Are you tired of the alleged urgent matters of the day? Regular Joe and Chuck decided to take a break and bash Florida for an hour.
Teachers get to carry guns in the state that always has the crazy people news covered. Is this a good idea? Is it a shock that Florida is not the first state to adopt this policy?
In the second hour, Chuck took issue with the Porkins show from earlier in the day. Is Pearse falling in line with others when it comes to exhaustion on the Trump Reality show? Is everyone being browbeaten into submission so that apathy is their only defense against the onslaught of stupidity from the 45th POTUS?
This week Kevin Gosztola joined me to discuss the Trump-Ukraine whistleblower case and the possibility of a presidential impeachment. Kevin started by laying out what we know about the CIA whistleblower in question and what is in his complaint. Kevin described how the whistleblower went through the proper channels, and how this was handled by the Director of National Intelligence. We also discussed the allegations in the complaint and discussed why government employees blow the whistle in the first place. We argued that people who blow the whistle tend to believe very strongly in the construct of government and feel strongly about corruption. We also touched on how this whistleblower, as an employee of the CIA, may have viewed this conversation as an affront to the CIA’s stated goals in Ukraine. Kevin and I also looked at some of the secondary figures named in the complaint like Kurt Volker whose connections to Raytheon and NATO might have more to do with this story than meets the eye. We also discussed the possibility of impeachment and the political nature of impeachment and how this could backfire for the Democrats in the future.
This month Chuck Ochelli and I finally do our review of South Park Season 22, and touch on the start of Season 23. We talked about the frankly disappointing previous season and why we thought it missed the mark. We broke down every episode and discussed the major themes. Later we talked about the premier of the latest season. We finished off the episode by looking at several other current cartoons which we are also following including, Archer, Rick and Morty, and BoJack Horseman.
Robbie Martin brings Pearse Redmond onto the show to discuss the shocking announcement from house speaker Nancy Pelosi that they are officially opening an impeachment inquiry into President Trump over a situation involving allegations of a quid pro quo phone-call exchange between him and the Ukrainian president.
This week Robbie Martin joined me for the first installment in our new monthly series which looks at the Qanon conspiracy theory and its impact on society at large. We started by discussing the fact that Q has not posted anything since August 1st (due to the 8chan’s removal). Robbie talked about how the Qanon community has handled the absence of “Q drops.” This has mainly taken the form of Q followers believing that Trump’s tweets are now coded messages from Q. We then looked at how Trump himself has become an active participant in the conspiracy theory. Robbie talked about how unprecedented it is to have a sitting president seeding a conspiracy theory, and simultaneously being viewed as the hero in the narrative. Robbie also discussed the historical roots of the Qanon theory and its connections to PizzaGate. He talked about how Qanon evolved out of PizzaGate and the possible role that people like Erik Prince and Steve Pieczenik have played in promoting it. We finished off by looking at how the Qanon theory has influenced the public’s understanding of the recent scandal involving Trump, Biden, and Ukraine.
In the second hour I open the phone lines. Jon Gold called in and gave us an update on the ongoing 9/11 lawsuit against Saudi Arabia. We talked about Barr’s decision to release the name of the high ranking Saudi official who was overseeing the two San Diego hijackers. Later, I talked about the allegations that Iran was behind the recent attack on two Saudi oil facilities. I laid out my reasons for why the US was so quick to shift blame away from the Houthis. I also explored the idea that Iran was behind the attack.
This week Jon Atack and Sam Atack joined me to discuss their new videos series Think Like a Cult Leader. Jon and Sam described how their criteria for being a “successful cult leader” matches up with so many people currently in positions of power today. We also talked about Sam’s prank creation his own cult “The Unification Church of Saminanity” and how he was able to persuade 50 people to join. We then discussed the issue of impulsivity among cult leaders and how this affects their actions. We talked about how this behavior, and the trend of extreme boredom. We closed out the first hour by focusing on how this might influence future generations and cult groups alike.
In the second hour, we discussed the destructive influence of the Christian fundamentalist group “The Family” and their late leader David Coe. We talked about how the group developed a far-reaching influence in America and abroad. We finished off the hour by talking about the political situation in Xinjiang. We talked about the repression of Uighur’s and the use of re-education camps by the Chinese government. Jon and I discussed the cult-like devotion among the political left when discussing China. We also talked about the real threat of extremist groups like the East Turkestan Islamic Movement and how the Chinese government exploiting them.
This week JP Sottile joined me for the first hour to discuss the climate catastrophe. We started out by discussing how many people, including myself, have long ignored this issue. We talked about how daunting and overwhelming the crisis is, and how this has led many to feel as though they can’t do anything to make a tangible change. We talked about Sottile’s recent op-ed in Truthout.org which links climate change to the spread of empire. JP talked about the link between US imperialism, the growth of the oil industry, and the damage is has wrought on the environment. We touched on how the Pentagon outwardly acknowledges climate change but continues to exacerbate the underlying problems. We illustrated these points in a discussion on the melting Arctic and the scramble to control its oil. Closing out the first hour, JP touched on the dangers of oil-related products such as plastic.
In the second hour, Jon Gold joined me to discuss some of the latest developments in the unending quest for truth and accountability with 9/11. We started off the the news that Attorney General William Barr has until Friday to decide to release the name of the high ranking Saudi official who oversaw the handling of 9/11 hijackers Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi. Jon talked about how listeners can get involved in pushing Barr to release the name. Later we talked about a U.S. federal judge ordering the FBI to release documents related to a probe of the the al-Hijji family in Sarasota, Florida, and its “many connections” to the hijackers including Mohammaed Atta. We finished the conversation by talking about the military trial of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and four others, which is set for January 2021 at Guantanamo Bay.
Regular Joe stands in for Michael Swanson. So we did another Regular Guy News Hour. Harry Potter, Playboy, and the Chosen savior of the ignorant are all covered in the first hour.
In the last few minutes of the first half of this podcast, you might have to hear about sex, drugs, and rocks rolling in people’s heads. The second hour starts with Hurricanes and ends with Cartoons and Dark Crystals. No, I am not high, but the bug bomb really screwed up my throat and eyes.
Pearse Redmond joined in the second hour to remix the news and talk Starship Trump, Clowns, and Cartoons.
This week @Gumby4Christ joined me to discuss Jeffrey Epstein. We focused primarily on the media’s handling of the scandal, and the role they continue to play in covering up the scope of the scandal. Gumby and I talk about the strange behavior of the NY Post coverage since Epstein’s death. Gumby discussed the now infamous photo of Ghislane Maxwell at In-N-Out Burger. He talked about why the Post ran such a dubious photo and how this confused the public. Later we explored how many media outlets and journalists seem to be re-writing their own histories covering Epstein. We looked at one NPR segment that garnered a lot of attention. Gumby and I discussed NPR’s reliance on journalist John Connolly and how that raises serious red flags. We talked about the contradictory story that Connolly seems to spinning regarding Vicky Ward, Graydon Carter, and Epstein.
In the second hour we continued our look into the media and their handling of the Epstein saga. We looked at the NYT’s coverage over the years starting with Landon Thomas Jr. and his almost glowing profiles. We also touched on a recent NYT “The Daily” podcast which featured Maria and Annie Farmer. We looked at how Les Wexner was seemingly erased from Farmer’s story. We round out the episode by looking at the curious case of NY Post reporter Larry Celona, his connections to Stanley Kubrick, and how this factors into the conspiracy culture’s theories on Epstein. We closed out by talking about Steve Bannon and his insertion into the Hong Kong Protests.
