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.
It’s been called history’s most important political document and it’s the second best-selling book in the world after the Bible. It’s The Communist Manifesto, written by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, and it’s been rediscovered in recent years by Wall Street Bankers and radical activists alike. Phil Gasper, author of an annotated new version, talks … Continued
John Vaillant talks about his book "The Golden Spruce: A True Story of Myth, Madness, and Greed," which both recounts an extraordinary set of events in the wilds of British Columbia and tells the larger story of what humans have done to the world’s forests, and to the environment more generally.
Has the biblical myth of the promised land influenced past and present notions of progress, technology, and the market? Activist and scholar David Noble thinks it has, to our great detriment. In his book "Beyond the Promised Land: The Movement and the Myth," Noble explains the mythological foundations of the Western imagination, and why need … Continued
Can mushrooms save the world? That’s what mycologist Paul Stamets argues in a speech given at the San Francisco Green Festival, in which he highlights the ability of mushrooms to protect our health and remove toxic pollutants from the environment.
The new documentary "Class Dismissed: How Television Frames the Working Class," which features Barbara Ehrenreich, Robin DG Kelley, Pepi Leistyna and others, shines a spotlight on class in America.
Against the Grain will feature Hamza Yusuf, a prominent Muslim thinker based at the Zaytuna Institute in Hayward, California, spoke at a recent event entitled "Does God Love War? The Fine Line Between Faith and Fanaticism." The event also featured Chris Hedges, author of "War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning."
In the documentary "Money Talks: Profits Before Patient Safety" Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau, former sales representative for Bristol-Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson, looks at the ways pharmaceuticals companies push drugs to doctors, influence medical research, and put the health of all of us at risk.
A discussion of the legacy of California’s Proposition 13 for traffic law and the state’s tax base, public services, and education. With attorney Sherry Gendelman and Lenny Goldberg of the California Tax Reform Association.
Environmentalists often emphasize statistics, causal relationships, and policy trends. Laurie Lawlor likes to experience things firsthand. Her careful year-round observations of a wetland on her property are recorded in This Tender Place. Reef Check’s Craig Shuman discusses threats to coral and temperate reefs.
Endemic corruption and cronyism in the awarding of reconstruction contracts to US firms in Iraq has gotten a fair amount of coverage. Yet similar misdeeds in Afghanistan are less well known. Afghan American investigative journalist Fariba Nawa and CorpWatch’s Pratap Chatterjee discuss a new report that sheds light on profiteering in Afghanistan.
