Background Briefing

Trita Parsi / Mike German / Allen Frances

The Supreme Leader Congratulates Iranians on Their “Victory” over Israel and the U.S., While the Head of the IAEA Says Fordo is “No Longer Operational”
As Trump Demonizes Democrats and Democratic Lawmakers Are Assassinated, How Long Before ICE and DHS Start Rounding up His Political Enemies?
Explaining the 60-Fold Rise in Autism, While the Quack Heading HHS, RFK Jr. Still Blames it on Vaccines


The Visionary Activist Show

The Visionary Activist Show – Democracy is calling

Democracy is calling….Trickster recruiting! Caroline welcomes fellow Libra Dragon astrologer, pragmatic mystic Rachel Lang, that we honor our teammate,  true Visionary Activist, Zohran Mamdani… and all the descriptive and navigational guidance available to us all….. With a Libra Sun and Taurus Rising, Rachel also weaves the astro-politico worlds — one foot in the mystical, the … Continued


Pride Month: Novelist and biographer David Leavitt discusses the career of gay mathematician Alan Turing in an interview recorded in November, 2005. Playwright Terrence McNally (1938-2020) talks about his work and its relation to gay themes in this 2004 interview. Plus: Reviews of “Co-Founders” at ACT Strand Theatre and “Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean” at ThaetreWorks Mountain View. Hosted by Richard Wolinsky.


The U.S. Supreme Court upheld Tennessee’s ban on pediatric gender affirming health care with a decision that lowered the bar for establishing its constitutionality and that imperils the rights of young trans patients in the 20 other states with similar laws — all despite the opposition of every major U.S. medical association. Brad Sears, Distinguished Senior Scholar of the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, unpacks the ruling (interviewed by David Hunt).


This week’s conversation is about curiosity in translation and interpretation. Not just the literal, “how do you say this thing in that language?” but how do we use our curiosity to communicate our ideas effectively, to investigate what’s really being said when we’re quite literally not speaking one another’s language. Luckily, there are people like … Continued


Guest: Stephen Greenblatt is the John Cogan University Professor of the Humanities at Harvard University.  His numerous books include The Swerve: How the World Became Modern, which won a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award. His latest is Second Chances: Shakespeare and Freud co authored with Adam Phillips.  He is also the general editor of The Norton Shakespeare.


Law & Disorder

Victory for Zohran Mamdani w/ John Nichols and Haiti Action w/ Pierre Labossiere

We speak with The Nation’s John Nichols about the stunning victory of New York City mayoral candidate and Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani. John is the National Affairs correspondent for The Nation and associate editor of The Capital Times. His latest article for The Nation is called “Zohran Mamdani Proves that Power Belongs to the People.” … Continued