on trade, Trump, robots, unions, automation, and a bunch of other stuff. But we also agree on lots of other things! Hear Batya talk about her wild Israel debate on Zerohedge, how her last book foresaw the NPR madness, and why perverse incentives have created a boring media echo chamber. Thanks for listening! Love, Oskar and Raoul This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

* Ozempic Joe* The Juice has expired * Revisiting the “Trial of the Century”* The double murderer who “abandoned his race”* In defense of Marcia Clark* Dementia dads* Matt Lauer emerges * Nutty MTG, drunky Boebert* Arizona abortions* Operation Bubble Wrap* Poor guy in a ski mask shoots at cops* Group condemnations and the “IDW” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Kid rapping * Saturday Night Fever is dark, dark movie * Girl dadding* Anti-communist manifestos* On Andrew and Israel * Big bombs in Iraq: not so fast, Andrew!* The normalization of extremism * Don’t be Paul Robeson * What it means to be “anti-war’* Dehamasification* A bachelor party in NY * And much more!

Third time’s even more charming! Andrew “Cheech” Sullivan is back, puffing away and ruminating on Israel, Iraq, conservatives, the trans movement, loud music from bluetooth speakers, the awfulness of Trump (who won’t be a dictator, btw), the resilience of American democracy, the resounding victories of the gay rights movement, and the general boringness of identity. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comLast month’s “Second Sunday” broadcast was fun, boozy, and…almost lost. We won’t point any fingers—though they might be jabbed in the direction of a certain someone during the recording—but through a Peter Jackson-like audio excavation, it was saved. Was that a good thing? Errr…who knows. And so, with a few nips and tucks, here she is! And we’ll be back…

The title says it all. The three lads were together, in the same studio, for the second time in as many months. And it’s possible that the start of this particular episode was, for whatever reason, a bit chaotic. But as we settle in with our friend novelist and journalist Kat Rosenfield, we ultimately managed to discuss a few things like…* Kat’s cancellation story* Her great New York mag piece from 2017* Wait, what is sex trafficking?* Did Kat steal a sled from a kid? Or is that kid a filthy liar?* Revisiting Christine Blasey Ford* Firing or cancelling?* The sacking of Rona Romney McDaniel…Romney* The Trump bible* Kat is meh on Cormac McCarthy* And much, much more This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

* Note to Ben Shapiro: not sure Candace Owens is a big fan of the Jews* A sick little girl needs Bruins v. Rangers tickets. I mean…sort of. She recently had Covid…* When life gives you Lemon, fire him because he’s a terrible interviewer* How not to do an interview* Depression and ketamine* The Jamaican national anthem * The chocolate balls of Sweden (again) * Remembering Milo * A friend emails about Trump and democracy* Guys, pay attention to the actual bad stuff Trump has said * A wager on Biden’s path forward This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Norm the Nosy Neighbor* A terrible coinage* Did Moynihan kick off this idiocy? Probably!* Why did we “amplify” a popular internet documentary that we didn’t like?* We should have disliked the thing we already disliked even more* Getting clicks is always more important than adhering to the unwritten colleague code* The only was to redeem for insufficient dislike of…

* Too much toilet paper* A subway shooting in Brooklyn* BTW, dude isn’t dead* Mike Tyson might kill that YouTube guy with the dumb earrings* On banning Tik Tok * Texans have no porn* Who will win the Russian elections????* Anti-Italian cable descramblers and freaky phones* Malaysian monitors Russian election from basement apartment in Malaysia* That’s not what democracy looks like* A Fani update* Repent for not disliking it enough This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

