12:00 PM Pacific Time: Mondays - Wednesdays
Acclaimed program of ideas, in-depth analysis, and commentary on a variety of matters—political, economic, social, and cultural—important to progressive and radical thinking and activism. Against the Grain is co-produced and co-hosted by Sasha Lilley and C. S. Soong.
Civil rights, women’s liberation, the labor movement, battles over the environment: those struggles were fought and won by millions of people, inspired by the ideas of iconoclasts and visionaries. And KPFA and Pacifica Radio were around to capture and record those struggles and the ideas that nurtured them. We’ll feature some highlights from that inspiring … Continued
Alan Watts, the author, lecturer, and interpreter of Eastern thought, gave a talk called “Way Beyond the West.”
The history of the 20th century is the history of empire. But did it have to be? We’ll look at various episodes in U.S. war-making, through the lens of award-winning director Oliver Stone, from World War One to World War Two and the development of the atomic bomb, to Vietnam and the proxy wars of … Continued
Philip Freeman’s translation of Cicero’s classic book on aging has the subtitle “Ancient Wisdom for the Second Half of Life.”
Cheap nature, cheap money, cheap work, cheap care, cheap food, cheap energy, and cheap lives. According to Raj Patel, those seven things are necessary for the survival of capitalism. And, he argues, they are running out. He discusses how the food system illustrates the need for those inputs and why capitalism’s days are numbered.
Young Muslim and Arab Americans are being targeted by FBI surveillance, and this, says Sunaina Maira, colors the way they think and act. Maira describes who and what’s being monitored and why; the range of emotions surveillance generates; and the ways in which Muslim Americans are pushing back against post-9/11 regimes of surveillance and repression. … Continued
From charter schools to enterprises like Teach for America — profiteering off of public education has surged, supported by both Democrats and Republicans. But Noliwe Rooks argues that the plundering of taxpayer-funded education has a long history, going back to the era after Reconstruction. Rooks discusses that history — and whether we’re now seeing the … Continued
Authoritarianism, wrote Erich Fromm, is not just about dominating and controlling others; it’s also about subordinating oneself to a “great” person, institution, or idea. In the eyes of John Elmore, traditional, compulsory mass schooling in the U.S. fosters the development of authoritarian personality characteristics in young people who, later in life, may enable, or actively … Continued
Lake Superior is the world’s largest lake. Containing twelve percent of the world’s fresh water, its fate is our fate. Environmental historian Nancy Langston discusses the lessons to be drawn from the ecological devastation, recovery, and renewed threats to Lake Superior. Resources: Nancy Langston, Sustaining Lake Superior: An Extraordinary Lake in a Changing World Yale … Continued
Americans don’t like to be taxed, we’re told — after all, who would willingly part with their hard earned money? But according to Vanessa Williamson that assumption is largely incorrect. She has studied attitudes toward paying taxes – and argues that our misperceptions have deleterious consequences, including discounting the contributions of low income people. She … Continued
