12:00 PM (Noon) Pacific Time: Thursdays
Host Doug Henwood covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Ben Burgis, author of a new book on Christopher Hitchens, on how he still matters and why. And Patrick Blanchfield, author of this article, on how Freud’s concept of the death drive explains so much.
Political scientist Clyde Barrow explains how Texas, a complex, diverse, urbanized state, is run by a bunch of white guys who think they’re cowboys (rebroadcast of a September interview). And Jesse Eisinger of ProPublica explains why very rich people pay almost nothing in taxes.
On this fund-drive special, Sam Adler-Bell, author of this article from the New Republic, joins Behind the News to discuss the ‘New Right,’ a youthful crop of ill-liberal counter-revolutionaries who wouldn’t mind junking democracy and replacing it with a theocracy. photo: Pixabay
Rupa Marya and Raj Patel discuss their book Inflamed, on the social and ecological causes of disease. Plus a generous helping of fundraising.
Two election observers from the Progressive International, Matt Kierkegaard and David Adler, report on Honduras and Chile, which have been choosing new presidents. And Sarah Lustbader, a public defender in NYC, explores why trials (like Kyle Rittenhouse’s) can’t bear the political weight we expect of them. Photo credit: Nick Youngson on Wikimedia
Sociologist Alex Vitale, just out with a second edition of The End of Policing, on how we can replace cops with more humane substitutes. And economist Barry Eichengreen, co-author of In Defense on Public Debt, talks about the history and purpose of government borrowing.
Environmental journalist Tina Gerhardt reviews the accomplishments, or lack thereof, at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgo. And renegade ex-Republican Mike Lofgren (author of this article) explains why Steve Bannon’s dream of deconstructing the administrative state is really bad. photo: cc-by-sa-2.0 on Wikipedia
Two perspectives on the role of schools in last week’s elections. Lisa Graves, long-time student of right wing money and influence networks, talks about their role in fomenting rage against critical race theory. And Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, a historian who’s studied fights around schools, looks at what’s behind parental anger. photo: Element5 Digital via Unsplash
Sheryll Cashin, author of White Space, Black Hood, on the origins, mechanisms, and effects of residential segregation, mostly by race but also by class. And economists Peter Victor and Robert Pollin debate the virtues of “degrowth” in avoiding climate catastrophe.
Urbanist Mona Fawaz of the American University of Beirut talks about Lebanon’s political and economic crises. And cultural critic Mark Dery explores the allure of conspiracy theories, using former media critic Mark Crispin Miller as a case study. photo: Markus Winkler via Unsplash