* How the Fifth Column helped destroy Josh’s public radio career* People who started on “our side” but went around the bend…* Consistency, people * The shrinking of acceptable American opinion* Sure, we all have our own biases…but…* Echo chambers and media fragmentation * Right wing “cancel culture”* Florida cancels DEI departments. Good or bad?* MSNBC panel: “Immigrants in Virginia? LOL!”* “And btw, crime isn’t real”The Uncomfortable Conversations Substack (and new YouTube channel) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Birthdays was the worst days, now Coen drinks champagne when he’s thirstay* Stolen packages * 9-0…but not really* Disaster for democracy!* We’re worried about Keith Olbermann* Disastrous polls for Ol’ Joe* The RAGE and the pride* As always, Trump is raising money* Keith is crying piss* A bizarro time machine * Some dating advice for (MAGA?) Mary

* The worst Scouse accent ever* Blackfishing * Trump and Tish* Lawyers and lawfare* A lunatic DEI artifact from…that company* Congress’s Venceremos Brigade* The immigrant song* The lads disagree…* With burning concern* Fetterman, Mitch, Biden, Tucker again* Matt Remke getting worked* And so much more! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Back to New York * Subways and free markets* Milei pisses on mercantilism, MAGA types don’t notice* The Foxconn con * The rise and fall of Vice* No one talks about the content…they should * Funny, QAnon all the time doesn’t make money * Shane Gillis om SNL* Nora Dunn and Dice* The people will always decide* A very specific digression on Kansas City. Sorry. * Revisiting that …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comMatt calls in from a murder motel in Southern California that doesn’t really have wifi. He saves a few bucks. Kmele and Moynihan do the heavy lift. Everybody wins. A few topics discussed:* Houthi bodegas* Industrial policy schizophrenia* Will Kmele join the “back to Africa” movement?* Ujamma and Nyerere’s stash * The Fighting Sullivans (and no, the youngest wasn’…

* The Fani Willis train wreck* Daddy and the sacks of cash * $9,999* Russian McDonalds is so good that Tucker doesn’t care about freedom of the press* The political pilgrim* The murder of Alexei Navalny* A wave of whataboutism* Are your 19 year old daughters about to be drafted to fight in Gaza?* Time to retreat from the world?* OpenAI videos are sort of terrifying* Free Rachel Dolezal Kwame Nkrumah This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comKmele gets an Apple Vision Thing because of he course he does. And he wears it the whole episode because of course he does. It’s a racist product, btw. And Bobby Jr’s Super Bowl ad was good. And Matt likes Usher, it seems. And certain conservatives like visiting and praising dirtbag dictatorships. And in case you hadn’t noticed, Joe Biden thinks it’s 19…

We’re back with two episodes smashed into one! So if you have a spare two hours… First up, our friend Coleman Hughes returns for a one-on-one conversation with Kmele about his brand-new book The End of Race Politics, which you should buy immediately. Also: Coleman was on Bill Maher’s show on Friday, most of which is available on YouTube.After an hour with Coleman, the full team is back for a few very uncomfortable conversations about a few very uncomfortable topics. Just listen and you’ll understand…The Fifth Column (A Podcast) is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Preferably paid, but…well take either…. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comA rebroadcast of Sunday’s live Zoom, available only to subscribers, of course. And this particular live event was only available to Never Fly Coach-tier subscribers. So you know what that means: If you’re not subscribed, maybe it’s time to pony up? And if you’re already a subscriber…remember that there are different tiers and that we can, in fact, quite…

* The point of a dagger * The Messenger of death* The billionaire model * WE NEED SOME QUICK BITES* The murder of James O’Keefe* Horrible people, horrible ideas, great writing* Requisite 2024 talk* In (soft of) defense of Jon Stewart* Cori Bush is the Whitney Houston of Congress* LD on Simmons pod* Jamaal Bowmen is the Philip Larkin of 9/11 (hmmmmmm)* Yay for Aaron!* And so much more! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* A black man on his toes* MJ at the Apollo * A “Compassionate” Traitor* Ron Radosh’s review of the doc * An entire life of lies* And a list of actual commies in the government (Note from MM: When I say “married to Ethel Rosenberg, * A shitty copy of Mission to Moscow* Listeners and Redditors: you’re wrong about Trump and democracy* The man vs. the movement / MAGA vs. po…

Oh dear. Watching the New Hampshire returns, the lads do a spot-on impression of the good old, liquor-soaked days of 2016 Fifth Column and get pretty deep in their cups…so yeah, sorry about this one. * Trump wins* Cutting from Trump’s dumb speech* 20 percent for Dean Phillips* This is, in fact, democracy* No one says anything on cable news* The speeches * The overstatement machine * Moralism doesn’t work * A brave defense of Iran-backed Islamism* A sort of drunken rant about hipster Houthis* The New York Times on haaaazaaaaaa* It all falls apart…something about Tipper Gore, Jello Biafra, and covering every election but the U.S. one This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Michael Winslow RIP?* Joe Rogan would tear Kmele in half* The cockfighting story that never was * Some pretty pathetic fight stories * That insane UK piano player video* HHHHHHAMAAAAAAZZZ* Chris on Kmele’s pejorative for the Irish* The end of Ron* It was always “inevitable”* Back to the basement* Voters and immigration: not that complicated* You want European politics?* Trump’…

* This time, we’re not going to hold back* Destroying from the ladies tees* I love with Doug* More media implosions* ¯\_(ツ)_/¯* Democracy is over when my irrelevant newspaper folds* Passover is too Jewish* The uniqueness of the Holocaust* Opinion mongers making calls about newsworthiness * This era as history* Whatchutalkinabout Fani Willis* Ross Douthat and “Neocon Nikki” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comIn a rebroadcast of our latest Second Sunday, Tina Nguyen joins the lads again to discuss Substack, Andrew Yang, Kmele fighting another podcast host, James Bond, Tucker Carlson, Vietnamese immigrants, militias, and…the great Tom Vu. In case you’re unfamiliar with America’s greatest Vietnamese import, some of his greatest hits.

* The year of the ladies* They’re pro-Houthi* They’re Weebs * The MAGA Diaries * The diaspora politics of the Vietnamese* MAGA Straussianism * Tina and Tucker* Tina and the militias* Kmele and the Houthis* It’s always World War Three* Just say they went too far…* NYT on Russia bombing hospitals * Some Iowa thoughts* Some brief thoughts on the fake Substack Nazi controversy This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* Matt, swallowed by Los Alamos* Jon Ronson’s new pod* A terrible trailer, a pretentious movie* Ringo Seal!!! Trump is “being persecuted”* Head injuries that help* Listen to that podcast, even if it’s terrible* A hot plagiarist* Substack and Nazis* Chomsky and Jeffery* Kmele’s new favorite football player* And so much more!

Should we even bother with the normal bullet points? Because it’s mostly about Claudine Gay. And the media’s embarrassing reaction to Gay’s “duplicative phrasing” and “attribution issues.” And what this says about the rot in academia. And something about a Disney Plus show. And ladies who live in trees. And how Kmele’s ice has to be colder than Welch’s ice. And a generation of dumb intellectuals. Enjoy. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.com* The last one of the year * The French public sector * Macron and the menorah * Exploding appliances * Nick & Kanye* Nikki’s slavery gaffe * But does she have a shot?* Billionaires on the “billionaire class”* Don’t forget about RFK* Who blew up the pipeline?* Why we believe what we believe* Vivek’s “inside job”

* I resign!* (“That was a great apartment….”)* I resign!* (“That was the worst job….”)* Mansplaining the war* Too big to process* It’s like 9/11 for Americans, and also not* “You can still smell the death”* The Jericho Wall revelations* “I’m pretty sure most people who were responsible will resign”* Were judicial protests a distraction?* State fails, society rallies* A time for Diaspora choosing* Like moths to crazy* Intelligence scandal, leadership scandal* Hard out here for a two-state solutionista* Did Israel choke off Gazans’ resources?* “My heart is captive in Gaza”* “If we don’t come out of this very secure, it’s the end of Israel”* And yet … hope! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe