Unf*cking The Republic

Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

Book Love

Abdul El-Sayed + Micah Johnson: Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide

Top 5

Conspirituality

The Dream

Last Podcast on the Left

Intercepted

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Trump and Hegseth (Professor Dunning & Corporal Kruger).

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 17:46:40 +0000

Leaders far smarter and more capable than Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth have started foreign wars that turned to quagmires. So in this regard they are not special. What’s different this time around is that incompetence prevails in every corner of this administration and the economic levers that are usually pulled to mitigate the domestic economic impact are no longer available to us. In every way, this administration is wholly unfit to lead the nation and certainly incapable of prosecuting a war.

Resources

The Chris Hedges Report: Will There be a Ground Invasion of Iran? (w/ Col. Larry Wilkerson)

UNFTR Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Video: Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump Are Not Ready for War

Essay: Trump and Hegseth.

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No King.

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 19:01:27 +0000

The No Kings rallies fanned out across the United States in protest of Donald Trump’s increasingly dangerous, erratic and autocratic regime. Cuba remains in darkness, the war in Iran has already turned into a quagmire, the economy is cratering and Americans are feeling powerless in the face of Trump’s rule. In this episode Max ruminates on the liberation of “America” from a different era as told by the life and times of Simon Bolívar, one of the great military commanders and political leaders of the post-Enlightenment era. His was truly a revolution of “no kings.” In Bolívar’s approach we can learn about combating despotism.

UNFTR Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Video: Trump will leave | It's Trumpism we're now fighting

Essay: No King.

Book Love

Marie Arana: Bolívar: American Liberator

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Omnibus (4-3-26).

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 22:34:53 +0000

Max and 99 are back from vacation and kicking off their Spring Fund, Friend and Hell Raiser. They hit headlines on Olympic testing, Israel's Lebanon plans, and ChatGPT in cars, then tackle listener emails on U.S. solvency narratives and economic warning signs. They rank their Top 5 local issues, and they close with some lighthearted beyond the bullshit.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:08

Housekeeping: 00:04:06

Headlines: 00:13:03

Emails: 00:28:23

Top 5: 00:49:28

Beyond the Bullshit: 01:14:07

Memberships: 01:21:00

Outro: 01:21:38

Resources

CFR: Israel Announces Plan to Occupy Southern Lebanon

Mother Jones: The Ugly History Behind the Olympics’ New Gender Test

9To5Mac: ChatGPT app launches for CarPlay on iOS 26.4

Bloomberg: Virgin Galactic Is Booking Space Trips at $750,000 Apiece

Yahoo Finance: The Treasury just declared the U.S. insolvent. The media missed it

David Korowicz: Trade Off: Financial system supply-chain cross contagion: a study in global systemic collapse

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

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Housing in America: Property Is Theft.

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 19:58:48 +0000

The United States is in a full-blown housing crisis — and Congress just passed the most significant bipartisan housing legislation in a generation: The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act cleared the Senate 89-10, co-sponsored by Elizabeth Warren and Tim Scott. So why won’t it fix the problem? In this episode, we break down exactly what the bill does, what it deliberately leaves out, and why the structural forces driving housing unaffordability in America—rising mortgage rates, institutional investors, zoning failures, generational wealth inequality, and decades of racial exclusion—are largely untouched by any legislation currently on the table. From the redlining of Levittown and Stuyvesant Town to the 2008 financial crisis and the asset inflation chasm it created, we trace how homeownership became both the engine of the American Dream and the mechanism of its denial. We also look at what actually works, like how Vienna’s social housing model has kept half a city affordably housed for over a century, and ask the question no one in Washington wants to answer: short of a depression, what does it actually take to make housing affordable again?

Resources

National Mortgage Professional: What’s The Rookie Home Buying Age? Not 40, New Analysis Shows

HUD: The 2024 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress

National Low Income Housing Coalition

Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies: The State of the Nation's Housing 2025

Congress: H.R.6644 - 119th Congress (2025-2026): 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act

The White House: Stopping Wall Street from Competing with Main Street Homebuyers

U.S. Census Bureau: Housing Vacancies and Homeownership (HVS) Q4 2025

Enterprise Community Partners: Four Key Findings from the 2025 State of the Nation's Housing Report

National Low Income Housing Coalition: The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes 2025

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development: FHA Loan Production Report June 2025

Bipartisan Policy Center: What's in the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act

NPR: Senate Passes Bipartisan Housing Bill Targeting Large Investors

National Mortgage Professional: What's the Rookie Home Buying Age? Not 40, New Analysis Shows

National Association of Realtors: 2024 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers

Gravel Institute: How Socialists Solved the Housing Crisis

Book Love

Richard Rothstein: The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America

Mehrsa Baradaran: The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap

UNFTR Resources

Episode: The Economics of Racism.

Video: The Economics of Racism.

Episode: Housing in America.

Video: Congress Just Passed a Housing Bill That Changes Nothing.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Why I’m So Mad at the Democratic Party.

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 04:00:00 +0000

Why the Democratic Party’s promise of “restoration” misses the mark; how decades of economic crises reshaped American politics, and why returning to center means chasing a target that keeps moving right. One side built a durable monument to white nationalist capitalism while the other became its world-class pit crew. The fight isn’t about competence or committee chairs. It’s about whether Democrats can offer an actual vision for the future instead of just patching up the damage Republicans leave behind.

Book Love

Kurt Andersen: Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America: A Recent History

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

Chris Hedges: Death of the Liberal Class

Naomi Klein: The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism

Mehrsa Baradaran: The Quiet Coup: Neoliberalism and the Looting of America

Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power

Nancy MacLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America

Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

Professor Thomas Piketty: Capital in the Twenty-First Century

Karl Marx: Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, Volume 1

UNFTR Resources

Video: Democrats are FAILING | Losing the Iran War | Hasan Piker Rules

Essay: Why I’m So Mad at the Democratic Party.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Omnibus (3-21-26).

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 18:28:36 +0000

Max and 99 are running hot this week. They break down catastrophic inflation data and what it means for stagflation ahead, hit headlines on animal welfare legislation and foreign policy chaos, and tackle listener emails on Democratic failures and economic warning signs. Off-topic covers toxic RFK Jr. and standout character actors. They rank their Top 5 comfort movies and close with spring training optimism. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:08

Headlines: 00:06:12

Emails: 00:19:17

Top 5: 00:36:22

Beyond the Bullshit: 00:53:23

Outro: 00:59:24

Resources

99’s Hat

ASPCA: Farm Bill Moves Forward with Mixed Results for Animals

Animal Legal Defense Fund: Petition: Stop Horses from Suffering for NYC’s Carriage Industry

Forever Wars: None of These People I Insulted Want To Die For Me in The Strait of Hormuz?

The Independent: Chelsea Handler claims she bought ‘the most toxic’ $6 million house from RFK Jr and Cheryl Hines

The Ringer: ‘The Pitt,’ as Told by Its Patients: If you think it’s hectic to watch, just imagine what it’s like to be on the operating table

UNFTR Resources

Video: Iran War, Energy Spike, and the Inflation Perfect Storm

Episode: The Art of Trumpflation.

Video: On The Record 3-16-26 (Democrats are FAILING | Losing the Iran War | Hasan Piker Rules).

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The Art of Trumpflation.

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:00:20 +0000

The February Producer Price Index (PPI) data release came in way hotter than expected, exceeding consensus expectations by nearly double. This is on top of an already hot January report, which signifies that goods and services inflation in the pipeline is very much a trend and not an isolated event. PPI typically foreshadows consumer inflation—where the public really begins to feel the pain—by about two to three months. And these numbers don’t include the impact of the war in Iran and the unbelievable spike in energy costs. Today we break down the nature of inflation shocks, why this differs from the dual oil shocks of the 1970s, but how it has already produced the same stagflationary result.

Resources

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Producer Price Index News Release summary

Trading Economics: United States Producer Price Inflation MoM

Wolf Street: Core PCE Inflation Hits 3.1%, Worst in 2 Years, in Unique Twist Blows way past CPI Inflation. Driven by Core Services

Morningstar: Inflation Set to Rise in 2026 as Tariff Costs Hit Consumers

KPMG: Headline masks lingering inflation

CNBC: $100 oil? Prolonged Hormuz closure could spark a 1970s-style energy shock

Yahoo Finance: Oil at the Edge: Markets brace for the largest supply shock in decades: Oil & Gas 360

Investopedia: Understanding Hubbert's Peak Theory and Global Oil Production

Bloomberg Law: Morgan Stanley Sees Private Credit Default Rates Reaching 8% (2)

Business Insider: Morgan Stanley says AI disruption of software will send private credit defaults surging

UNFTR Resources

Video: Iran War, Energy Spike, and the Inflation Perfect Storm

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Omnibus (3-14-26).

Sun, 15 Mar 2026 02:09:23 +0000

Max and 99 kick things off revisiting old predictions and check how they're holding up. They hit the headlines: billionaires breaking records, geopolitical conflict threatening economic stability, and monopoly concerns in the music industry. Listener emails cover politics, financial industry backdoors, and navigating complicity. They rank their Top 5 historical figures to reclaim, do some movie talk, and member shoutouts round it out. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:18

Housekeeping: 00:00:34

Headlines: 00:21:13

Emails: 00:48:54

Top 5: 01:00:23

Beyond the Bullshit: 01:19:35

Outro: 01:43:27

Resources

Acquired: Epic Systems (MyChart)

Bloomberg: Europe Rushes to Contain Price Fallout From War in Middle East

Foreign Policy: The Iran War Is Jeopardizing the Entire Global Economy

Forbes: World’s Billionaires List

The Cut: ‘My Friends Live in a Bubble. Should I Dump Them?’

NPR: Live Nation and Justice Department reach settlement in antitrust case

Reuters: Judge tells Live Nation, state AGs to negotiate potential deal

Straight White American Jesus Podcast

John Fugelsang: Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person's Guide to Taking Back the Bible from Fundamentalists

Margin Call

Inside Job

Forbes: AI Minted More Than 50 New Billionaires In 2025

Matt Taibbi: Griftopia: A Story of Bankers, Politicians, and the Most Audacious Power Grab in American History

Kanopy

UNFTR Resources

The End of the American Experiment.

The Clinton Series.

Phone A Friend: Zohran Mamdani.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The Iran War Could Wreck the Global Economy: No Offramp and No Good Outcome.

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 18:41:43 +0000

Not a soul on this planet knows what comes next in the war theater. Because that’s war. But we can anticipate what comes next for the U.S. and global economy, or at least game out certain scenarios. This isn’t just another discretionary “police action” on the other side of the world or a simple regime change. This war is wired directly into the global energy, food, and financial systems. But a proper analysis must acknowledge how the circumstances of the U.S. economy and our monetary and fiscal policies have changed. There is no direct antecedent to the situation in which we find ourselves, which makes the folly of this war all the more absurd. We didn’t just launch a war. We may have just pulled the fire alarm on the entire world economy.

Resources

John J. Mearsheimer: Big Trouble Ahead in Iran

U.S. Energy Information Administration: Amid regional conflict, the Strait of Hormuz remains critical oil chokepoint

EnergyNow: CHARTED: Oil Trade Through the Strait of Hormuz by Country

Reuters: Asia’s oil and LNG dependence on the Middle East

Institute for Economics & Peace: Economic Consequences of War on the U.S. Economy

Global Institute for Sustainable Prosperity: Modern Money and the War Treasury

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland: Fiscal Dominance and US Monetary: 1940–1975

UNFTR Resources

Video: Iran War Could Wreck the Entire World Economy

Essay: The Iran War Could Wreck the Global Economy.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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On The Record (3-9-26).

Thu, 12 Mar 2026 14:55:26 +0000

Markwayne Mullin fails his first test. Lindsey Graham wants to blow the Iranian people. The markets are getting Blackrocked. OpenAI and Oracle have a bit of a cash crunch. Dario Amodei is full of shit. What Crude markets tell us about the war. Truth bombs from the House of El. Actual journalism on Iran from American Prestige and Dissent Magazine. ProPublica doin’ the lord’s work and Persopolis.

Chapters

Quick Takes: 00:00:36

Max Notes: 00:06:44

KLTW: 00:15:02

Headlines: 00:17:04

Pod Love: 00:18:26

Book Love: 00:19:27

Outro: 00:20:04

Resources

Bloomberg: BlackRock $26 Billion Private Credit Fund Limits Withdrawals

Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time: Charles Merrill and the Democratization of Stock Ownership

IRA Financial: Trump, Alternatives, and the Solo 401(k): The Retirement Plan That Paved the Way for Alts in 401(k)s

Bloomberg: BlackRock’s Retail Private-Credit Hopes Run Into Market’s Angst

House of El: DOLLAR COLLAPSE: Japan to DUMP $1.2T in US Treasuries After Trump Cuts 95% Oil Supply

Dissent Magazine: War, Revolt, and Iran's Unfinished Struggle

Grist: Kristi Noem all but killed FEMA. Will her departure save it?

ProPublica: Explore Financial Disclosures From President Trump and 1,500 of His Appointees

ProPublica: Event: How to Use Our News App of Disclosures From Political Appointees

Pod Love

American Prestige: War in the Gulf and the Global Economy w/ Esfandyar Batmanghelidj

Book Love

Marjane Satrapi: Persepolis

UNFTR Resources

Video: On The Record (3-9-26).

Video: MTN Macro Take (3-7-26).

Episode: Trump Accounts.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Omnibus (3-6-26).

Sat, 07 Mar 2026 03:01:37 +0000

Welcome to the first-ever Omnibus—the show finally has a name! Max and 99 open with the weight of the moment, addressing the U.S.-backed strikes on Iran before diving into the AI-military pipeline. Off-topic headlines hit on small business closures in NYC and fighter pay in the streaming era. Listener emails cover everything from financial anxiety to the mechanics of shadow banking, and Trump finding time to pump crypto mid-war. They rank their Top 5 everyday products they can’t live without, plus fit in some movie talk and member shoutouts to close it out. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:19

Housekeeping: 00:10:06

Headlines: 00:14:33

Top 5: 00:58:28

Beyond the Bullshit: 01:12:18

Memberships: 01:23:32

Outro: 01:24:07

Resources

Fast Company: Bitcoin, XRP, and other crypto prices are rising today. What Trump said on Truth Social to boost digital assets

The Verge: How OpenAI caved to the Pentagon on AI surveillance

The Hill: OpenAI goes on defense as Anthropic surges after Pentagon fallout

The Baffler: A Fighting Chance: Going up against the UFC

Brooklyn Vegan: Long-running NYC vegan restaurant Red Bamboo is closing

Acquired: Google Part III: The AI Company

UNFTR Resources

Video: Iran War, US Empire and What The Media is Hiding

Episode: War in Iran and the Decline of the U.S. Empire.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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John Goober Kennedy: The Louisiana Senator Thinks Poor People Are Faking It.

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 16:09:35 +0000

Senator John Kennedy is a bad caricature of a southern gentleman and he masquerades around Capitol Hill as a folksy “just asking questions” kind of fella. In reality, he’s a wealthy, elite, fraud with a $20 million net worth who attended Oxford. Despite representing the poorest state in America, this Louisiana senator took his allotted time at a hearing with the Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to review how poverty is calculated and take issue with it. So this is our response.

Resources

Senator John Kennedy: Kennedy questions Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on poverty data in Senate Banking Committee

USAFacts: What is the poverty rate in Louisiana?

World Population Review: Poorest U.S. States 2026

The Data Center: Health as resilience capacity in New Orleans: The critical role of community-based collaborations

Prison Gerrymandering Project: Federal Census policy harms Louisiana’s democracy — but state lawmakers can fix it

Wikipedia: John Kennedy (Louisiana politician)

Buzzfeed News: John Kennedy Is America’s Folksiest Senator. Some People Who Know Him Say It’s An Act.

Quiver Quantitative: Senator John Kennedy has filed a new financial disclosure - here’s what we see

UNFTR Resources

Video: Senator Questions Poverty Calculations | Here's Why That's INSANE

Essay: John Goober Kennedy: The Louisiana Senator Thinks Poor People Are Faking It.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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War in Iran and the Decline of the U.S. Empire.

Wed, 04 Mar 2026 12:30:00 +0000

The U.S. and Israel have declared war on the Islamic Republic of Iran, despite indications from Omani negotiators that the parties were close to agreement as late as the night before the bombing of Tehran and other Iranian cities began. Mainstream media have already cranked up the propaganda machine to frame this as everything from a necessary and just maneuver to an unfortunate turn of events. The anglo-centric framing is undeniable and we risk losing the plot. There’s also a stunning lack of historical perspective in any current analyses. Make no mistake, this is an illegal move conducted by a waning empire that put a madman in charge. And it threatens us all.

Apologies for any mispronunciations! -Max

Resources

Drop Site

American Prestige

Al Jazeera English

UNFTR Resources

Video: Iran War, US Empire and What The Media is Hiding

Essay: War in Iran and the Decline of the U.S. Empire.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Pam Bondi and the Dow: Bondi Screamed the Loud Part, Loudly.

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 12:30:00 +0000

Attorney General Pam Bondi took to Capitol Hill with her burn book in hand and a message to Congress, the victims of Jeffrey Epstein and the American people: Shut up, the Dow hit 50,000. She was right about the Dow Jones Industrial performance until the next day, when stocks dumped out on news that AI might be real and that the economy added 400,000 fewer jobs last year than we originally thought. That’s the thing about building an entire narrative around the stock market. The stock market is not the economy. And the victims of Epstein’s crimes deserve better.

Resources

MS Now: FULL HOUSE HEARING: AG Pam Bondi testifies over handling of release of Epstein files

Business Insider: Anthropic and OpenAI release dueling AI models on the same day in an escalating rivalry

Fortune: Anthropic’s Claude triggered a trillion-dollar selloff. A new upgrade could make things worse

Matt Shumer: Something Big Is Happening

Matt Shumer on X

U.S. Department of the Treasury: Monthly Treasury Statement: Receipts and Outlays of the United States Government For Fiscal Year 2026 Through January 31, 2026, and Other Periods

UNFTR Resources

Video: Epstein Victims Deserve Better Than Bondi's Economic Theater

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So…About Chomsky. (Noam Chomsky’s Tragic Coda.)

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 22:03:21 +0000

Noam Chomsky’s superpower is his intellect and ability to communicate complicated subjects with clarity. He made politics accessible for multiple generations. Chomsky is the gateway drug to leftist ideology. He’s also close friends with the most prolific child abuser and sex trafficker of the modern era. It’s okay to acknowledge Chomsky’s contributions and even more okay to let them go and bury his legacy.

Resources

Wall Street Journal: Epstein’s Private Calendar Reveals Prominent Names, Including CIA Chief, Goldman’s Top Lawyer

The Harvard Crimson: Jeffrey Epstein Met With Harvard Professor Martin Nowak and Noam Chomsky in 2015 in Harvard Office

Manufacturing Intellect: Noam Chomsky interview on Dissent (1988)

UNFTR Resources

Video: Genius Doesn’t Excuse What Chomsky Did. Goodbye, Noam.

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To Be Named UNFTR Show (2-28-26).

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 19:58:16 +0000

It’s the last episode of To Be Determined (next time the show gets an actual name)! Max and 99 run through headlines on Bill Gates’s Epstein apology and the humanitarian crisis in Cuba. The listener emails include an econ 101 starter pack, a great idea for a “remember this” segment, and more. They rank their Top 5 TV show finales, sound the alarm on private credit, and give takes on the Democratic Party’s obsession with empty centrist candidates over actual policy. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:31

Housekeeping: 00:03:38

Headlines: 00:04:47

Emails: 00:17:57

Top 5: 00:38:37

Beyond the Bullshit: 00:56:39

Memberships 01:11:27

Outro: 01:11:46

Resources

Wall Street Journal: Bill Gates Apologizes to Foundation Staff Over Epstein Ties

WSWS: Cuban worker describes hellish conditions, appeals to US workers to force an end to embargo

Rolling Stone Magazine: Bob Weir’s Beautiful Second Act

New York Times: The Anguish of a Tourette’s Outburst

Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

Econoclasts (Yanis Varoufakis + Wolfgang Munchau)

Gary’s Economics

Professor Steve Keen

Justin Wolfers

Instagram: @showtoolsai

The Atlantic: ‘I Genuinely Am Upset That Your Kids Are Vaccinated’

Unf*cker Recommendations

Moose on the Loose

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Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99. The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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To Be Named UNFTR Show (2-21-26).

Sat, 21 Feb 2026 19:27:13 +0000

Max and 99 kick off another episode of their still-unnamed weekly show, diving into everything from grocery inflation and RFK’s bizarre workout videos to the future of progressive organizing through the Working Families Party and DSA. They workshop show name suggestions from listeners, tackle emails on how to influence the Democratic Party, and debate their Top Five movie villains.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:15

Housekeeping: 00:02:30

Headlines: 00:16:14

Emails: 00:36:35

Top 5: 01:03:59

Beyond the Bullshit: 01:20:33

Memberships: 01:22:53

Outro: 01:23:26

Resources

Vengaboys: Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!!

devilleforcongress.com

In These Times: Read This If You're New and Trying to Find Your Way

RFK Jr. Instagram Video

Business Insider: I followed an RFK-approved, $15-a-day diet

Philosophy for the People w/Ben Burgis: Losing Lucy

The Block: Polymarket investor Vitalik Buterin says prediction markets need to stop catering to 'dumb opinions'

Bruce Springsteen: Streets Of Minneapolis

Working Families Party

Democratic Socialists of America

UNFTR Resources

Chester A. Arthur and Julia Sand: Strange Bedfellows.

Video: On The Record (Cuba Libre | AOC Stumbles Abroad | Racist Caught at Senate Hearing)

UNFTR's 5 Non-Negotiables

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Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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Stupid Is as Stupid Does: Will the real Scott Bessent please stand up?

Thu, 19 Feb 2026 20:53:19 +0000

Trump’s economic policies overseen by Scott Bessent are torching the U.S. dollar and tanking the economy. In this episode, Max does a deep dive into the decline of the dollar, U.S. fiscal mismanagement, and bizarre monetary policy that has many questioning whether we’re witnessing the decline of U.S. economic hegemony in real time. The episode examines U.S. policy through the actions of Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent whose erratic behavior belies his moderate past.

Access the corresponding graphs.

Resources

Conference Board: US Consumer Confidence Fell Sharply in January

Money Maze Podcast: Who is Scott Bessent? Meet Trump's New US Treasury Secretary

Census Bureau: Monthly Construction Spending

MacroMicro: U.S. Dollar Index

MacroMicro: Japan - US/Japan 10Y Bond Yield Spread vs. USD/JPY

MacroMicro: Gold / US Dollar / 10Y Yield

UNFTR Resources

Video: Scott Bessent's DERANGED plan to destroy the dollar and economy

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To Be Named UNFTR Show (2-14-26).

Sat, 14 Feb 2026 05:00:00 +0000

Max and 99 are back this week to debut an experimental new format for the podcast—that is yet to be named—which mixes Show Notes vibes with a little more structure. The two dive into a mix of on-topic and off-topic headlines before heading into listener feedback and emails. They wrap up the episode with their Top 5 lists focused on formative protest songs, and of course some member shout outs. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:34

Headlines: 00:13:35

Emails: 00:42:47

"Carve Outs": 01:16:31

Top 5: 01:24:32

Memberships: 01:44:15

Outro: 01:46:00

Resources

The Verge: Discord says ‘vast majority’ of users won’t see its new age verification setup

BIG by Matt Stoller: The Beginning of the End for Big Corporate Medicine

Politico: MAHA and Mike Tyson want you to ‘eat real food’ during the Super Bowl

Super Bowl Ad: Processed Food Kills, Eat Real Food

The Ringer: How Hannibal Lecter Made His Film Debut in ‘Manhunter’

Yahoo News: JD Vance says U.S. Olympic athletes are 'not there to pop off about politics.' Here's what they've said.

Democratic Socialists of America

Working Families Party

Top 5s (And Beyond)

Nina Simone: Mississippi Goddam

John Lennon: Working Class Hero

Sting: Russians

XTC: Dear God

Simple Minds: Belfast Child

Green Day: American Idiot

Joni Mitchell: Big Yellow Taxi

Marvin Gaye: What's Going On

Sly & The Family Stone: Everyday People

Childish Gambino: This Is America

Creedence Clearwater Revival: Fortunate Son

Johnny Paycheck: Take This Job And Shove It

Buffalo Springfield: For What It's Worth

4 Non Blondes: What's Up

Brandi Carlile: The Joke

The Chicks: Travelin' Soldier

The Chicks: Not Ready To Make Nice

Bob Dylan: Masters of War

T-Pain: War Pigs

Gil Scott-Heron: Revolution Will Not Be Televised

Kendrick Lamar: Alright

NWA: Fuck Tha Police

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five: The Message

Public Enemy: Fight The Power

Sam Cooke: A Change Is Gonna Come

UNFTR Resources

Pharmacy Benefit Managers: The American Drug Cartel.

UNFTR Resources Page

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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Why the Stock Market Keeps Going Up: (While Everything Else Goes Down.)

Mon, 09 Feb 2026 20:20:59 +0000

Why does the stock market keep going up when the economy feels so bad? It’s the question we probably get the most and, quite frankly, it’s not a bad one. The primary reason equities seem invincible is because of the dramatic increase in the money supply over the past four decades. That explains the supply side of the equation at least. But a lot had to happen behind the scenes to allow for the money supply to be absorbed into the financial system and ultimately benefit a fraction of the population.

Resources

MacroMicro: US - M1 & M2 Money Supply

Wikipedia: Buffett indicator

CFI: Shiller P/E

Civiqs: Donald Trump: Job Approval, Second Term

Wall Street Journal: More Americans Than Ever Own Stocks

Brookings: Rising inequality: A major issue of our time

The Review of Economic Studies: Stock Market Participation, Inequality, and Monetary Policy

Roosevelt Institute: Our New Report: Defining Financialization

Levy Economics Institute: Have We Been Here Before? Phases of Financialization within the 20th Century in the United States

The Fed: 3. Leverage in the Financial Sector

UNFTR Resources

Stock Buybacks Surge: Another Red Flag for the U.S. Economy.

Video: Why is the stock market so good when the economy is so bad?

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Hold Fast (holdfastband.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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The Unstoppable Donald John.

Mon, 02 Feb 2026 20:26:26 +0000

Is Donald Trump unstoppable? He has defied laws and norms, thumbed his nose at Congress and foreign allies alike. He has displayed open hostility toward immigrants and American citizens, threatened extreme force against protestors, recently going so far as to mention the Insurrection Act. His ICE thugs roam the streets and are committing atrocities with impunity. We kidnapped the leader of a sovereign nation and are positioning troops for a potential invasion of an allied nation and NATO member. Donald Trump has been one step ahead of the law at every turn and with the courts and Congress in his pocket, many are beginning to wonder if he truly intends to suspend upcoming elections and destroy our democracy once and for all. So let’s talk about it.

UNFTR Resources

Little Marco’s Coup D’Etat: Kidnapping Maduro.

“Project 2025.” Republicans With Time.

The BRICS Unit: The Beginning of the End for Dollar Dominance?

Video: This is What a Trump Dictatorship Looks Like

Book Love

James Rickards: Currency Wars: The Making of the Next Global Crisis

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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Little Marco’s Coup D’Etat: Kidnapping Maduro.

Sun, 01 Feb 2026 23:44:18 +0000

The United States carried out a special-operations strike in Caracas, Venezuela and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores who are reportedly being taken to Manhattan to face criminal charges for drug trafficking. In this video, Max breaks down what’s really behind this stunning intervention, perhaps the most brazen and illegal action undertaken by the U.S. since Kissinger’s secret bombing of Cambodia. He talks about all the angles portrayed in the media from narcoterrorism to oil, reveals what’s more likely behind our actions and how Marco Rubio is intimately involved.

UNFTR Resources

Video: BRICS Takes Over: India’s Plan to Dethrone the Dollar.

Video: The Truth Behind Maduro’s Capture | It’s Not What They're Telling You.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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The BRICS Unit: The Beginning of the End for Dollar Dominance?

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 21:00:46 +0000

In December of 2025, Brazil passed the BRICS leadership torch to India, which wasted no time revealing its priorities for the economic alliance—to build an international payment system that rivals the SWIFT system and chip away at U.S. economy hegemony by attacking the exorbitant privilege of the U.S. Dollar. Defending the dollar should be the easiest policy ever. Instead the Trump administration has accelerated the world’s collective desire to put the U.S. in its place and end our reign of economic despotism.

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Show Notes [January 12, 2026.]

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 18:37:57 +0000

Max and 99 are back for another round of Show Notes. They tackle the good, the bad and the ugly of the news. Thanks for tuning in!

Chapters

Intro: 00:06:13

Emails: 01:16:39

Memberships: 01:32:02

Reviews: 01:35:28

Outro: 01:36:04

Resources

Mother Jones: RFK Jr. Just Flipped the Food Pyramid to Create a Funnel of Performative Masculinity

UNFTR Resources

Video: The Truth Behind Maduro's Capture | It's Not What They're Telling You

Video: BRICS Takes Over: India's Plan to Dethrone the Dollar

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The Rob Reiner Conversation We Deserved.

Wed, 24 Dec 2025 01:04:20 +0000

Donald Trump stole the headlines once again by speaking ill of Rob Reiner after the tragic death of Reiner and his wife Michele. It was yet another vulgar display of Trump’s unbridled narcissism that takes away from the legitimate conversation we should be having about Reiner’s legacy, what his films meant to a generation that came of age before 9/11. In many ways, Reiner became the avatar of white establishment liberalism, reflecting an America that never really existed. Throughout his remarkable career he was firmly planted on the right side of history but his art had a way of papering over the brutal reality of the American system. In other ways, he represented the best of us and he left us some of the greatest pop culture moments that endure the test of time. This is the discussion I think he deserved.

Resources

Current Affairs: How Liberals Fell In Love With The West Wing

Politico: Words must match deeds

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [December 13, 2025.]

Sat, 13 Dec 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Max and 99 are back for another round of Show Notes! They talk Mets news (RIP), The Fed, healthcare, and get to some Unf*cker feedback.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:13:54

Email: 00:55:43

Memberships: 01:47:13

Outro: 01:50:41

Resources

Yahoo Finance: Live coverage: Federal Reserve cuts interest rates by 0.25%

Lava Song

NPR: Head Start centers told to avoid 'disability,' 'women' and more in funding requests

UNFTR Resources

Video: On The Record (12/8/25)

Video: Trump Official Gaslights on Labor Data

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The Revenge Porn Presidency: Trump, Commodus, and the Unraveling of Empire.

Tue, 09 Dec 2025 01:01:21 +0000

Donald Trump is tearing the nation apart. To place his revenge-filled presidency in historical context we have to reach deep into the annals of history and revisit the tenure of famed Roman Emperor Commodus who historians perceive as the beginning of the end of the Roman Empire. With this second term Trump has entered rarified air that few U.S. presidents have breathed. He has fundamentally altered the culture, the country and its people. Moving past this moment will be our greatest challenge.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The Music Has Stopped: The Political Response We Need to This Financial Crisis.

Mon, 24 Nov 2025 17:58:13 +0000

The U.S. economy has already crashed. The stock market is just the last one to figure it out. In this essay, Max talks about what happens when hegemonic economies collapse and how the U.S. has been able to keep things afloat while the bottom falls out. He draws parallels to the crash of 1929 and the subsequent Depression and speaks to the differences. There is a path forward for Progressives but it won’t be a presidential run. The DNC will make sure of that. But we can borrow from Russell Vought’s playbook to build a coalition of support on the ground.

Resources

DSA: Chapters

Working Families Party: Get Involved

Sherrod Brown

UNFTR Resources

Trump is Looting the Treasury.

“Russputin” and the Tsar.

Medicare for All.

Zohran Mamdani Has Already Won.

Civilian Labor Corps.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

UNFTR 5NN.

Video: The Financial Crisis is NOW & The Path Forward for Democrats.

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Show Notes [November 15, 2025.]

Sun, 16 Nov 2025 03:54:05 +0000

Max and 99 are back for another round of Show Notes. They (surprise) talk about the economy, the housing crisis, Venezuela and much more. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:26:21

Memberships: 00:41:24

Reviews: 01:37:16

Outro: 01:38:50

Resources

Video (UNFTR for MeidasTouch): Trump's Kitchen Sink Recession Response

UNFTR Bookshop

Wall Street Journal: U.S. Likely Lost 50,000 Jobs in October, Goldman Sachs Says

The Budget Lab: Evaluating the Impact of AI on the Labor Market: Current State of Affairs

Progressive Punch

Ballotopedia

UNFTR: 5NN: Housing First

UNFTR: How We Built the Housing Crisis (And Why We Can Dismantle It)

ABC: Boyer Lecture 2025: Justin Wolfers

UnHeard: Javier Milei is no libertarian: He is beholden to Argentina’s oligarchs

Video (UNFTR for MeidasTouch): Manufacturing Consent for War in Venezuela

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The Plumbing of the Financial Markets Is Leaking: Understanding the U.S. Liquidity Crisis.

Mon, 10 Nov 2025 11:15:00 +0000

Max reports on the growing cracks in the financial markets and the unprecedented lengths the Federal Reserve has already gone to in order to stabilize the global financial system. The U.S. is heading toward a full-blown liquidity crisis that threatens to seize up the financial markets. The situation is worsening daily at this point and Trump’s erratic policy decisions are contributing to the destabilization.

View the charts related to this episode.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:37

Post Show Musings: 00:19:33

Outro: 00:39:38

Resources

Challenger, Gray & Christmas: Challenger Report: September 2025

MacroMicro: US - Hourly Wage Growth by Wage Level

MacroMicro: US - Consumer Price Index (CPI)

MacroMicro: US - Fed Overnight Reverse Repurchase Agreements (ON RRP) Trading Volume

MacroMicro: US - Treasury Yields vs. Fed Funds Rate

MacroMicro: US - Federal Fund Interest Rates

MacroMicro: US - Fed Overnight Reverse Repurchase Agreements (ON RRP) Trading Volume

MacroMicro: US - Fed's Balance Sheet - Liabilities

Fortune: Without data centers, GDP growth was 0.1% in the first half of 2025, Harvard economist says

Video: MTN: Trump in Full Blown Panic as Market Collapse Imminent

Track Star: Zohran Mamdani

Become A UNFTR Member

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

Share the 5NN

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Stephen Miran Is Going To Be Fed Chair: The Gospel According to Miran.

Mon, 03 Nov 2025 11:15:00 +0000

Stephen Miran isn’t auditioning to run the Federal Reserve. He’s auditioning to destroy it. Like so many in Trump’s sphere, Miran was selected for his ability to appear like he’s doing the right thing and making the tough choices. In reality, he exists to destroy the thing he’s spent his entire life trying to be a part of. Miran is a highly educated and competent analyst whose academic veneer and projection of empathy belie his craven desire for power and to eradicate the independence of the Fed and place it under direct authority and control of the president. And make no mistake, when Jerome Powell’s term is up, this is who will be in charge of the Fed.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:00

Chapter One: The Audition. 00:02:10

Chapter Two: The Power and Powers of the Fed. 00:07:15

Chapter Three: Who Is This Numbnut? 00:13:06

Chapter Four: Consistently Inconsistent. 00:18:34

Bring It Home, Max: 00:23:46

Resources

Federal Reserve Board: Stephen I. Miran

Barron’s: Last Year, Trump’s New Man at the Fed Thought Rates Were Too Low. What Changed

Miran’s Articles + White Papers

City Journal: Is Having the Reserve Currency Good for the U.S.?

Manhattan Institute: The Fed Isn’t as Independent as It Seems

Manhattan Institute: The Fed Doesn’t Need to Cut. Financial Conditions Are Already Loosening.

Manhattan Institute: The Fed Is Facing a Changed World. The Case Against Cuts.

Hudson Bay Capital: A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System

Manhattan Institute: Reform the Federal Reserve’s Governance to Deliver Better Monetary Outcomes

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Phone A Friend: Keith D. (You Can’t Afford To Ignore Crypto.)

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 22:44:36 +0000

In this Phone a Friend, Max sits down with crypto entrepreneur and advisor Keith D. The pair discuss the history of Bitcoin, expansion of crypto markets and whether the public is in safe hands as the influence of cryptocurrency grows exponentially.

Resources

Keith D. on YouTube

Video: You can't afford to ignore Crypto with Keith D.

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The Controlled Demolition of the U.S. Economy: Shadow Banks, Dollar Debasement and Basis Trades.

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 20:10:40 +0000

The U.S. economy is headed for financial collapse. Repo market stress. Private credit market liquidity crunch. Subprime lending crisis. Spiraling deficits. Basis trade exposure. Dollar debasement. U.S. states in recession. Oil market contango. Tariff and trade wars. Each of these are like explosive devices hiding in the corners of the economic edifice that is the U.S. economy. And the Federal Reserve just released a shocking paper that exposes the biggest potential threat of all. Explosive devices have been set all around the economy and a new bomb was just uncovered in the most unlikely of places.

Chapters

Intro: 00:05:21

Chapter One: The Road to Economic Hegemony. 00:06:24

Chapter Two: Collision Course. 00:30:55

Chapter Three: Hidden Bomb. 00:35:50

Chapter Four: Bring It Home, Max. 00:44:50

Resources

The Lead Left: Middle Market & Private Credit – 2/10/2025

Mark Zandi on X

Axios: 22 states are in a recession or close to it, new analysis finds

The Fed: The Cross-Border Trail of the Treasury Basis Trade

FSB: Leverage in Nonbank Financial Intermediation: Final report

Morningstar: Official data dramatically underestimates hedge funds' involvement in the Treasury market, Fed paper finds

Federal Reserve Bank of New York: Repo Operations

Fidelity: Investor behind Zions, Western Alliance bad loans is tied to $270 million in troubled debt

Car Dealership Guy: Tricolor: The messy collapse of a subprime auto lender explained

Investopedia: Basis Trading: Definition, How It Works, Example

The Guardian: What is private credit, and should we be worried by the collapse of US firms?

OilPrice.com: Oil Market Braces for Contango and Shale Slowdown

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Show Notes [October 18, 2025.]

Sun, 19 Oct 2025 00:12:15 +0000

Max and 99 are back this week for Show Notes; they start with a little pop culture music/movie talk, and transition into Unf*cker emails where they cover why the 1% doesn’t care if the economy is gutted, what figures you can trust from the Trump administration, Technocracy in Silicon Valley and a host of other things. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:27:51

Memberships: 01:24:16

Outro: 01:30:08

Resources

The Baffler: The Substance

Leave a Review

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

The Rewatchables: ‘Sneakers’ With Bill Simmons, Kyle Brandt, and Joanna Robinson

Jacob Riis: How The Other Half Lives

Climate Disruption: Lee Zeldin Cancer Gala

Paris Marx

New York Times: A Plea From Doctors: Cool It on the Supplements

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Barack Obama: The Greatest Republican President of My Lifetime.

Mon, 13 Oct 2025 10:00:00 +0000

Barack Obama was the greatest Republican president of my lifetime—a statement sure to fire up establishment liberals and conservatives alike. But for progressives in the United States, this is what the Obama years felt like. Today’s episode examines the seminal policy achievements of the Obama years from the Affordable Care Act and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to DACA and the response to the Global Financial Crisis. We offer the liberal and conservative views of the same issues, then finish with the progressive perspective on all.

Resources

Migration Policy Institute: The Obama Record on Deportations: Deporter in Chief or Not?

TBIJ: Obama’s covert drone war in numbers: ten times more strikes…

NPR: Pledging To End Two Wars, Obama Finds Himself Entangled In Three

Video: Cornel West's Note to Obama

Obama Library

UNFTR Resources

Video: Barack Obama: The BEST REPUBLICAN President Ever

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Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Bailing on Farmers to Bail Out Argentina: Two to Tango.

Mon, 06 Oct 2025 10:00:00 +0000

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently pledged $20 billion of support to Argentina to prevent its currency from sliding further and to backstop Javier Milei’s Trump-like economic agenda. Then, Argentina turned around and lowered its export tariffs and dumped its soybean crop on the market. They found a willing buyer in China, who has ceased purchasing U.S. agriculture due to the Trump tariff war. The whole affair boiled over when an AP photographer snapped a picture of a text thread on Bessent’s phone from Agriculture Secretary Brooke Collins who said U.S. soybean farmers were livid because their market collapsed. It’s another example of the Trump administration putting ideology and pettiness ahead of his own constituents. But there’s a larger game afoot that no one is talking about that this situation perfectly illustrates: We’re playing checkers and China is playing chess.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Post Show Musings: 00:25:22

Outro: 00:27:43

Resources

Americas Quarterly: A Key Pending Challenge for Milei’s Argentina

New York Times: Milei Vowed to Fix Argentina’s Economy. Then Came a New Crisis

Newsweek: Trump’s Argentina bailout sparks fury among farmers, Republicans

Paul Krugman: Why Is Trump Bailing Out Argentina?

Federal Reserve: Dollarization in Argentina

The Observatory of Economic Complexity: United States (USA) and Argentina (ARG) Trade

International Trade Administration: Argentina - Market Overview

MercoPress: Argentina records 21st straight trade surplus

CEIC Data: Argentina Consolidated Fiscal Balance, 1993 – 2025

Americas Quarterly: Milei’s Path to Dollarization: Riddled with Doubts

J.P. Morgan: De-dollarization: The end of dollar dominance?

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Book Love

Carol Wise: Dragonomics: How Latin America Is Maximizing (or Missing Out On) China's International Development Strategy

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Show Notes [October 4, 2025.]

Sat, 04 Oct 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Max and 99 are back to discuss headlines (AI, government shutdown, Hegseth speech + more) and recent Unf*cker feedback. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:46:56

Memberships: 01:40:10

Outro: 01:40:37

Resources

Wired: Palantir Wants to Be a Lifestyle Brand

Ed Zitron's Where's Your Ed At

Track Star: Pete Alonso

"Department of War:" Pete Hegseth FULL REMARKS at the WAR DEPARTMENT ADDRESS

New York Times: Text of the Email That Pete Hegseth’s Mother Sent Him

How I Built This: Bob's Red Mill: Bob Moore

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Running Out of Time: The Political and Economic Realization of Project 2025.

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 02:56:31 +0000

We continue to build on the idea that white Christian nationalism is, was and has always been the foundation of this country. To suggest otherwise is to be both ahistorical and absent in our politics today. The violent response to a concept so utterly innocuous such as “Black lives matter” should tell us everything. Before it was a movement (of sorts) it was a simple statement. But the reality is that they don’t. We need to stop calling it “Trump’s America” and just call it what it is. America.

Resources

The Ezra Klein Show: Ta-Nehisi Coates and Ezra Klein Hash Out Their Charlie Kirk Disagreement

New York Times: Charlie Kirk Was Practicing Politics the Right Way

Democracy Now!: Project 2025 Co-Author Lays Out "Radical Agenda" for Next Trump Term in Undercover Video

Hudson Bay Capital: A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System

Manhattan Institute: Reform the Federal Reserve’s Governance to Deliver Better Monetary Outcomes

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The End of the American Experiment: Nice, for Some, While It Lasted.

Mon, 22 Sep 2025 13:59:41 +0000

It’s evident now that the alt-right figures in charge of this administration are quickly realizing the vision set forth in Project 2025. But it’s also clear that they are moving just as quickly to implement the vision of Project Esther, the Project 2025 companion and follow-up from the Heritage Foundation. The two visions work in tandem to destroy the institutions that barely held Donald Trump in check during his first term and to undermine free speech of anyone opposed to their radical agenda. The combined projects are so well coordinated and overwhelming that we may be living through the end of the American experiment.

Resources

BBC: JD Vance hosts Charlie Kirk’s daily talk radio show

NPR: Trump files $15 billion defamation lawsuit against ‘New York Times’

Zeteo: The New McCarthyism: UC Berkeley Just Handed Over the Names of 160 Students and Faculty to the Trump Admin

Democracy Docket: Left-Leaning Nonprofits Push Back on Trump’s Crackdown Threats

PBS NewsHour: Economic fallout mounts as Trump halts near-finished wind power project

Truth Social: Donald Trump

The Chris Hedges Report: We Are All antifa Now

Just Security: The Proud Boys and Oath Keepers Are Domestic Terrorists, It’s Past Time to Call Them What They Are

PBS News: Elected officials, police officers and members of military on Oath Keepers membership list, report says

World Population Review: KKK Population by State 2025

Defense360: Bad Idea: Domestic Terrorist Organization Designations

The Nation: Barbara Lee’s Stand

Mondoweiss: From COINTELPRO to Project Esther: The evolution of domestic counterinsurgency in the U.S.

IISS: Iran’s nuclear programme after the strikes

Book Love

Branko Milanovic: Visions of Inequality: From the French Revolution to the End of the Cold War

UNFTR Resources

The Carter Series: Reexamining Jimmy’s Time in Office.

The Clinton Years: The Most Neoliberal Presidency in U.S. History.

Video: The End of the American Experiment. 1776 to 2025.

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The Murder of Charlie Kirk: There Are Monsters Under the Bed.

Mon, 15 Sep 2025 21:18:54 +0000

This week Max expands on his initial response to the murder of Charlie Kirk and reflects on the diseased state of the online American male. Gen Z gamers who came of age during “Gamergate” are still living more online than “IRL” and appear to be divorced from their consequences. From school shootings to the Kirk murder, the motivations of incels are becoming harder to divine and even more radicalized from their roots. How this evolves is anyone’s guess but don’t look to this administration to dig into the problem or provide clarity; not while the anger and confusion provides the perfect cover for their Project 2025 agenda.

Resources

Mother Jones: The Key Missing Piece to the Megahit “Adolescence”

New York Times: Vance hosts Kirk’s podcast with a parade of Trump officials.

Britannica: Gamergate

UNFTR Resources

Video: Charlie Kirk Dead at 31.

It’s Like the Elites Want Us Raging Against Each Other.

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Left Turns: Gerrymandering and Dark Money.

Mon, 08 Sep 2025 10:00:00 +0000

The “left” is a wide spectrum with ever deepening divides. This week’s essay highlights two newsworthy items that perfectly illustrate the fracture between leftists and liberals and how we’re willing to accept anything on the Democratic side that shows signs of life; even if those things are undemocratic in nature. Part one addresses the fallout from the Wired Magazine article uncovering the relationship between online creators and a group called Chorus. The second part addresses California’s move to neutralize Texas’ recent redistricting effort designed to pick up Republican House seats in the midterms.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:00

Part One: 00:00:56

Part Two: 00:14:01

Resources

Wired: A Dark Money Group Is Secretly Funding High-Profile Democratic Influencers

Chorus

Tucker Carlson: Ana Kasparian: Epstein Cover-Up, Israel Strikes Gaza Church, & the Great American Political Shift

TYT: Cenk Explains Why He’s REMOVING A Contributor From TYT Network

Sixteen Thirty Fund

270 to Win: 1964 Presidential Election

Yes on 50

New York Times: The Democratic Party Faces a Voter Registration Crisis

UNFTR Resources

Video: Journalist Exposes Dark Money on the Left

Video: Democrats fight back with California redistricting plan

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Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [September 6, 2025]

Sat, 06 Sep 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Max and 99 jump in for another edition of Show Notes, covering headlines and some recent Unf*cker feedback. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:26:07

Emails: 00:33:02

Memberships: 00:53:09

Outro: 00:53:25

Resources

Sign the Petition To Stop the Senate From Passing These Bills

Max for MTN: Trump makes FATAL MOVE that Instantly RUINS LABOR DAY

The Guardian: Florida to end vaccine mandates for children as state’s surgeon general likens them to ‘slavery’

Politico: Poll: California Democrats like Gavin Newsom over Kamala Harris in 2028

Quinn Slobodian: Hayek's Bastards: Race, Gold, Iq, and the Capitalism of the Far Right

I Am Leg

Chloe Sorvino: Raw Deal: Hidden Corruption, Corporate Greed, and the Fight for the Future of Meat

Unf*cker Recommendations

Carlota Perez: Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages

UNFTR Resources

Video: Journalist Exposes Dark Money on the Left

Video: Democrats fight back with California redistricting plan

Californication: F*cking Around with our Biggest Economy.

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The Fed, Tariffs & Big Beautiful “Sequel.” The 3 Punch Combination to Knockout the American People.

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 04:00:00 +0000

The U.S. is running out of options to service the national debt. Secretary Bessent announced that we will now use revenue from tariffs to pay down budget deficits, rather than reinvest them into the economy. Some are treating this as welcome news. At the same time, the GOP has formed a working group to draft up a “sequel” to the Big Beautiful Bill to deepen cuts to Medicaid and federal student aid. They’ll do anything other than raise taxes on those that can afford them. But tariffs and more cuts to vital programs will only hasten economic decline, so team Trump is running out of options to stop the bleeding. And that means only one thing: Printing more money. But that’s more complicated than it seems and will lead to disastrous results. It does explain, however, why Trump is so desperate to take over the Federal Reserve.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:57

Post Show Musings: 00:32:55

Outro: 00:47:04

Resources

UNFTR.com

Sign the Petition To Stop the Senate From Passing These Bills

Politico: House Republicans want another megabill. One GOP senator says it could be ‘damaging.’

X: Republican Study Committee

Republican Study Committee: One Big Beautiful Sequel: RSC Chairman Launches Working Group for Second Reconciliation Bill

Brookings: What is the repo market, and why does it matter?

St. Louis Fed: What Is Yield Curve Control?

Treasury: Treasury Announces Marketable Borrowing Estimates

UNFTR Quickies

UNFTR Discord

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The Toxic Nature of Hustle Culture: The Mythology of the American Worker.

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Hustle Culture relies on the toxic myth of rugged individualism. Four out of every ten Americans rely on “side-hustles” in the gig economy to make ends meet. For many these side hustles are the only source of income. For decades our political leaders have sold the myth of self-reliance rather than bolstering worker protections. The result is a population that lives in economic precarity and without the benefits and peace of mind associated with steady labor guarantees. There’s nothing inherently wrong with entrepreneurism but our political economy takes advantage of this mindset to strip away safety nets and blame those who cannot fend for themselves.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:39

Chapter One: The Bipartisan Consensus on Self-Reliance. 00:04:01

Chapter Two: The Psychology of Rugged Individualism. 00:10:27

Chapter Three: The AI Acceleration: Nothing New Here. 00:16:52

Chapter Four: Reimagining Work. 00:24:37

Resources

Economic Policy Institute: National survey of gig workers paints a picture of poor working conditions, low pay

Upwork: Freelance Forward 2023

MBO Partners: Authentic and Intentional: State of Independence in America 2024

ADP Research: Illuminating the Shadow Workforce: Insights into the Gig Workforce in Businesses

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Union Membership (Annual) News Release

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Union Members Summary

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Civilian labor force participation rate

Axios: Behind the Curtain: A white-collar bloodbath

St. Louis Federal Reserve (FRED): Labor Force Participation Rate

Economic Policy Institute: 16 million workers were unionized in 2024

Book Love

Giovanni Arrighi: The Long Twentieth Century: Money, Power and the Origins of Our Times

UNFTR Resources

Un-Cooperative: Why Worker Co-Ops Don’t Work in America.

Strike! Reality checking the labor movement.

Understanding Socialism: A History of Socialist Thought from Beccaria to Trotsky.

Video: What They Don’t Tell You About Hustle Culture

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Show Notes [August 2025]

Sat, 23 Aug 2025 03:25:39 +0000

Max and 99 are back at it for another edition of Show Notes! They cover a few trending headlines plus Trump Stablecoin ep. feedback, and have an unnecessarily long conversation about soap. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:12:14

Episode Feedback: 00:51:32

Memberships: 01:25:42

Outro: 01:30:12

Headlines

New York Times: Cracker Barrel’s New Modern Logo and Aesthetic Become a Political Rorschach Test

The Guardian: Target CEO steps down as company faces weak sales and customer boycott

CNBC: Former Walmart U.S. CEO Bill Simon questions stock drop: ‘It was about as good of a quarter as any retailer could have in any environment’

The Guardian: CEO-to-worker pay gap surges to 632 to 1 at US’s lowest-paying large firms, study shows

USA Today: Eric Adams adviser accused of bribery after giving reporter cash inside potato chip bag

New York Times: Goodbye, $165,000 Tech Jobs. Student Coders Seek Work at Chipotle

Resources

UNFTR Resources Environment

The Bulwark: Is Tim Miller closer to endorsing Zohran Mamdani than Hakeem Jeffries is?

Petition: Stop Trump's USD1 Stablecoin

Video, Max for MTN: Trump’s SHADOW CRYPTO Network is WORSE Than You Think

Video: Trump's Crypto Scheme MUST Be Stopped

Episode: Trump is Looting the Treasury.

Congress: S.394 - GENIUS Act of 2025

Congress: H.R.3633 - Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025

Congress: H.R.1919 - Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act

Molly White Citation Needed

Molly White on Bluesky

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Trump is Looting the Treasury: Time Is Running Out To Prevent Trump From Becoming the World’s Shadow Central Bank.

Mon, 18 Aug 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Donald Trump has laid the groundwork to become one of the wealthiest people on the planet by personally making money from every dollar printed in the United States. And the worse the economy gets, the more money he stands to make. The House has already passed three crypto bills that would make this potential a reality by allowing the Trump family to control the global stablecoin market. Now it’s up to the Senate. It’s a wild story that the media won’t report on because they don’t get it. But some very powerful people have figured it out and now the race is on to stop Trump from becoming the shadow central banker to the world.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:35

Chapter One: Bitcoin and Burgers. 00:01:17

Chapter Two: The Stablecoin Genius. 00:07:15

Chapter Three: FIAT. 00:12:40

Chapter Four: Crypto Fasist. 00:17:34

Chapter Five: Looting the Treasury. 00:28:53

Chapter Six: 00:38:59

Resources

Sign the Petition To Stop the Senate From Passing These Bills

Stablecoin Resources

The Coin Republic: Tether Leads Crypto Revenue Chart With $87M Weekly Fees

Corporate Finance Institute: Tether

Cointelegraph: Tether made $5.2B in 2024: Here’s how stablecoins make money

Onchain: How Businesses Generate Revenue With Stablecoins

Webisoft: How Do Stablecoins Make Money? [The Crypto Finance]

Binance: How Do Stable Coin Issuers Make Money?

Gemini: What Is USDC? How Does It Work?

White Paper: SoK: Stablecoin Designs, Risks, and the Stablecoin LEGO

White Paper: Stablecoins: Fundamentals, Emerging Issues, and Open Challenges

White Paper: Hybrid Monetary Ecosystems: Integrating Stablecoins and Fiat in the Future of Currency Systems

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City: Stablecoins Could Increase Treasury Demand, but Only by Reducing Demand for Other Assets

Bitbo: Stablecoin Issuers Now Hold $182B in US Treasuries

Bitstamp: What is Circle?

Regulation and Legislation Resources

Federal Reserve: Federal Reserve Board announces the withdrawal of guidance for banks related to their crypto-asset and dollar token activities and related changes to its expectations for these activities

Yahoo Finance: Trump signs stablecoin bill into law, capping string of ‘Crypto Week’ victories

Associated Press: Senate passes crypto regulations, sends to House without addressing Trump’s investments

Congress: S.394 - GENIUS Act of 2025

Congress: H.R.3633 - Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025

Congress: H.R.1919 - Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act

Politico: Crypto industry amasses colossal war chest for elections

Public Citizen: Big Crypto, Big Spending: Crypto Corporations Spend an Unprecedented $119 Million Influencing Elections

AInvest: Senator Gillibrand’s $217,000 Crypto Donations Fuel GENIUS Act Debate

ETF Trends: Corporate Crypto Adoption Trends Remain Encouraging

Trump & Crypto Resources

Bloomberg: Binance Aided Trump Crypto Firm Before Founder CZ Sought Pardon

Binance Academy: What Is World Liberty Financial USD (USD1)?

American Bazaar: World Liberty Financial, tied to Trump, grows ETH holdings to $275 million

BingX: What Is USD1 Stablecoin Launched by the World Liberty Financial (WLFI)?

MEXC: What is USD1? Complete Guide to World Liberty Financial’s Revolutionary Stablecoin

Common Dreams: How GOP’s Crypto Bills Would Benefit Trump and His Family

New York Times: What to Know About the Three Crypto Regulation Bills in Congress

NPR: A ‘Crypto Week’ win: Congress passes 1st major crypto legislation in the U.S.

TOKEN2049: A Fireside Chat with Eric Trump and World Liberty Financial

Wall Street Journal: The Recipe Behind the Trump Family’s Crypto Riches: PancakeSwap

BusinessWire: ALT5 Sigma Corporation Announces $1.5 Billion Registered Direct Offering and Concurrent Private Placement to Initiate World Liberty Financial $WLFI Treasury Strategy

Reuters: Trump's stablecoin chosen for $2 billion Abu Dhabi investment in Binance, co-founder says

Definitional Resources

Brookings: What are stablecoins, and how are they regulated?

The Block: What are the advantages and disadvantages of stablecoins?

Binance: Stablecoins vs. Fiat Money: Why are they a good option?

Polkadot: CBDCs vs. Stablecoin: Competing visions for digital currency

Fireblocks: State of Stablecoins 2025

International Resources

Atlantic Council: Central bank digital currencies versus stablecoins: Divergent EU and US perspectives

Reuters: Crypto firm Tether and its founders finalizing move to El Salvador

BIS: The next-generation monetary and financial system

UNFTR Resources

The Global Order of Money.

Video: Trump's Crypto Scheme MUST Be Stopped

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Trump and the Fed: Why Trump is Determined to Fire Jerome Powell.

Mon, 11 Aug 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently took himself out of the running to take over as Chair of the Federal Reserve at the end of Jerome Powell’s term. (Or when Trump fires him illegally.) Perhaps it has something to do with his serious flub recently when he said the quiet part out loud about privatizing Social Security. Either way, Trump is on a mission to cut the Federal Funds rate to as low as one percent. In today’s episode, we game it out to explain what would happen if rates suddenly dropped so low in this economic environment. (Spoiler: It would be catastrophic for the average American.) Then we reveal what Trump’s actual motives might be for doing so.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:40

Post Show Musings: 00:14:59

Resources

The New York Times: Trump says Treasury’s Bessent rules out replacing Powell as the Fed chair.

MSNBC: Bessent walks back suggestion that Trump accounts are 'backdoor' to privatize Social Security

UNFTR Resources

Trump Accounts.

Stablecoin and the Stable Genius: Donald Trump’s Plan to be the Central Banker to the World

Video: Trump’s SHADOW CRYPTO Network is WORSE Than You Think

Project 2025.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Trump vs. Lula: Trump’s Arrogance Toward Brazil and the LAC Is a Threat to Us All.

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Donald Trump recently announced a new round of tariffs including outrageous ones on Brazil that bring the effective tariff rate to 50%. Forget that we have a surplus with Brazil or that they’re one of the biggest economies in Latin America, one of our closest allies historically and the biggest democracy in South America. Trump’s upset that the Lula administration is targeting his friend Jair Bolsonaro, dubbed the “Trump of the Tropics.” Or so he claims. There’s a lot more to this ridiculous and misguided trade war than hurt feelings and bad economics. It’s about Brazil’s leadership of the BRICS+ alliance that threatens to undermine Trump’s plan to personally become the central banker to the world.

Resources

Jeffrey Group: Brasil June 6th, 2025

IMF: IMF Staff Completes 2025 Article IV Visit to Brazil

OECD: OECD Economic Outlook, Volume 2025 Issue 1

Deloitte: Brazil economic outlook, March 2025

Al Jazeera: Trump’s hefty tariff on Brazil expected to push the country towards China

The Guardian - President Lula hits back as Trump tariffs threaten US-Brazil trade showdown

VoxDev: Understanding Brazil’s falling income inequality

PBS: Argentina secures IMF loan and ends most capital controls in key milestones for President Milei

MeidasTouch: Trump’s PANICKED MOVE delivers DEATHBLOW

Atlantic Council: The stablecoin race

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Income Inequality in the U.S.: Why You’re Struggling.

Thu, 24 Jul 2025 19:29:06 +0000

Income inequality is often spoken about but still widely misunderstood. There’s a reason why the vast majority of Americans are barely getting by while the top income earners continue to pull ahead. We’re entering a new phase of capitalism, however, and it stands to affect even some of those who were previously untouched by economic downturns. There is trouble brewing that threatens the preeminence of the U.S. Dollar as the cheap and easy money era comes to a grinding halt. Few of the old tools in the Fed and Treasury toolkit will be as effective as they once were, and the Trump administration seems determined to build a private shadow central banking system that will make matters worse for everyone but the uber-wealthy.

Resources

US Leading Indicators

Art Market Research: Benchmark Indices for the Art Market

Book Love

Jodi Dean: Capital’s Grave: Neofeudalism and the New Class Struggle

UNFTR Episode Resources

Stock Buybacks Surge: Another Red Flag for the U.S. Economy.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes.

Mon, 21 Jul 2025 23:48:29 +0000

Max and 99 are back together to cover emails, comments and headlines! Tune in and enjoy.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:19

Headlines: 00:23:46

Emails: 1:07:20

Memberships: 1:34:20

Reviews: 1:34:55

Outro: 1:35:07

Headlines

CNN: Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans advance nomination of former Trump lawyer Emil Bove as Democrats walk out

The Hill: Favorable views of Democratic Party lowest in decades: Polling

CBS News: 20 states sue DHS, FEMA for cuts to disaster mitigation program

Resources

Max’s Meidas Touch Contributor Playlist

Steven Semler: Polygraph

UNFTR Resources

Progressive Spotlights

We Watched Tucker So You Don’t Have To. Is It Time To Worry?

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

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Our Eroding Empire: Max Unfiltered. It’s Now or Never.

Fri, 18 Jul 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Donald Trump is implementing the Project 2025 playbook faster than anyone anticipated, and old guard Democrats have no idea how to combat him. But there’s another endgame coming into focus that will shock even astute political observers. This “Max Unfiltered” episode plants the seeds for upcoming episodes that examine how Trump and his allies are planning to loot the Treasury and control the world’s money supply. It turns out they aren’t just intent on destroying the system to remain in power—they’re setting themselves up to BE the power. Full disclosure: it’s a bit of a rant, but it’s the foundation for more to come.

Resources

Civiqs: Donald Trump: Job Approval, Second Term

The Untouchables: The Chicago Way

UNFTR Resources

Mamdani’s Mayoral Bid Exposes the Real Threat to NYC

Video: The Case AGAINST Buttigieg in 2028

The Prosperity Doctrine.

Libertarians Are Exhausting: But They Might Be On To Something(s).

Manufacturing Dissent.

“Project 2025.”

Video: Yanis Varoufakis on Technofeudalism and the End of Capitalism

5 Non-Negotiables

Video: Old Democrats Must Go or Trump NEVER Will

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Immigration Smokescreen: Masking Trump’s War on the Poor.

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 10:00:00 +0000

The Trump administration has declared war on immigrants and poor people and is using immigration as a smokescreen to cover for Medicaid cuts in the so-called Big Beautiful Bill. Henchmen like Stephen Miller and Scott Bessent are promoting the false narrative that “illegal” immigrants are receiving Medicaid coverage and responsible for much of the fraud and abuse in the system. It’s a specious argument to distract from the fact that they’re cutting healthcare for millions of vulnerable Americans.

KFF: Potential Impacts of 2025 Budget Reconciliation on Health Coverage

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Chapter One: Cruelty. 00:01:55

Chapter Two: Smokescreen. 00:05:29

Chapter Three: Emergency. 00:10:35

Chapter Four: Theft. 00:14:47

Post Show Musings: 00:16:48

Outro: 00:20:21

Resources

New York Times: A List of Nearly Everything in the G.O.P. Bill, and How Much It Would Cost or Save

Rising: Stephen Miller “Torches ICE”

New York Times: The Senate Wants Billions More in Medicaid Cuts, Pinching States and Infuriating Hospitals

KFF: 5 Key Facts About Immigrants and Medicaid

FactCheck.org: A False Claim About Illegal Immigration and Medicaid - FactCheck.org

Healthinsurance.org: Can undocumented immigrants get Medicaid?

Video: Trump's WAR on Immigrants and Poor People

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The SALT Deduction: How “Tax Relief for Homeowners” Became Another Giveaway to the Rich.

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 20:26:30 +0000

Today we’re diving into one of the most contentious tax battles happening in Washington right now—the State and Local Tax deduction (SALT). Now, if you’ve been hearing politicians talk about “tax relief for hard-working homeowners” or “supporting middle-class families,” you might think this sounds pretty good, right?

But here’s the thing— like so many tax policies that sound great on the surface, the SALT deduction is actually one of the most regressive tax breaks in our entire system. We’re talking about a policy that overwhelmingly benefits wealthy households while doing absolutely nothing for the majority of Americans. And right now, Congress is debating whether to make this tax break even more generous.

Resources

Brookings: The SALT tax deduction is a handout to the rich. It should be eliminated not expanded

CNBC: Trump’s ‘big beautiful bill’ passes SALT deduction limit of $40,000. Here’s who benefits

Forvis Mazars: Be Wary of Pre-Emptive Tax Planning on Itemized Deductions & SALT

TIME: A Wonky Tax Break for the Well-Off Is a Bigger Problem for Democrats Than You'd Think

Gottheimer: RELEASE: SALT Caucus Co-Chairs, Members Meet & Discuss Fight to Restore State and Local Tax Deduction

Tax Foundation: A More Generous SALT Deduction Cap in the Big, Beautiful Bill Would Cost Revenue and Primarily Benefit High Earners

RSM US: Bill limits SALT deductions for some financial and professional services firms

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

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BONUS: 2025 Manny + 99 Takeover.

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 20:37:11 +0000

Manny and 99 jumped into the studio to have some fun and connect while Max was away. They covered headlines, some music recommendations and general UNFTR business. Enjoy!

Access episode resources.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:00

Housekeeping: 00:02:13

Headlines: 00:09:01

Recommendations: 00:46:00

Memberships: 01:00:26

Outro: 01:00:50

Outro pt. 2: 01:16:26

Resources

FMF Day sale through June 30

UNFTR’s 5NN

POLITICO: MAGA right attacks Zohran Mamdani’s religion following his win

News Beat Podcast

Free The Press Substack

Hip Hop Can Save America! Substack

Rolling Stone: People Are Discovering NYC Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s Rap Past

UNFTR Discord

AP News: Fed’s Powell repeats warning about tariffs as some GOP senators accuse him of bias

Contraband Camp: How the Growth of AI is Endangering the Health of Black People

Manny Faces Book

HHCSA Discord

Silent Knight

SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)

Tunde Adebimpe: Thee Black Boltz

Goose: Everything Must Go

Matt Berninger: Get Sunk

Max for MTN

Buy UNFTR Coffee

NPR: Chew On This: Is It Chomping Or Champing?

UNFTR Resources

Zohran Mamdani Has Already Won.

Video: Zohran Mamdani Already Won: Leading the Race & the Way

Max for MTN: Why Zohran Won the NYC Primary

Mamdani’s Mayoral Bid Exposes the Real Threat to NYC

The Economics of Racism.

Video: The Economics of Racism.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

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Zohran Mamdani Has Already Won: Leading the Race and Leading the Way.

Mon, 23 Jun 2025 21:08:08 +0000

We’re only a day away from the New York City Democratic Primary for mayor and early voting turnout is the largest in years. No matter what happens, Zohran Kwame Mamdani has already won the race. Mamdani’s candidacy has galvanized the national media in a way that a local primary race has rarely ever done. CNN, MSNBC, Zeteo, Hasan Piker, MeidasTouch, Pod Save America, The Breakfast Club, Bulwark Podcast and, of course, UNFTR (ahem) have all featured Mamdani. In some ways, he might be even more popular as a national political figure among leftists than he is among New York City voters. We’ll find out in a matter of days. There are those, however, who see this race as an isolated case and in no way a bellwether in a broader political sense. They would be wrong.

Chapters

Intro: 00:40

Post Show Musings: 00:19:10

Outro: 00:46:37

Resources

The City: Who Votes the Most in New York? West Siders, Older People and College Grads

POLITICO: Mario Cuomo was disappointed, 'homo' signs or not

Zohran For NYC

Emerson Polling: New York City 2025 Mayoral Poll: Mamdani Surges into Second, Cuomo Holding Lead One Month Out

Emerson Polling: New York City Mayoral Poll: Mamdani Catches Cuomo In Rank Choice Voting

FairVote: Ranked Choice Voting

UNFTR Resources

Phone A Friend: Zohran Mamdani.

Video: Zohran for NYC Mayor: The Democratic Socialist Taking Over Gotham

Video: Zohran Mamdani Already Won: Leading the Race & the Way

FMF Day Sale through June 30

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Trump Accounts: A Drop in the Leaky Bucket.

Thu, 19 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Trump is touting his new “Trump Accounts” plan as part of the Big Beautiful Bill Act. The plan would provide $1,000 to every baby born in America between 2025 and 2029 in a tax deferred account that allows matching each year of up to $5,000. It’s a way to encourage savings at a young age and works similar to the successful 529 education funds, but there are key differences. Today we dissect the plan and reveal how it’s mostly political theater. It’s another giveaway to Wall Street that increases inequality because of the way it’s structured. But there’s another reason why the GOP is so keen to pass this plan that has nothing to do with making babies rich, and everything to do with erasing entitlements.

Pulling Apart the GOP Budget.

Resources

Congress: H.R.1 - One Big Beautiful Bill Act

MarketWatch Guides: How Much Is the Average American Saving?

UNFTR Resources

Video: Why is Trump Giving Babies $1000 Just For Being Born?

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Show Notes.

Tue, 17 Jun 2025 18:06:58 +0000

Max and 99 return to answer Unf*cker emails, talk Discord episode topic suggestions, and cover current events. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:09:10

Discord: 00:24:09

Emails: 00:59:40

Memberships: 01:36:38

Outro: 01:37:59

Resources

FMF Day Deals

Politico: Mamdani surges in new poll, leading Cuomo for first time in New York mayor’s race

Video: Zohran for NYC Mayor: The Democratic Socialist Taking Over Gotham

Maintenance Phase: The Bulletproof Diet

AP: RFK Jr. is targeting ultraprocessed foods. What are they, and are they bad for you?

Bryant Research: A Drop in the Bucket: Comparing the Water Footprint of AI and The Cattle Industry

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Protests in LA: Posse Comitatus is Long Over.

Sat, 14 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Donald Trump overrode Governor Gavin Newsom to federalize the California National Guard to police the streets of Los Angeles. Protests over ICE’s deportation tactics are growing, prompting the Trump administration to leverage extreme authority over the protests, with Pentagon head Pete Hegseth warning that he will call in the Marines if necessary. All of this calls into question the limits of presidential authority in domestic civil disturbances and whether Posse Comitatus is still the law of the land. While it’s still on the books, it has been effectively gutted over the past 30 years by multiple administrations through procedural changes to the U.S. Code that have gone largely unnoticed.

AP News: What to know about the protests over Trump's immigration crackdown in LA and other cities

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:52

Chapter One: Defining Presidential Authority. 00:03:15

Chapter Two: Timeline to Total Authority. 00:09:45

Chapter Three: Handing the Keys to the “Fascist in Chief.” 00:16:08

Epilogue: De Facto Nullification of Posse Comitatus. 00:18:48

Post Show Musings: 00:21:01

Resources

Public Intelligence: DoD Directive 3025.12 Military Assistance for Civil Disturbances (MACDIS)

Department of Defense: DoDI 3025.21, February 27, 2013, Incorporating Change 1 on February 8, 2019

Gov Info: Federal Register, Volume 78 Issue 71 (Friday, April 12, 2013)

Department of Defense: DoD Directive 3025.12

POLITICO: Newsom blasts deployment of National Guard to LA as ‘purposefully inflammatory’

TIME: Trump Sparks Backlash Ordering National Guard to LA Protests

U.S. Code: Positive Law Codification

Legal Information Institute: 19 U.S. Code § 1677 - Definitions; special rules

U.S. Code: uscode.house.gov

The New York Times: Newsom Criticizes Hegseth for Saying Marines Could be Mobilized in California

Legal Information Institute: 18 U.S. Code § 1385 - Use of Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Space Force as posse comitatus

Bonnie Baker: The Origins of the Posse Comitatus

NPR: Trump expands military use at the southern border. Are there legal limits?

UNFTR Resources

Video: LA Protests: Is this the END OF POSSE COMITATUS?

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Job Report Is a Lie: The Labor Market Is Falling Apart.

Thu, 12 Jun 2025 20:28:22 +0000

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics the United States added 139,000 “non-farm payroll jobs” in the month of May, 2025. These figures came in close to what experts projected and depending upon one’s ideological perspective, it was either evidence of economic strength and resilience under Trump or a sign of a slowing job market as a result of Trump’s tariff policies and economic uncertainty. What the mainstream media didn’t cover as much were the prior month revisions, or how the demographic shifts are artificially boosting labor participation numbers. With an economic slowdown on the horizon, AI already taking entry-level jobs, recent graduates having trouble finding employment, a quarter of the population participating in the gig economy and an aging population, there is trouble brewing. And some of it is already here.

CNN: AI company’s CEO issues warning about mass unemployment

Resources

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Employment Situation Summary - 2025 M05 Results

Tulane: Importance of Data Collection in Public Health

Common Dreams: Hitler’s First 100 Days — And Trump’s

St. Louis Fed: Labor Force Participation Rate (CIVPART)

St. Louis Fed: Labor Force Participation Rate - 25-54 Yrs. (LNU01300060)

St. Louis Fed: Labor Force Participation Rate - 55 Yrs. & over (LNS11324230)

AARP: Are the Last Boomers Ready for Retirement?

Gig Economy Data Hub: How many gig workers are there?

US Census Bureau: Demographic Turning Points for the United States: Population Projections for 2020 to 2060

UNFTR Resources

Iceberg. Dead Ahead.

Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse.

5NN

Video: 2025 Jobs Data is Total BULLSH*T

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pulling Apart the GOP Budget: Red States and Deficits.

Sat, 07 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

We’re experimenting with something. As we work toward a complete breakdown of the federal budget in a comprehensive essay and companion episode, we’re bringing our audience into the content creation process. We have a feeling this is going to be one of our behemoth entries into the canon (and potentially a two-parter.) So rather than overwhelm everyone with information in one shot, we thought it would be useful to break it apart as we go. The first two entries made it to YouTube already but I’m packaging them up in a single episode today. The first is how the GOP budget disproportionately impacts red states. And not in a good way. The second brings us back to our Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) discussions and reframes the way we think about the national debt. Both are crucial building blocks in our understanding of the federal budget.

NACO: U.S. House passes reconciliation bill: What it means for counties

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Red State: Fucked. 00:01:30

We Solved the Debt Crisis: 00:06:39

Post Show Musings: 00:21:49

Outro: 00:25:05

Resources

Congress: H.R.1 - 119th Congress (2025-2026): One Big Beautiful Bill Act

Bipartisan Policy Center: Federal Balancing Act

White House: Fiscal Year 2026 Discretionary Budget Request

Jacobin: Trump’s Budget: Starving Everything Except the Military

Bloomberg Television: Millstein on US Downgrade, Tariffs, Trump Tax Bill

PBS News: What’s inside the House GOP’s budget bill? Here’s a look

Congress: H.Con.Res.14

PGPF: Chart Pack: The U.S. Budget

PGPF: What Is Budget Reconciliation?

The Conference Board: Reforming the Broken Federal Budget Process

Bipartisan Policy Center: What’s in the FY2025 Senate Budget Resolution

Georgetown CCF: Medicaid and CHIP Cuts in the House-Passed Reconciliation Bill Explained

Reuters: US Treasuries: Who owns US debt?

UNFTR Resources

Updated Tax Evasion Figures.

Stock Buybacks Surge.

Video: GOP Spending Bill is a Red State Bloodbath

Video: Big Bullsh*t Bill adds $2.4 trillion to National Debt

5NN

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Credit Risk: The Looming U.S. Credit Crisis.

Sat, 31 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

How much credit risk is in the market? Equities get the headlines but the world runs on credit. Jamie Dimon recently declared that credit was a “bad risk” on the heels of Moody’s downgrading the U.S. credit rating and a spike in the 10 Year Treasury yield. Suddenly, the boring old credit and bond markets are all the rage on the financial news channels, and it goes much deeper than treasuries. Today’s episode examines the scope of the global credit market and unpacks the difference between the systemic threat posed in the global financial crisis (GFC) and the looming credit crisis today. And, it shows how the big corporations prepared for the gathering storm by rewriting the rules of the game after the GFC. The big guys are fairly insulated from any sort of looming credit shock, but the rest of us are pretty much toast.

MBA: Mortgage Delinquencies Increase Slightly in the First Quarter of 2025

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:00

Post Show Musings: 00:28:25

Outro: 00:33:39

Resources

Moody’s: Moody’s Ratings downgrades United States ratings to Aa1 from Aaa; changes outlook to stable

Federal Reserve Bank of New York: Household Debt and Credit Report

Federal Reserve Bank of New York: The Labor Market for Recent College Graduates

Coleman Report: Small Business Loan Defaults Expected to Peak Next Year

Offshoring

Lincoln International LLC: Q1 2025 Lincoln Private Market Index™

Investopedia: Payment-in-Kind (PIK): What It Is, How It Works, Pros and Cons

Axios: Americans are behind on car payments at a record level

HBR: U.S. Commercial Real Estate Is Headed Toward a Crisis

J.P. Morgan Private Bank U.S.: Municipal Bonds: Back in the Spotlight

U.S. Department of the Treasury: Treasury International Capital Data for March

Everything Policy: Where are the key Panama Papers figures, seven years later?

Secondaries Investor: Yale sells up to $6bn of its PE portfolio amid federal funding challenge

NBER: The Offshore World According to FATCA: New Evidence on the Foreign Wealth of U.S.

Peter Lang Publishing: Hip Hop Can Save America!

UNFTR Episode Resources

The U.S. Dollar and 10 Year Treasury.

Updated Tax Evasion Figures.

Video: Credit Risk: The looming U.S. Credit Crisis

UNFTR 5 Non-Negotiables

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President Pete Buttigieg: Not What We Need.

Thu, 29 May 2025 17:45:56 +0000

Pete Buttigieg is a legitimate star in the Democratic Party. Having moved his family to Michigan there was speculation that he might run for the governor’s office or become a Senator. But he turned down both options and instead set his sights on the 2028 Presidential election. In addition to making the rounds on multiple cable shows and podcasts to help rehabilitate the image of the Democratic Party, he recently held a massive town hall in Iowa, where he was victorious in the 2020 Caucus. But who is Pete Buttigieg and why do so many people consider him a frontrunner for the Democratic ticket in ‘28? His experience as a small city mayor and single term as Transportation Secretary in the Biden Administration would still make him one of the least experienced candidates in U.S. history. So why all the attention?

Resources

Win The Era PAC

Washington Examiner: Buttigieg high school essay praised Sanders as courageous for calling himself ‘Socialist’

UNFTR Resources

Video: The Case AGAINST Buttigieg in 2028

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Stock Buybacks Surge: Another Red Flag for the U.S. Economy.

Tue, 27 May 2025 20:10:14 +0000

Corporations announced a staggering $233.8 billion in stock buybacks in April, the second-highest monthly total ever recorded. But unlike previous buyback bonanzas, this isn’t a sign of economic strength or corporate confidence. Quite the opposite. Are buybacks just one big shell game or are they fiscally prudent? Corporate stock buybacks have inspired great debate since a Reagan era tax law change and a Clinton era deal sweetener. On the one hand they have enriched shareholders and made executives extremely wealthy. On the other hand, the growth in buybacks mean companies aren’t investing in innovation, workers, or expansion. Let’s talk about it.

Resources

Longtermtrends: S&P 500 PE Ratio

FRED: Quarterly Financial Report: U.S. Corporations: All Information: Total Cash on Hand and in U.S. Banks

BNN Bloomberg: Corporate America plans record stock buybacks as turmoil mounts – BNN Bloomberg

Bipartisan Policy Center: How the U.S. Taxes Stock Buybacks and Dividends

Congress.gov: Stock Buybacks: Concerns over Debt-Financing and Long-Term Investing

Federal Reserve Bank of Boston: The Great Leverage 2.0? A Tale of Different Indicators of Corporate Leverage

Penn Wharton: Raise the Excise Tax Rate on Stock Repurchases

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP: Newly Proposed Regulations on Stock Buyback Excise Tax Largely Adopt Approach From Initial IRS Guidance

The New Republic: Bill Clinton Created This Terrible Corporate Loophole. Will Hillary Close It?

ProPublica: The Executive Pay Cap That Backfired

Harvard: Short-Termism And Capital Flows

Roosevelt Institute: Regulating Stock Buybacks: The $6.3 Trillion Question

ICIJ: The Panama Papers: Exposing the Rogue Offshore Finance Industry

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OPEC, Oh Sh*t! Crude Oil Tanks as OPEC+ Floods the Market.

Sat, 24 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Crude Oil tanks as OPEC+ floods the market with product. Russia and Saudi Arabia just did the unthinkable by announcing that they’re increasing output by 411,000 barrels per day starting in June. With demand forecasts going down every day as the world braces for a Trump induced global recession, it’s the exact opposite move from what everyone expected. This episode tackles what this means for the economy, the future of energy, Trump’s tariff gambit, inflation and unemployment.

Peak Oil: It's a Crude, Crude World.

Resources

OPEC

OilPrice.com

U.S. EIA: Advances in technology led to record new well productivity in the Permian Basin in 2021

EnergyNews: OPEC maintains its forecast for oil demand growth in 2025 and 2026

Reuters: US agrees to sell Saudi Arabia $142 billion arms package

Responsible Statecraft: Lobby Horse: Trump’s ‘trillion dollar' visit to Saudi Arabia

Deloitte: 2025 Renewable Energy Industry Outlook

World Economic Forum: 5 trends shaping the energy world in 2025

AInvest: JPMorgan Cuts 2025 Oil Price Forecasts 12% on Weak Demand, OPEC+ Output

ExxonMobil: ExxonMobil Announces First-Quarter 2025 Results

Reuters: OPEC output hikes, trade wars have US oil producers wary of 'drill baby drill'

Trading Economics: United States Exports By Category

St. Louis Fed: Breakeven Fiscal Oil Price for Saudi Arabia (SAUPZPIOILBEGUSD)

UNFTR Episode Resources

Bitcoin & Crude Oil.

The Energy Independence Myth.

Iceberg. Dead Ahead.

Video: Oil Prices TANK as OPEC Floods the Market

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The End of Capitalism: A Journey Into the Unknown.

Sat, 17 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Is this the end of Capitalism? If so, what comes next? Does it even matter what we call it? Today Max pauses to reflect on the speed and totality of damage wrought by the Trump administration, and whether it’s bringing about the end of Capitalism on purpose in order to return to a state reminiscent of the industrial era when the working class lived to serve the elite and the poor thrown to the streets.

Resources

Marketplace: Higher income Americans drive bigger share of consumer spending

Book Love

Jacob Riis: How the Other Half Lives

UNFTR Resources

YouTube: The End of Capitalism: What comes next is worse.

YouTube: Phone A Friend: Yanis Varoufakis

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Show Notes [Mixed Bag.]

Tue, 13 May 2025 04:42:09 +0000

Max and 99 return from their Show Notes hiatus to discuss the 5 Non-Negotiables, global events, and share some genuinely insightful tangents (for a change lol). Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:21

Discord Comments: 00:06:46

5NN: 00:10:04

Emails: 00:33:34

Memberships: 01:58:40

Outro: 02:01:41

Resources

Only 3 days left in our Spring Fund, Friend, and Hell Raiser! Become a member today.

Subscribe to the YouTube Channel.

Visit our 5NN homepage.

Save PBS and NPR!

Unf*cker Recommendations

Sarah Smarsh: Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth

Timothy Snyder: On Tyranny Graphic Edition: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century

Jason Stanley: How Fascism Works:The Politics of Us and Them

Ilan Pappe: A Very Short History of the Israel–Palestine Conflict

Sayash Kapoor + Arvind Narayanan: AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What It Can't, and How to Tell the Difference

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Bitcoin & Crude Oil: How Speculators Feast on America’s Carcass.

Sat, 10 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Market speculation into commodities like Bitcoin and Crude oil pose dangerous risks during the best of times. Heading into a recession, the stakes are even higher. The temptation to participate during volatile periods is a psychological phenomenon that takes hold among casual investors who rarely realize when they’re part of an institutional con. When leveraged institutions are in desperate need of liquidity they’ll stop at nothing to game the system. In this episode, Max offers a cautionary tale of speculative behavior in the crude oil markets during the financial crisis that very few people even know about. He then connects it to the dangers posed to investors who dabble in digital currencies like Bitcoin, especially under a pro-crypto Trump administration.

Forbes: ‘Worse Than 2008’—Bitcoin Price Braced As Billionaire Ray Dalio Warns Of ‘Monetary Order Breakdown’

Resources

Forbes: ‘Big Catalyst’—Serious Fed Warning Spurs Huge BlackRock Bitcoin Price Prediction

NPR: What to know about Trump's 'crypto strategic reserve' plan

Yahoo Finance: Donald Trump’s 29-year-old crypto guru lays out the president’s plans for regulating crypto and rolling back a Biden-era crackdown

Pillsbury Law: Trump 2.0: A New Era for the Regulation of Cryptocurrency and Digital Assets

SDLC Corp: Stablecoins: Characteristics, How They Work, Functionality, and Use Cases

Bitpanda Academy: Meme Coins: Definition & Characteristics

St. Edward’s University: What Are the Exchange Coins

The Digital Chamber: Why is Bitcoin a Commodity?

Investopedia: Is Crypto a Commodity? What It Means, Examples

Book Love

Dan Dicker: Oil's Endless Bid: Taming the Unreliable Price of Oil to Secure Our Economy

Emily Lambert: The Futures: The Rise of the Speculator and the Origins of the World's Biggest Markets

Peter Maass: Crude World

Leah McGrath Goodman: The Asylum: Inside the Rise and Ruin of the Global Oil Market

UNFTR Episode Resources

Peak Oil: It’s a Crude, Crude World.

The U.S. Dollar and 10 Year Treasury: Why Economists Are Freaking the F*ck Out.

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Iceberg. Dead Ahead: Tariff Chaos, Shadow Repo and Liquidity Crisis.

Fri, 09 May 2025 03:52:17 +0000

There’s a hidden market that might crash the economy in 2025. Tariff chaos. Leverage in the Repo Market. A burgeoning liquidity crisis. There’s an iceberg, dead ahead, only we can’t see below the surface to know how big it is. In this episode Max takes a big swing at the existential crisis brewing in the financial markets. Trump’s tariffs, declining economic data and slumping global demand will potentially neutralize half of the Fed’s crisis response arsenal. The logical and expected response to what is shaping up to be a catastrophic summer is the “Fed Put.” In other words, another bailout. But if the Fed looks to expand its balance sheet to accomplish this during a liquidity crisis, will the buyers of U.S. debt show up? Inflation and a weak dollar, frayed nerves in the bond market and more reckless behavior coming out of the White House could cause a run on the big banks and other firms that live in the “shadow repo” market leaving the Fed balancing the world on its shoulders.

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Resources

Apollo Global Management: How are US consumers and firms responding to tariffs?

LendingTree: BNPL Tracker: 41% of Users Late in Past Year

The Fed: What Happened in Money Markets in September 2019?

Brookings Papers on Economic Activity: Treasury Market Dysfunction and the Role of the Central Bank

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#5NN: This is How We Win. The 5 Non-Negotiables of the Left.

Sat, 26 Apr 2025 04:00:00 +0000

This is how we win. This is the closing argument of the project to build the foundation of the people’s platform and take over the Democratic Party: The 5 Non-Negotiables of the Left. Three to earn the trust of the American people to win back the country, and two to salvage our democracy and our planet. The Trump administration is the culmination of a 70 year neoliberal plan to divide the population and place the wealth of the nation and levers of power into the hands of the few.

The dystopian doctrine that drives this agenda is rooted in fear born from economic precarity. As such, the opposite holds true as well. Everything positive is attainable when a population lives in economic security and has satisfied the most basic human needs. We need a politics centered on achieving this goal before we can broaden our horizon. To accomplish this we have to use the tools at our disposal, which means we have to take over most functional political apparatus available: The Democratic Party. Our contribution to this plan is simply to provide structure and clarity. This is how we win.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:30

Non-Negotiable #1: 00:26:16

Non-Negotiable #2: 00:28:14

Non-Negotiable #3: 00:30:04

Non-Negotiable #4: 00:31:59

Non-Negotiable #5: 00:33:56

The People's Platform: 00:36:22

Get Involved: 00:37:50

UNFTR Episode Resources

Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse: Non-Negotiable #2.

Medicare for All: Non-Negotiable #3.

Election Integrity: Getting Money Out of Politics: Non-Negotiable #4.

Climate Action: Non-Negotiable #5.

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Show Notes [A Special Visit]

Sat, 19 Apr 2025 04:00:00 +0000

We have a special edition of Show Notes today! In a rare occurrence, Max, Manny and 99 were all in the same place and they took to the mics to mark the occasion. Enjoy!

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The U.S. Dollar and 10 Year Treasury: Why Economists Are Freaking the F*ck Out.

Thu, 17 Apr 2025 19:43:19 +0000

Are there hidden market patterns that signal massive economic change? A weak dollar and rising yield on the ten year treasuries sent Wall Street into panic mode over fears that Trump was torching the global economy with his tariff wars. Since 1945 the U.S. dollar has been the bedrock of the global economy. Trump’s reckless behavior has allies and enemies alike wondering if this is the end of U.S. hegemony in the world. Last week when the dollar and ten year treasury yield briefly split, the global bond market suddenly came into focus and was on everyone’s radar. This episode boils down the jargon to explain what’s going on and why everyone freaked out. Ultimately, while we may not tear down the global order, there’s no question that we won’t restore faith in the U.S. Dollar and economy until Trump is out of office.

Access the episode Show Notes.

Resources

Compound Real Estate Bonds: Bond Vigilantes: Definition, Role & Impact on Markets

EWA: The Relationship Between US Dollar Index and US 10 Year Treasury Bond

Investopedia: Bonds: Treasury Yields and Interest Rates

CNBC: Investors are growing concerned about a U.S. asset exodus as Treasurys and the dollar decline

Privalgo: The relationship between bond yields and currencies

ScienceDirect: International capital flows and U.S. interest rates

St. Louis Fed: Nominal Broad U.S. Dollar Index (DTWEXBGS)

St. Louis Fed: Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 10-Year Constant Maturity, Quoted on an Investment Basis (DGS10)

Darden Report Online: What the Sell-Off in Treasuries Means for Your Mortgage

The Washington Post: Fact Check: Has Trump declared bankruptcy four or six times?

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Phone A Friend: Zohran Mamdani. Meet the Democratic Socialist Candidate Making Waves in NYC’s Mayoral Race.

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 19:54:35 +0000

We have a cool one for you today, a conversation with New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. Currently, Mamdani is a member of the New York State Assembly. He’s a Democratic Socialist running in the Democratic primary against a pretty busy slate of contenders, and he’s polling second to former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who only recently entered the race. Now Mamdani was the first candidate to hit the fundraising threshold for city matching funds—setting it in record time—and doing it primarily through small dollar donations. His campaign is extremely organized, and it’s galvanized New Yorkers in every borough with a stunning clarity of message. Now, in many ways, to us, at least, Zohran has captured the zeitgeist as it feels like his campaign is a proxy for the discontent felt not just in urban areas, but throughout the country. So it’s our great pleasure to welcome to the show Zohran Mamdani.

Resources

Zohran for NYC Website

UNFTR Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Access the transcript.

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Trump is Singlehandedly Manifesting Stagflation.

Sat, 05 Apr 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Probably the scariest, most dreaded term in economics is stagflation. Those who lived through the crisis in the 1970s can attest to this. In short, stagflation is defined as a period of low-to-no economic growth combined with high unemployment and high inflation. It’s a deadly recipe that took extraordinary measures to break the last time we experienced this phenomenon, and the method used back then is still highly contested territory.

If you’ve heard the term more often in recent months, it’s because some economists are beginning to fear a resurgence of stagflation due to the policies of the Trump administration. So today we’re doing a very deep dive into the economy to discuss the differences between now and the crisis of the ‘70s and show how Trump might be singlehandedly pushing us into an entirely new and preventable stagflation crisis.

Access the Show Notes online.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:00

The Phillips Curve: 00:03:34

Unemployment and Labor: 00:17:18

Trump's Conundrum: 00:20:05

Time to Rewind: 00:24:53

Lessons and Insights: 00:30:19

Post Show Musings: 00:42:28

Outro: 00:54:13

Resources

Investopedia: What Is Stagflation, What Causes It, and Why Is It Bad?

The New York Times: Strong Dollar vs. Weak Dollar

Office of the Historian: Oil Embargo, 1973–1974

Federal Reserve History: The Great Inflation

NBER: The Nixon Shock after Forty Years: The Import Surcharge Revisited Douglas A. Irwin Working Paper 17749

FRED: Personal Saving Rate

FRED: New Privately-Owned Housing Units Started: Total Units

FRED: Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Food in U.S. City Average

BIG by Matt Stoller

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Energy Independence Myth.

Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse. Non-Negotiable #2.

The Global Order of Money: How Exactly Does It Make the World Go ’Round?

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Show Notes [Climate Action.]

Sat, 22 Mar 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Fresh off the heels of our fifth and final Non-Negotiables of the Left series, 99 and I spent some time in the studio reviewing feedback from the UNFTR audience. While I stomped my feet like a toddler, 99 was able to finally get me under control and a productive conversation ensued.

The upshot is that the feedback was fairly muted, with most of you signaling that the Climate Trust is out of step with the other four Non-Negotiables. While I stand by the concept of Social Security for the planet and the funding mechanism behind the idea, I hear you. In the consolidated episode that will serve as the baseline for our curriculum moving forward, I’m making notes and adjustments to improve this perspective.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails + Comments: 00:16:25

Memberships: 01:23:13

Outro: 01:25:42

Resources

Spring Fund, Friend, and Hell Raiser: Become a UNFTR Member or donate today, and subscribe to us on YouTube

The Ezra Klein Show: Democrats Need to Face Why Trump Won

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Climate Trust: Non-Negotiable #5.

UNFTR Non-Negotiables.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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Climate Action: Non-Negotiable #5.

Sat, 15 Mar 2025 04:00:00 +0000

This is the final installment of our 5 Non-Negotiables of the Left series where we detail three short-term goals to take back the country and two long-term fights that must be waged for the sake of our democracy and the planet. This fifth entry speaks to the now back-burnered but ever-present threat to life on this planet: Climate change. This is the most difficult case we’ll make to you.

We expect pushback and disappointment at first but if we do our job, we’ll shift you to acknowledgement and resolve. This fifth Non-Negotiable isn’t for us. It’s for someone you might know, but more than likely it’s for someone you’ll never meet. We present the establishment of The Climate Trust: Social Security for the Planet.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:57

Chapter One: Diet, Exercise and Nuclear Power. 00:01:25

Chapter Two: The Social Cost of Carbon. 00:06:21

Chapter Three: Settling into Reality. 00:10:37

Chapter Four: We’ve Known It All Along. 00:17:55

Non-Negotiable #5: The Climate Trust. 00:26:36

Post Show Musings: 00:30:30

Outro: 01:23:22

Resources

IPCC: Summary for Policymakers — Special Report on Climate Change and Land

Institute for Policy Integrity: Gauging Economic Consensus on Climate Change

The Center for Climate & Security: Chronology of Military and Intelligence Concerns About Climate Change

World Economic Forum: This is How Climate Change Could Impact The Global Economy

Swiss Re: World economy set to lose up to 18% GDP from climate change if no action taken, reveals Swiss Re Institute's stress-test analysis

The New York Times: 40 Million People Rely on the Colorado River. It’s Drying Up Fast.

The Black Vault: Global Climate Change Implications for the U.S. Navy

Thomas Malthus: On the Principle of Population

United Nations: Food Systems Summit

United Nations: Secretary-General’s Chair Summary and Statement of Action on the UN Food Systems Summit

US EPA: Global Greenhouse Gas Overview

Penn State: Plant-Based Diet

Rodale Institute: Farming Systems Trial

Coller FAIRR Protein Producer Index

The EAT-Lancet Commission on Food, Planet, Health

Energy Education: Discovery of the greenhouse effect

APS: August 1856: Eunice Foote Concludes That Carbon Dioxide Could Warm the Atmosphere, Three Years Before John Tyndall Did

DQYDJ: Income Percentile Calculator for the United States

Eunice Foote: Circumstances Affecting the Heat of the Sun’s Rays

CNA: National Security and the Threat of Climate Change

GovInfo: National Security Implications of Global Climate Change to 2030

U.S. Department of Defense: Department of Defense 2014 Climate Change Adaptation Roadmap

Global Monitoring Laboratory: Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

UNIDO: HCFC Phase-Out

PBS NewsHour: Antarctic ozone hole believed to be shrinking

Book Love

James Howard Kunstler: The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of Oil, Climate Change, and Other Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Cent

Cass R. Sunstein: Climate Justice: What Rich Nations Owe the World—and the Future

Tad Delay: Future of Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change

Nicoletta Batini: The Economics of Sustainable Food: Smart Policies for Health and the Planet

Mark Bittman: Animal, Vegetable, Junk: A History of Food, from Sustainable to Suicidal: A Food Science Nutrition History Book

Michael T. Klare: All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon's Perspective on Climate Change

Lester R. Brown: Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization

John Tyndall: Heat Considered as a Mode of Motion

William Stanley Jevons: The Coal Question

UNFTR Resources

Building the Climate Industrial Complex.

The Montreal Protocol.

Phone A Friend: Tad Delay.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

UNFTR Non-Negotiables.

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Trump Unhinged and Third Parties.

Sat, 08 Mar 2025 05:00:00 +0000

This week is an attempt to organize disparate content pieces from the past few weeks. Thoughts on third parties, Trump’s address to the joint session of Congress (which we mistakenly referred to as the State of the Union, oops!), notes on the final non-negotiables and random thoughts Max is working through. We’ve got a mashup of sorts on our hands so prepare for a bit of rambling.

Resources

UNFTR Non-Negotiables

Associated Press: Elissa Slotkin delivers Democratic response to Trump’s speech

Britannica: United States presidential election of 1912

Time: How Ross Perot Changed Political Campaigns

LWV: The League's History Sponsoring Presidential Debates

The Commission on Presidential Debates

Tampa Bay Times: Nader, Buchanan kept out of debate

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Election Integrity: Getting Money Out of Politics. Non-Negotiable #4.

Sat, 22 Feb 2025 05:00:00 +0000

The movement to get money out of politics will take a very long time. I know people don’t want to hear that. My guess is, in the best case scenario, we’re looking at 20 years. Best case. If it makes you feel any better, the movement to get money into politics took 181 years so by that measure, two decades to unravel what took 181 to build isn’t all that bad. Either we’re committed to playing the long game or not. The assholes that got us here were.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:33

Chapter One: Non-Negotiable #4. 00:01:11

Chapter Two: The Long and Winding Road to Citizens United. 00:07:05

Chapter Three: Media Complicity. The Revolution Was Already Televised. 00:16:46

Chapter Four: Defying Its Creator. The Tale of Mitch McGolem. 00:20:43

Bring it Home, Max: 00:28:47

Post Show Musings: 00:37:13

Outro: 01:11:09

Resources

OpenSecrets: Money-in-Politics Timeline

Brennan Center for Justice: Since Citizens United, a Decade of Super PACs

Cambridge University: Dark Parties: Unveiling Nonparty Communities in American Political Campaigns

De Gruyter: Television Advertising in the 2022 Midterms

De Gruyter: Digital Advertising in the 2022 Midterms

Bowdoin College: Government Scholar Michael Franz on Impact of Ads during the 2024 Election Cycle

Brennan Center for Justice: Life Tenure for U.S. Supreme Court Justices Is a Global Oddity with Clear Costs

Ballotpedia News: Looking ahead at 2025 ranked-choice voting legislation

Justia: Citizens United v. FEC | 558 U.S. 310 (2010)

Senate: Saving American Democracy Amendment

Constitution Center: Interpretation: The Twenty-Seventh Amendment

American Promise

CampaignFinanceReform.org

Book Love

Adam Jentleson: Kill Switch: The Rise of the Modern Senate and the Crippling of American Democracy

Kermit L. Hall: The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States

UNFTR Episode Resources

Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse.

Medicare for All.

Project 2025.

What’s the Deal with Peter Thiel?

“Russputin” and the Tsar.

Convention of States.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Show Notes [Misc.]

Sun, 16 Feb 2025 22:10:00 +0000

Max and 99 are back for Show Notes! They catch up with some movie talk and dive deep into the Non-Negotiables and hives. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Housekeeping: 00:19:47

Emails: 00:32:20

Memberships: 01:23:32

Outro: 01:24:59

Resources

Join us on Bluesky and Discord

Ken Lefkowitz: Medicare For All: An Economic Rationale

Abdul El-Sayed and Micah Johnson: Medicare For All: A Citizen’s Guide

Unf*cker Recommendations

Michael Bazzell: Extreme Privacy: What It Takes to Disappear

Electronic Frontier Foundation

Kevin Mitnick: The Art of Invisibility + The Art of Deception

The Guardian: US immigration is gaming Google to create a mirage of mass deportations

UNFTR Episode Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

A Civilian Labor Corps.

Medicare For All.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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It Ends With Him: Trump Is the End of Neoliberalism.

Sat, 15 Feb 2025 07:50:14 +0000

Regardless of what happens next in the United States, the American experiment ends with Donald Trump. But Trump is a Trojan Horse. The real dismantling of our systems and norms is embodied by the man he ceded power to, the wealthiest person in the world. Elon Musk is the living avatar of the new corporate colonial era and there’s no going back to the way it was. This administration serves as the capstone to the neoliberal era, which itself was the professional culmination of previous social and political movements such as the John Birch Society and the Know Nothing Party. The only way to stave off economic, social and political collapse is for the left to mount a coordinated counteroffensive to the tech oligarchs who seek to consolidate all of the wealth and power in the world.

Resources

The Globe and Mail: Opinion: Trump’s election is a crisis like no other, not only for the U.S. but the world

Washington Times: Elon Musk: Judge Paul Engelmayer should be impeached for thwarting his DOGE squad - Washington Times

Propublica: Elon Musk’s Boring Company Is Tunneling Beneath Las Vegas With Little Oversight

Planalto: Brazil announces Indonesia as full member of BRICS

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Medicare For All: Non-Negotiable #3.

Sat, 08 Feb 2025 05:00:00 +0000

America’s healthcare system isn’t broken—it’s working exactly as designed. The problem is that it was designed to generate profits, not health outcomes. We spend roughly 20% of our GDP on healthcare, about double what other developed nations spend per capita, yet we have shorter life expectancy, higher infant mortality rates, and leave tens of millions uninsured or underinsured. Medicare for All is the obvious and attainable solution but it has fallen out of mainstream conversation since Biden bested Bernie for the 2020 nomination. Rekindling this spark is vital and should be one of the primary non-negotiables of the Left movement.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:40

Chapter One: Changing the Intent. 00:03:09

Chapter Two: Building the Narrative. 00:07:51

Chapter Three: A System Designed to Fail. 00:11:44

Chapter Four: Understanding Medicare for All. 00:16:34

Bring it Home, Max: 00:24:20

Post Show Musings: 00:28:41

Outro: 00:38:57

Book Love

Ken Lefkowitz: Medicare For All: An Economic Rationale

Abdul El-Sayed and Micah Johnson: Medicare For All: A Citizen’s Guide

Steven Brill: America’s Bitter Pill

Paul Starr: The Social Transformation of American Medicine

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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Extraordinary Cruelty, Ordinary Policy: Immigration and Deportation Under Trump 2.0.

Sat, 01 Feb 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Given the turmoil and disgust surrounding Trump’s shock and awe deportation campaign, we thought it a good time to dig back into the immigration issue and update some of our findings from prior episodes. There’s no question Trump’s ICE is more brutal and seemingly indiscriminate, so we tried to put these efforts in context with prior administrations. Then we zoom out to look at root causes of immigration and the failure of U.S. foreign policy toward the LAC.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:01

Post Show Musings: 00:26:03

Outro: 01:05:29

Resources

Texas Tribune: Trump promised mass deportations. Here’s one way they could quietly happen.

Vox: Removals vs returns: how to think about Obama’s deportation record

Migration Policy Institute: The Biden Administration Is on Pace to Match Trump Deportation Numbers—Focusing on the Border, Not the U.S. Interior

Migration Policy Institute: The Obama Record on Deportations: Deporter in Chief or Not?

Migration Policy Institute: Net Number of Migrants by Country, 1950-2020 (by Five-Year Intervals)

U.S. Department of Justice: Executive Office for Immigration Review Adjudication Statistics

Washington Post: Deportation at ‘light speed’: How Trump’s crackdown could unfold

House of Representatives: Laken Riley Act

U.S. Department of Agriculture: Child Nutrition Programs - National School Lunch Program

Center for Immigration Studies: Mapping the Impact of Immigration on Public Schools

UNFTR Episode Resources

Fox in the Outhouse: Invasion, Immigration & Inflation

Over The Borderline:

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Day One: Max Unfiltered.

Sat, 25 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

We’re through the first two “non-negotiables” of the Left (Housing First and a Civilian Labor Corps) and I’m taking my sweet ass time with the third: Medicare for All. In the meantime, this week’s pod is a compilation of thoughts and writing I’ve done since the inauguration; officially another Max Unfiltered entry into our canon.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:51

Post Show Musings: 00:23:20

UNFTR Episode Resources

Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse.

YouTube: Day One: A Progressive Reaction to Trump's Inauguration

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse. Non-Negotiable #2.

Sat, 18 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Today we’re tackling our second non-negotiable pillar of establishing a Civilian Labor Corps, and the timing couldn’t be more critical. You may have picked up on chatter in the wind about the impending job apocalypse at the hands of artificial intelligence (AI). I’m here to tell you that this is real. It is coming faster and more furiously than you realize, and we are wholly unprepared. This episode breaks down the speed and totality of what’s coming in the AI revolution and speaks to how prominent economists from history through today would manage the impending employment crisis.

Chapters

Prologue: 00:00:43

Introduction: Storm Clouds. 00:03:52

Chapter One: The Coming AI Job Apocalypse. 00:06:52

Chapter Two: Full Employment. 00:20:55

Chapter Three: Breaking from Neoliberal Thinking. 00:28:34

Bring It Home, Max. 00:37:26

Post Show Musings: 00:42:23

Outro: 01:10:58

Watch

YouTube Video: Unpacking the Ceasefire Agreement: Shades of the Iran Hostage Deal. https://youtu.be/Bnfzl1xWumc

Resources

Goldman Sachs: What to expect from AI in 2025: hybrid workers, robotics, expert models

Levy Institute: Working Paper No. 542 Keynes’s Approach to Full Employment: Aggregate or Targeted Demand?

Fisher Phillips: U.S. House Delivers Sweeping AI Report: 10 Biggest Takeaways for Employers

118th Congress: Bipartisan House Task Force on Artificial Intelligence

Congressional Budget Office: Artificial Intelligence and Its Potential Effects on the Economy and the Federal Budget

Congressional Research Service: The Macroeconomic Effects of Artificial Intelligence

Convin: Is AI a Threat to the BPO Industry? AI in BPO Industry Explained

UNFTR Episode Resources

The U.S. Economy: Have we reached a boiling point?

Has “Creative Destruction” Reached Silicon Valley? The Capitalism Trap.

Modern Monetary Theory. Can we afford it? Yes. Yes, we can.

F*ck Milton Friedman. The Chicago school of economics.

Book Love

Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo: Good Economics for Hard Times

Kurt Vonnegut: Player Piano

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Housing First: Non-Negotiable #1.

Sat, 11 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

As is customary, HUD released its annual report on homelessness at the end of 2024. It revealed a startling year-over-year increase in homelessness among individuals and families in the United States. Among the devastating data, there were bright spots such as a decrease in homeless veterans. But the reporting and punditry surrounding the report was less than stellar, and the news was buried in a matter of days. Crucially, some of the worst reporting on HUD’s findings came from left wing media sources who pointed to immigration as one of the drivers of the increase, conveniently and uncritically parroting conservative talking points while ignoring the more pertinent narratives.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:37

Chapter One: A Point in Time. 00:03:12

Chapter Two: Whether Building a Home or a Narrative, Framing Matters. 00:07:39

Chapter Three: Housing First: When Evidence Meets Ideology. 00:17:03

Bring it Home, Max. 00:26:20

Post Show Musings: 00:30:55

Outro: 00:58:21

Resources

HUD: The 2024 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress

Tsemberis, S., & Eisenberg, R. F. (2000). Pathways to Housing: Supported Housing for Street-Dwelling Homeless Individuals with Psychiatric Disabilities

National Alliance to End Homelessness. (2000). A Plan, Not a Dream: How to End Homelessness in Ten Years. Washington, DC

U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness. (2010). *Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness. Washington, DC

Department of Housing and Urban Development. (2014). Housing First in Permanent Supportive Housing Brief

Gillespie, S., et al. (2021). Denver Supportive Housing Social Impact Bond Initiative: Final Outcome Report. Urban Institute

Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. (2019). Housing for Health Year Four Evaluation Report

Wright, B. J., et al. (2016). Health in Housing: Exploring the Intersection between Housing and Health Care. Center for Outcomes Research and Education

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2018). Permanent Supportive Housing: Evaluating the Evidence for Improving Health Outcomes Among People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness

Gubits, D., et al. (2016). Family Options Study: 3-Year Impacts of Housing and Services Interventions for Homeless Families. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

Y-Foundation. (2020). A Home of Your Own: Housing First and Ending Homelessness in Finland

National Alliance to End Homelessness. (2020). Rapid Re-Housing Works: What the Evidence Says

Padgett, D. K., et al. (2016). Housing First: Ending Homelessness, Transforming Systems, and Changing Lives. Oxford University Press

UNFTR Episode Resources

Over The Borderline Series:

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The Online Left is Falling Apart: And That’s Okay.

Sat, 28 Dec 2024 05:00:00 +0000

Max goes back to finish the hat at the close of another year. 2025 has the potential to be one of the most disruptive in living memory. The rapid rollout of Project 2025 initiatives, fireworks spewing from the Trump distraction machine, the brewing onslaught of job losses due to AI and the continuing surge of far-right governments across the globe are significant weather events that could turn to a super storm tsunami if they all take off at once. With no semblance of unity on the left to coalesce in opposition to the gathering storm, we are in for a rough patch. So what will it take to settle in and begin building a strong left again? What can we garner from the splinter of the online left and other lessons from history to formulate a winning strategy to move forward?

Chapters:

Intro: 00:00:16

Chapter One: Digital Natives Come of Age. 00:00:54

Chapter Two: The Online Left: A Digital Tower of Babel. 00:12:36

Chapter Three: Unf*cking the Left. 00:17:19

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes Part Two: [Neoliberalism Borrowed From Lenin.]

Sat, 21 Dec 2024 18:30:34 +0000

This week is another extended Show Notes with Max and 99 who plow through listener feedback and talk extensively about repairing the left in the United States and what UNFTR’s role should be going forward. Next week we’ll release our final episode of the year that digs deeper into the fractured alliances on the online left and what it means for the future of the progressive movement.

Book Love

Charles Wheelan: Naked Economics: Undressing the Dismal Science

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The U.S. Economy: Have we reached a boiling point?

Sat, 14 Dec 2024 07:24:53 +0000

Are we heading into a recession? Did we ever really come out of the last one? Do market fundamentals matter anymore? How did Democrats miss so badly on the economy, leading to the re-election of Donald Trump? Is capitalism collapsing? It’s difficult to get a proper read of the U.S. economy. It’s a giant, complex juggernaut that both relies on global markets and holds them all together. There is no unifying economic or political theory to provide clarity as the biggest economy in world history continues to navigate uncharted territory. Let’s talk about it.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:34

The Stock Market Is Not the Economy: 00:02:25

The U.S. Economy is the Global Economy: 00:04:24

Market Based Economies are Cyclical: 00:05:25

The Rate of Change in the Labor Market is Faster Today: 00:07:52

Inequality is a Condition of Capitalism: 00:11:26

Sentiment is Just as Powerful as Any Data Point: 00:13:32

The Single Biggest Economic Force is Greed: 00:14:02

Cycle Trends: 00:18:40

Enter Trump: 00:31:54

Post Show Musings: 00:36:47

Outro: 00:42:31

Resources

St. Louis Fed: Labor Force Participation Rate

St. Louis Fed: Labor Force Participation Rate - 25-54 Yrs.

Investopedia: Average Retirement Savings by Age: How Do You Compare?

Trading Economics: United States ISM Manufacturing PMI

Federal Reserve Bank Of New York: Household Debt and Credit Report

Education Data: Student Loan Debt Statistics [2024]: Average + Total Debt

Guru Focus: S&P 500 PE Ratio Charts, Data

Oil Price: OPEC+ May Be Facing Long-Term Production Cuts

Center for American Progress: Project 2025’s Tax Plan Would Raise Taxes on the Middle Class and Cut Taxes for the Wealthy

Book Love

John Kenneth Galbraith: The Affluent Society

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“Russputin” and the Tsar: Russell Vought’s Plan To Destroy America.

Sat, 07 Dec 2024 05:00:00 +0000

In this week’s episode we identify the most dangerous man in America that no one is talking about, the tool he is going to use to dismantle government agencies, and what we can learn from three young Republicans who helped the GOP rise from the ashes of the Obama years. Get to know Russell “Russputin” Vought and how he believes he can override Nixon-era legislation to consolidate budget and spending authority within the executive branch.

Chapters

Sketch: 00:00:00

Intro: 00:05:52

Chapter One: 00:08:35

Chapter Two: 00:12:44

Chapter Three: 00:18:08

Post Show Musings: 00:29:06

Outro: 00:41:26

Resources

JSTOR: Democracy and the Welfare State

U.S. House: 2 USC Ch. 17B: Impoundment Control

Politico: Trump says Russell Vought will return as OMB director

Daily Mail: What is net worth of Trump's Cabinet? The staggering wealth of his nominees revealed

The Center for Renewing America: The President’s Constitutional Power of Impoundment

Protect Democracy: The impoundment threat, explained

ProPublica: How Trump Plans to Seize the Power of the Purse From Congress

Democracy Now!: Project 2025 Co-Author Lays Out "Radical Agenda" for Next Trump Term in Undercover Video

UNFTR on Bluesky

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Clinton Years Series.

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Project 2025.

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Show Notes: [Neoliberalism Borrowed From Lenin.]

Thu, 05 Dec 2024 23:29:34 +0000

Max and 99 have tons of Unf*cker feedback on the direction of the show and how to move forward as progressives. So much feedback that they had to split Show Notes into two parts! Stay tuned for next week's episode.

Resources

UNFTR on Bluesky

Boney M.: Rasputin

Reuters: Pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at New York Thanksgiving parade

American Prestige

Unf*cker Recommendations

Philip Mirowski: More Heat Than Light: Economics as Social Physics: Physics as Nature's Economics

Philip Mirowski: Machine Dreams: Economics Becomes a Cyborg Science

Philip Mirowski: Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste: How Neoliberalism Survived the Financial Meltdown

Melinda Cooper: Family Values: Between Neoliberalism and the New Social Conservatism

Gérard Duménil + Dominique Levy: Crisis of Neoliberalism

Gérard Duménil + Dominique Levy: Managerial Capitalism: Ownership, Management, and the Coming New Mode of Production

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Neoliberalism Borrowed From Lenin, Why Can’t We?

Sat, 23 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +0000

This week we go all the way back to the beginning to ruminate about what motivated us to start the podcast in the dark days of the pandemic. We open with a passage from Nancy MacLean’s Democracy in Chains that struck a chord with Max. In it MacLean talks about the early days of the nihilistic libertarian society built by Charles Koch who was himself building upon the work of his father in the John Birch Society. Turns out, Koch and the founders of the neoliberal movement were inspired by the organizing principles of Vladimir Lenin. Let that sink in.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:00

Sketch: 00:01:29

Max’s Moment: 00:06:39

A Discussion: 00:41:19

Outro: 01:27:49

Resources

Nancy MacLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

The Family on Netflix

Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power

Max on Bluesky

UNFTR on YouTube

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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2024 Election: Eulogy and Clarity. What is to be done?

Sat, 16 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +0000

Today we offer a grim and final eulogy to the Democratic Party and the 2024 election. The results were foretold by countless DNC missteps and missed opportunities that the Party remains reluctant to admit to. The next stage in the American experiment is going to be dire and regressive, leaving progressives with two options to move forward: Succumb to the forces of authoritarian rule guided by the corporate class, or build a plan to take control of our democracy after they burn it to the ground. We’re exiting the neoliberal phase of our journey and entering what Stanley Deetz termed “corporate colonialism.” In order to build a strong coalition to jumpstart a new progressive movement, it’s imperative that we focus our efforts on decolonizing America.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Max & 99 Unfiltered: Final Thoughts Before the 2024 Election.

Sat, 02 Nov 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Max and 99 have a Manny-less conversation (Manny on assignment, don’t worry) about the election. It’s a sobering discussion about what’s at stake; they talk Democratic missteps along the way and ask whose idea it was to let Steve Bannon out of prison before the election.

Resources

Join the livestream on Wednesday, 11/6/24 at 8:00 PM EST.

New York Times: Election 2024 Polls: Harris vs. Trump

Middle Aged Dad Jam Band

AP: CNN bans conservative writer after ‘beeper’ comment to Muslim commentator

I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson: Brian’s Hat Full Sketch

I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson: Ghost Tour

I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson: Save Corncob TV

I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson: Door

AP: Crossing against the light? You won’t get ticketed now that jaywalking is legal in NYC

UNFTR Episode Resources

Phone A Friend: Nick Hanauer of Pitchfork Economics.

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The Energy Independence Myth.

Sat, 26 Oct 2024 04:00:00 +0000

This week we focus on a thin slice of the energy pie to disabuse the notion of “energy independence.” When politicians reference this concept they speak narrowly in terms of oil and gas production in the United States. As though if we could somehow pump enough of our own oil specifically, we could break our dependence on foreign nations, especially those villainous bad actors like Russia and Iran. Not only is this talking point an illusion, the framing of it is completely false. For starters, we already pump more oil than we consume. Moreover, we import crude and refined oil from allies.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:00

Post Show Musings: 00:14:42

Outro: 00:20:15

Resources

U.S. Energy Information Administration: What countries are the top producers and consumers of oil?

NRDC: Study Shows 14,000 Unplugged Oil and Gas Wells in Gulf of Mexico

Baker Hughes Rig Count

Marketplace: Why oil companies aren't drilling on those 9,000 land leases

CNN Business: Why oil companies are raking in record profits under Joe Biden

Haas News: Explainer: The myth of 'energy independence'

U.S. Senate Committee On The Budget: Sen. Whitehouse on Fossil Fuel Subsidies: “We Are Subsidizing the Danger”

BLS: Fastest Growing Occupations

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Un-Cooperative: Why Worker Co-Ops Don’t Work in America.

Sat, 19 Oct 2024 04:54:14 +0000

Worker cooperatives are often viewed as part of the solution to beating back capitalism. Yet there are more than 33 million small businesses in the U.S. and less than a thousand worker co-operatives. This week’s episode looks at the different co-op models and the barriers to the growth and success of worker cooperatives in the U.S. as opposed to Europe. We take a look at iconic cooperatives such as the Mondragon Corporation in Spain to the Park Slope Food Co-Op in Brooklyn, NY and explain how everyone can easily support worker co-ops this election day.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:03

Chapter One: Doing the Work. 00:03:52

Chapter Two: Mondragon. 00:11:27

Chapter Three: Cooperatives Models. 00:19:18

Chapter Four: The Food Dude Retires. 00:27:54

Chapter Five: Barriers and Clues. 00:31:20

Bring it home, Max. 00:35:31

Outro: 00:39:29

Resources

Expert Market: The Most Productive Countries in 2024

USDA: More than just a co-op: How Cooperatives Strengthen Economic Power

National Council of Farmer Cooperatives

EOS Data Analytics: Agricultural Cooperatives: Find The Top Co-Ops In The US

Ocean Spray: About Us

Land O’Lakes Inc.

NCBA CLUSA: Healthcare Co-ops

NCUA Quarterly Credit Union Data Summary 2024 Q1

U.S. Small Business Administration: Office of Advocacy: Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business, 2023

Co-op News: Worker co-op sector continues to grow in the USA

Co-opLaw.org: Subchapter T and How Money Flows Through a Cooperative

H.R.7721 - 118th Congress (2023-2024): National Worker Cooperative Development and Support Act

The New York Times: Founder of the Park Slope Food Coop in Brooklyn to Retire After 50 Years

Reuters: Personal Finance: Bank Transfer Day saw 600,000 switch

Bob’s Red Mill: Proudly Employee Owned

Democracy at Work Institute

Democracy at Work (d@w): About Co-ops

MONDRAGON Corporation

U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives: Sen. Bernie Sander’s Address at The Worker Co-op Conference

U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives: Member Directory

The New Yorker: How Mondragon Became the World’s Largest Co-Op

UN: Measuring the Size and Scope of the Cooperative Economy: Results of the 2014 Global Census on Co-operatives

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Unf*cking Flashback: The American Propaganda Machine.

Sat, 12 Oct 2024 04:19:25 +0000

While Max puts the finishing touches on the forthcoming Worker Cooperative episode, we’re replaying an oldie but a goodie called The American Propaganda Machine. We chose this as a complement to our recent discussions surrounding news literacy. We think it holds up pretty well, actually.

On this episode of Unf*cking the Republic we do a deep dive into the American system of propaganda and pull back the curtain on the tangled web of think tanks, lobbying groups, media organizations and corporations that live to fuck over the American people. We’ll demonstrate how dark money works its way through a labyrinth of special interest groups and emerges as public policy that looks and sounds patriotic and helpful but is actually designed to strip away your rights and generate profits for a handful of assholes. And we’ll show how groups like the Heritage Foundation help craft and sell these messages to turn people against their own best interests and make you believe the horse shit they’re peddling.

Resources

The Center for Public Integrity: You elected them to write new laws. They’re letting corporations do it instead.

Book Love

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Election Denials: Asheville, Israel & Inequality.

Sat, 05 Oct 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Time for a Quickie. It’s been months since we put together a quick take on three seemingly unrelated issues. What do a wider Middle East war, U.S. manufacturing as the answer to climate change and dock worker strikes all have to do with one another? Both sides of the political aisle have all the wrong answers and the media are asking all the wrong questions. Max breaks it all down.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:06

Part One: Asheville. 00:00:13

Part Two: Israel. 00:06:36

Part Three: Inequality. 00:10:38

Outro: 00:16:31

Resources

Axios Charlotte: North Carolina is filled with Yankees — maybe more than you think

The New York Times: ‘Climate Havens’ Don’t Exist

BBC: US cities are advertising themselves as 'climate havens'. But can they actually protect residents from extreme weather?

NPR: Climate-fueled flooding in Vermont is causing both worry and adaptation

Marinette County: Tornado and Severe Summer Weather

CBS News: Vice Presidential candidates Walz and Vance spar on energy policy and climate change

CBS News: Israeli strikes in Lebanon decapitate Hezbollah, as civilian deaths mount and ground operation looms

Barron’s: New Tally Puts October 7 Attack Dead In Israel At 1,163

Stimson Center: Israeli Assassinations in Iran and Lebanon Put Iraq’s Stability in Further Peril

The Washington Post: As war widens and costs mount, Israel’s economy is in ‘serious danger’

AP News: Dockworkers may have negotiating advantage in ports strike

Book Love

Tad Delay: Future of Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change

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Show Notes [Meaningless Rage and Outrage on the Debate Stage.]

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 23:31:32 +0000

In this week’s Show Notes Max and 99 catch up in studio to touch on the Libya episode and catch up on recent feedback from Unf*ckers. Plus, they had a therapy session about the state of podcasting and feelings around the election as well. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Libya Chat: 00:19:44

Email + YouTube Feedback: 00:24:21

Memberships: 01:18:03

Reviews: 01:18:28

Outro: 01:19:22

UNFTR Episode Resources

Meaningless Rage and Outrage on the Debate Stage.

The Great Man-Made River Project.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The Great Man-Made River Project: How the U.S. and EU Killed the 8th Wonder of the World.

Wed, 25 Sep 2024 19:40:06 +0000

The Great Man-Made River in Libya was once considered the 8th Wonder of the World. Water was first discovered in the 1960s when oil and gas drilling companies discovered enormous aquifers beneath the desert sands of Libya. 20 years after these discoveries, Libya was under the brutal dictatorship of Muammar Gaddafi who had overthrown the monarchy in 1969. Gaddafi embarked on an ambitious plan to pump water from under the desert into large reservoirs that were connected by pipelines throughout the country. While three of the five planned phases were completed at an estimated cost of $30 billion, the project was halted when Gaddafi was killed in 2011 during the Arab Spring uprisings. This is the fascinating story of a despot who had a grand vision for Islamic pan-Arab nationalism and will forever be linked to one of the greatest engineering feats the world has ever seen; a man who was ultimately betrayed by western “allies” and ironically died as brutally as he ruled at the hands of young Islamic Arab nationalists.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:35

Chapter One: 00:05:11

Chapter Two: 00:09:21

Chapter Three: 00:15:27

Chapter Four: 00:21:57

Chapter Five: 00:32:13

Chapter Six: 00:37:07

Bring it home, Max. 00:44:18

Resources

Water Supply Project: GMR (Great Man-Made River)

Middle East Institute: What’s next for Libya’s Great Man-Made River Project?

What Happened to Libya's Great Man-Made River Project?

GWI: Libya’s $11 billion water lifeline

ScienceDirect Topics: Agricultural Revolution - an overview

Reuters: Libyan leaders agree form new unified government

Al Jazeera: Libya’s High State Council elects new leader as political gridlock deepens

Muammar Gaddafi Interviewed Just Before Libyan Revolution

Moammar Gadhafi Dead Video: Last Moments Alive Caught on Tape in Sirte

Book Love

John Wright: History of Libya

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Meaningless Rage and Outrage on the Debate Stage: A Recap of the Presidential Debate.

Sat, 14 Sep 2024 06:58:41 +0000

Because it’s silly season, we interrupt our regularly scheduled programming once again to provide blow-by-excruciating-blow coverage of the (apparently only) debate between Vice President Harris and former President Donald Trump. While most observers called it a clear victory for Harris who was composed and on message, as opposed to a meanspirited and meandering Trump, the debate was more remarkable for the theatrical nature of the staging and the absence of pertinent questions that could reveal something (anything) of substance for the American people to grab onto.

Resources

Wall Street Journal: Full Debate: Harris vs. Trump in 2024 Presidential Debate

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Eric Schmidt the Bed in Stanford Interview. How Oligarchs Speak (When They Think No One Is Listening).

Sat, 07 Sep 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Have you ever wondered what oligarchs talk about when they think no one is listening? Wonder no more. This week we dissect Eric Schmidt’s recent Q&A at Stanford University where he talks about remote work culture, the future of AI and how big tech intervenes at the highest levels of government. The kicker is…he thought it was private and didn’t realize it was being recorded. Some of his comments regarding the laziness of remote workers and the “arrogance” of the programmer community went viral prompting Schmidt to apologize and scramble to have the video removed. Considering he ran the world’s biggest internet search engine he should have known that nothing ever really disappears. In fact, we dug up his own words from 2013 when he said exactly that. Beyond the comments that got the most attention in the media (for a minute) the conversation reveals much more about the dark side of oligarchy in the United States.

Resources

TechCrunch: Video of Eric Schmidt blaming remote work for Google's woes mysteriously vanishes

The Verge: Ex-Google CEO: AI startups can steal IP, hire lawyers to “clean up the mess”

Digital Music News: Ex-Googler Eric Schmidt on AI — They Steal IP, Then Hire Lawyers

Disconnect: Roundup: Eric Schmidt says the quiet part out loud

TIME: Eric Schmidt: The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2024

Eric Schmidt, Jared Cohen: The New Digital Age: Transforming Nations, Businesses, and Our Lives

Ex-Google CEO's BANNED Interview LEAKED: "You Have No Idea What's Coming"

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Show Notes [Et tu, Krugman?]

Fri, 06 Sep 2024 21:05:41 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max & 99 cover trending headlines, discuss the recent Krugman episode, and hear from a few Unf*ckers with general feedback. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:04:15

YouTube: 00:43:09

Emails: 00:56:54

Memberships: 01:18:33

Outro: 01:18:39

Resources

Shiny Happy People
AP: GOP network props up liberal third-party candidates in key states, hoping to siphon off Harris votes
Fernando Morais: Lula
Binyamin Appelbaum: The Economists' Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society
Thomas Piketty: Capital in the Twenty-First Century
Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
Chris Hedges: Death of the Liberal Class
Howard Zinn: A People's History of the United States
Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power
Bernard Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order
Nancy MacLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

UNFTR Episode Resources

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Et tu, Krugman? New York Times columnist’s horrible take.

Fri, 30 Aug 2024 22:58:25 +0000

I’ve long been an admirer of Paul Krugman of The New York Times as he’s a rational and accessible liberal economist who genuinely seems to have the best interests of the public at heart. But a recent column smacked of establishment rhetoric that bordered on gaslighting. Democrats ignore economic realities at their own peril and while most leftists expect little from sources like The New York Times, Krugman has often risen above partisan talking points making this even more disappointing.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:41

Deconstructing Krugman: 00:03:09

The Dual Mandate is Horseshit: 00:03:09

The Harris Economic Plan: 00:12:52

Post Show Musings: 00:19:09

Resources

The New York Times: What Happened to Inflation?

The New York Times: Warning Signs Flash in a Labor Survey as Fed Officials Watch for Weakness

Trading Economics: United States Average Hourly Wages

Ramsey: The Average American’s Monthly Expenses

The Ascent: Average American Credit Card Debt in 2024

Axios: The most popular grocery stores in the U.S.

Yahoo Finance: Fed confronts up to a million US jobs vanishing in revision

BLS Reports: Characteristics of minimum wage workers, 2022

MacroTrends: S&P 500 PE Ratio - 90 Year Historical Chart

PBS News: Harris has proposed a slew of economic policies. Here’s a look at what’s in them

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Show Notes [Harris v. Trump.]

Sat, 24 Aug 2024 16:22:55 +0000

Max and 99 are back to discuss Harris v. Trump episode feedback, and catch up a bit. A regular episode is coming early this week, so stay tuned!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:19

Emails: 00:03:17

Memberships: 00:43:52

Outro: 00:44:11

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Harris v. Trump. Progressives in the Wind.

Sat, 17 Aug 2024 04:00:00 +0000

UNFTR is back in the swing of things with a snapshot of where the election stands just 80 days from decision time. We look at trends in each of the swing states, how Congressional races are stacking up and which presidential candidate has the advantage in the swing states and on key issues. Max also tackles the media’s breathless pursuit to portray the Harris/Walz ticket as progressive despite the lackluster and surface level DNC platform.

Chapters

Intro: 00:02:09

Support UNFTR: 00:14:37

Post Show Musings: 00:35:00

Outro: 01:07:22

Resources

Democratic Party Platform

CNN: Tim Walz’s political evolution took him from moderate Democrat to progressive champion

New York City Food Policy Center: States that Have Passed Universal Free School Meals (So Far)

World Population Review: Red Flag Laws States 2024

Born Perfect: Conversion Therapy Bans by U.S. State

Movement Advancement Project: Transgender Healthcare "Shield" Laws

DISA: Marijuana Legality By State

Bipartisan Policy Center: State Paid Family Leave Laws Across the U.S.

NCSL: States Offering Driver’s Licenses to Immigrants

NCSL: Felon Voting Rights

UNFTR: Can Progressives Convince Harris To Support These Popular Policies?

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Unf*cking Flashback: What’s the deal with Peter Thiel? Sociopathic billionaire man-child wants to eat the world.

Sat, 03 Aug 2024 04:00:00 +0000

In October of 2022, we released this episode on Peter Thiel. The last line of the story is that he’s a monster. At the time, we were focused on his personal selections and funding of Congressional candidates, one of whom was none other than JD Vance. Far from his purported hillbilly roots, the country quickly came to know that JD is little more than a huckster who grew up pretty well and became a go-to hedge fund guy for Peter Thiel. Amazingly, Thiel is still on the backburner of people’s awareness and given Vance’s sudden rise to VP prominence, it’s important we continue to bring him forward.

I’m not a doctor. But even I can certainly see that Peter Thiel is a sick, sick person. Bright, awkward and successful, Peter Thiel has risen to prominence in American society on the gamble that he can break it. The product of an elitist system who wants to take it down. A gay man who backs candidates that would degrade his civil rights. A hedge fund tech investor who thinks Silicon Valley hasn’t done anything innovative in 50 years. A Trump backer and advisor who walked away when he got what he wanted. Peter Thiel is known as a contrarian, but it may be simpler than that. He might just be a nihilistic asshole.

Chapters

2024 Update: 00:00:00

Intro: 00:01:18

Chapter One: So who the fuck is this guy? 00:05:21

Chapter Two: Where did all his money come from and can I have some? 00:14:26

Chapter Three: We’re all just pawns on Peter’s board 00:22:11

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max. 00:33:11

Post Show Musings: 00:39:09

Outro: 00:46:56

Resources

The Atlantic: Peter Thiel Hates a Copycat

ProPublica: Lord of the Roths: How Tech Mogul Peter Thiel Turned a Retirement Account for the Middle Class Into a $5 Billion Tax-Free Piggy Bank

Founders Fund: Portfolio

The Intercept: How Peter Thiel’s Palantir Helped The Nsa Spy On The Whole World

The Wall Street Journal: Tech Tycoon Peter Thiel Shies From Trump Re-Election Campaign

SEC: Palantir Technologies Inc.

Cato Unbound: The Education of a Libertarian

The Intercept: The New New Right Was Forged in Greed and White Backlash

Daily Beast: Blake Masters’ Views on Gay Marriage May Surprise His Political Master Peter Thiel

Book Love

Max Chafkin: The Contrarian: Peter Thiel and Silicon Valley’s Pursuit of Power

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Phone A Friend: Shane Burley and Ben Lorber, authors of Safety through Solidarity: A Radical Guide to Fighting Antisemitism.

Sat, 27 Jul 2024 04:00:00 +0000

This week, Max welcomes Ben Lorber and Shane Burley to the program, co-authors of Safety Through Solidarity: A Radical Guide to Fighting Antisemitism.

Resources

Melville House: Safety through SolidarityA Radical Guide to Fighting Antisemitism

Bookshop: Safety Through Solidarity: A Radical Guide to Fighting Antisemitism

Ben Lorber on Twitter

Ben Lorber on Instagram

BenLorber.com

Shane Burley on Twitter

Shane Burley on Instagram

Shane Burley Linktree

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Unf*cking the Republic® is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com) and Hold Fast (holdfastband.com). The show is written and hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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A Progressive Take on the Harris Coronation.

Wed, 24 Jul 2024 21:52:52 +0000

The Democratic Party finally took the all important step of convincing Joe Biden to drop his bid for re-election. In a matter of hours, the party elites, donors, elected officials and DNC members coalesced around Kamala Harris, and according to The New York Times, she has already secured the delegates required to run the table at the convention. Despite calls for an open convention process from figures like Barack Obama, the urgency surrounding the failing campaign led to the decision to go with Harris. As quickly as the Dems fell in line, the media narratives on the left and right came together, and the narrative has been set for November. This episode is a reminder of what has been forgotten along the way and highlights the single biggest issue that Democrats continue to ignore.

UNFTR Video Resources

The Coronation of Kamala Harris: A Progressive Perspective

DNR The DNC: Propping up the Cadaver-in-Chief

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Phone A Friend: Lee Camp. Comedian, author, commentator and activist.

Sat, 20 Jul 2024 05:06:14 +0000

This week I spoke with an old friend and inspiration—comedian, author, commentator and activist Lee Camp. We’re all over the place in a cathartic conversation about independent media, censorship, Supreme Court antics, Julian Assange, the presidential election and more.

Resources

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A Contested Convention: Building the Progressive Bench (Project 500).

Sat, 13 Jul 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Despite his assurances to the contrary, Joe Biden as the Democratic nominee is far from a lock. What happens if the DNC winds up hosting a contested convention? In this episode we delve into a brief history of contested conventions and draw upon prior examples to demonstrate how progressives can use a contested convention to their advantage and get the so-called progressive movement back on track.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:10

Chapter One: Nullification. 00:00:52

Chapter Two: Delegate to the Delegate. 00:06:45

Chapter Three: Moon Shot for Progressives. 00:14:18

Post Show Musings: 00:25:44

Outro: 00:42:15

Resources

99's Birthday Donor Drive

FactCheck.org: Q&A: How Biden Can Be Replaced as the Democratic Nominee

Democrats.org: Delegate Selection Rules

History: How Ronald Reagan's 1976 Convention Battle Fueled His 1980 Landslide

History: 4 Contested Conventions in Presidential Election History

Brookings: What is a brokered convention? What is a contested convention?

PBS News: What is a contested convention, and why does it matter in 2020?

Newsweek: Joe Biden Is Ready for a Messy Democratic Convention

Pew Research: Contested presidential conventions, and why parties try to avoid them

History News Network: Why Does the Democratic Party Have Superdelegates?

New York Magazine: Why Are AOC and the Squad Backing Biden So Forcefully?

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DNR The DNC: Propping up the Cadaver-in-Chief.

Sat, 06 Jul 2024 04:00:00 +0000

After Joe Biden’s historically bad debate performance, many Americans were left wondering how the Democratic Party could allow him to remain in the race. The answer is a corrupt and wholly inept corporation called the DNC Services Corporation—Democratic National Committee or DNC for short. This episode looks at the DNC’s failures over time and how they’ve worked with the RNC to rig the system against third party candidates. And it pulls back the curtain to reveal the tragic ineptitude that continues to deliver wins to the Republican Party.

Resources

Newsweek: My Fellow Progressives: Replacing Biden Is Not Our Fight

BYU Law: The Constitution and the Ballot Box: Supreme Court Jurisprudence and Ballot Access for Independent Candidates

Intercept: DNC Staffers Mocked the Bernie Sanders Campaign, Leaked Emails Show

Colorado Politics: How Dems, GOP each legally 'rig' presidential primaries, caucuses

The New York Times: The D.N.C. Has a Primary Problem

The Hill: DNC chair on third-party candidates: ‘This is not the time in order to experiment’

Democrats.org: Jaime Harrison

League of Women Voters: The League's History Sponsoring Presidential Debates

Commission on Presidential Debates

Tampa Bay Times: Nader, Buchanan kept out of debate

Britannica: United States presidential election of 1912

TIME: How Ross Perot Changed Political Campaigns

AP News: Biden's debate performance spurs Democratic panic about his ability to lead party against Trump

The New York Times: To Serve His Country, President Biden Should Leave the Race

The New York Times: Biden Tells Allies He Knows He Has Only Days to Salvage Candidacy

Ballotpedia: Partisan composition of state legislatures

Pew Research Center: Public Opinion on Abortion

The Hill: 88 percent in new poll support background checks on all gun sales

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Clinton Years Series.

The Carter Years Series.

From Bull Moose to Jackass: U.S. Progressivism from 1912 to 2021

The End of Roe v. Wade: Extinguishing the Penumbra

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Show Notes [The United States Postal Service + Europe Slides to the Right + Pharmacy Benefit Managers.]

Fri, 05 Jul 2024 18:06:53 +0000

In this week's Show Notes Max and 99 catch up from a few episodes past, and dive into some news items. They also hatch a plan to celebrate 99's birthday month. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:20:00

Emails: 00:23:39

Memberships: 00:58:29

Reviews: 00:59:17

Outro: 01:00:53

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Phone A Friend: Yanis Varoufakis.

Sat, 29 Jun 2024 16:36:40 +0000

In this UNFTR Phone A Friend we speak with economist, political leader and bestselling author Yanis Varoufakis about his latest book Technofeudalism: What Killed Capitalism. Max and Yanis cover a wide array of topics from the release of Julian Assange, the thesis behind Technofeudalism, the future of labor and the post-capitalism reality we already live under.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Resources

Melville House: Technofeudalism

Bookshop.org: Technofeudalism

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The United States Postal Service: How it can truly deliver.

Sat, 22 Jun 2024 04:00:00 +0000

The United States Postal Service is one of the most derided institutions in the country. Also, it’s one of the most highly regarded according to every poll conducted on government agencies. This episode digs into our complicated relationship with the Postal Service and examines the historical challenges facing this institution. We cover the controversy surrounding Louis DeJoy, the current Postmaster General and his ten-year plan to modernize the agency. And we finish with a recommendation for how it should ultimately be run that honors its original mandate.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:48

Chapter One: Ye Olde Post Office. 00:01:41

Chapter Two: The Post Office Gets a Makeover. 00:06:11

Chapter Three: Ode to DeJoy. 00:13:20

Bring it home, Max. 00:18:37

Post Show Musings: 00:27:14

Outro: 00:34:47

Resources

Pew Research Center: Public Holds Broadly Favorable Views of Many Federal Agencies, Including CDC and HHS

USPS: Postal Facts

Congress.gov: ArtI.S8.C7.1 Historical Background on Postal Power

Brookings: How is the U.S. Postal Service governed and funded?

The Guardian: There was only one loser in this Royal Mail privatisation: the taxpayer

Wikipedia: Bandwidth throttling

United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General: Postal Retirement Funds in Perspective: Historical Evolution and Ongoing Challenges

Congressional Research Service: FY2024 U.S. Postal Service Appropriations

Vox: Trump thinks Amazon’s destroying the post office. Here’s what’s really happening.

Katie Porter gets DeJoy to make embarrassing admission at USPS hearing

USPS: Delivering for America

The Guardian: ‘It’s going to delay the mail’: the fight over Louis DeJoy’s USPS plan

GovExec: Biden taps former cabinet secretary for USPS board

GovExec: Senators call on postal board to abandon DeJoy’s USPS reforms

Common Dreams: 'DeJoy Has to Go Right Now': Fury Over Postal Service Failure to Electrify Truck Fleet

Time: Louis DeJoy’s Surprising Second Act

CNN: Biden signs US Postal Service reform bill into law

Hey Arnold: I Hate The Snow

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Europe Slides to the Right: Unpacking the EU Parliamentary elections.

Sat, 15 Jun 2024 04:12:02 +0000

Parliamentary elections were held in the European Union last week. It did not go well. Check that. It went very well for the right-wing movement in Europe. Most Americans caught wind of some kind of election in the EU but it’s fair to say that few really understand what it was all about. And with good reason. This stuff is really confusing. Scores of parties under the umbrella of seven coalition parties, 720 members representing 27 nations, two councils, one commission, a bank and court. No one is in charge and everyone is in charge. In this episode we break down the governing structure of the EU and lay out what was at stake in this election.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:07

Chapter One: 00:01:42

Chapter Two: 00:05:29

Sponsors: 00:16:51

Chapter Three: 00:17:40

Skit: 00:25:59

Post Show Musings: 00:30:24

Outro: 00:43:31

Resources

Organisation of the European Commission

Jacobin: In France, the Far Right Is Beating a Divided Left

The New York Times: In E.U. Elections, the Center Holds, but the Far Right Still Wreaks Havoc

The Guardian: Ursula von der Leyen in pole position as she tries to build majority to keep job | European parliamentary elections 2024

European Parliament: MEPs

World Socialist Web Site: Why is the far-right vote surging in the European elections?

Reuters: EU’s bid to save bees stings sugar beet farmers

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Show Notes [Pause. Reset. Where do we go from here?]

Tue, 11 Jun 2024 17:16:15 +0000

Max and 99 are back after a few week Show Notes hiatus. In this episode they catch up on the most recent episodes and the latest news. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:27:35

Memberships: 01:21:50

Reviews: 01:22:16

Outro: 01:22:45

Resources

UNFTR TikTok

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Pharmacy Benefit Managers: The American Drug Cartel.

Sat, 08 Jun 2024 04:00:00 +0000

In this episode, Max breaks down the biggest scandal in the healthcare industry (and that’s saying a lot). We walk through how a bunch of pencil pushing pharmacy middlemen became so powerful they bought out the biggest health insurance companies and pharmacy chains, and did it through hiking up drug prices, kickbacks and taking advantage of government contracts. This is the story of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and how they became the American Drug Cartel.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Sponsors: 00:03:14

Chapter One: The Birth of the American Drug Mafia. 00:04:47

Chapter Two: Unraveling the Supply Chain. 00:16:15

Chapter Three: Is that all? Please tell me that’s all. 00:28:09

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max. 00:38:44

Post Show Musings: 00:45:24

Outro: 00:01:16

Resources

NAIC: Pharmacy Benefit Managers

Healthcare Dive: FTC launches investigation into PBMs; CVS, UnitedHealth, Cigna and more hit with requests for data

FTC: FTC Launches Inquiry Into Prescription Drug Middlemen Industry

Healthcare Dive: PBM practices are keeping consumers from generics savings, white paper finds

Association for Accessible Medicines: US Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Savings Report 2021

Lever News: Who’s Killing Your Independent Pharmacy?

PSSNY: PBM Basics

USC: PBMs Are Inflating the Cost of Generic Drugs. They Must Be Reined In

Jama Network: Costco v Medicare study

Frier Levitt: AUDITING PBMs

46Brooklyn

National Bureau of Economic Research: CVS Response: A world without PBMs: Unpacking the data

FTC: White House Roundtable PBMs

Yahoo Finance: 30 Largest Companies by Revenue

UNFTR Episode Resources

Healthcare Series.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

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Unf*cking Flashback: UNFTR on LGBTQ. Behind the Acronyms.

Sat, 01 Jun 2024 04:00:00 +0000

In celebration of Pride we're flashing back to an early Unf*cking: UNFTR on LGBTQ.

Read the essay or visit the episode resources online.

Today we begin a conversation about the LGBTQ movement in the United States, with a nod to our Canadian friends as well. In order to properly introduce issues facing LGBTQ people into the larger context of socio economic and political topics we cover on UNFTR, we wanted to start with a conversation about the evolving language of inclusion and representation within the LGBTQ community.

Resources

Edmonton CityNews: Hope blossoms as first two-spirited MP elected
Code Switch: Is It Time To Say R.I.P. to P.O.C.?
Geneseo: Understanding Gender Identity and Gender Expression
PBS: American Experience- Stonewall Uprising
New York Times: The Stonewall You Know Is a Myth. And That’s O.K
Human Rights Campaign: Fatal Violence Against the Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Community in 2021
National Center For Transgender Equality: LGBTQ People Behind Bars
Human Rights Campaign: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Definitions
The Williams Institute: Poverty In The Lesbian, Gay, And Bisexual Community
Columbia Journalism Review: How the word ‘queer’ was adopted by the LGBTQ community
LGBTQIA Resource Center: UC Davis Resource

Book Love

Eric Cervini: The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America
Joey Mogul, Andrea Ritchie + Kay Whitlock: Queer (In)Justice: The Criminalization of LGBT People in the United States

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

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Pause. Reset. Where do we go from here? Max Unfiltered.

Sat, 18 May 2024 04:00:00 +0000

I’m still catching my breath from the immigration series, slew of Phone A Friends and topical political stories these past couple of weeks. The upcoming episodes are all pretty exciting and intense so I decided to take a moment to have a family meeting with Unf*ckers in another “Max Unfiltered.”

Resources

UNFTR: Over The Borderline: Intro.

UNFTR: Phone A Friend: Rev. Roger Williams.

UNFTR: Phone A Friend: Ben Burgis.

UNFTR: Phone A Friend: Briahna Joy Gray.

UNFTR: On Protest and Anti-Semitism.

Al Jazeera: ‘Hell on Earth’ as violence escalates in Sudan’s el-Fasher

The Washington Post: ChatGPT provided better customer service than his staff. He fired them.

Bernie Sanders: Thirty-Two Hour Workweek Act

The Hill: Corporate profits hit record high as economy boomed in fourth quarter of 2023

ITEP: Corporate Taxes Before and After the Trump Tax Law

UNFTR: Project 2025.

UNFTR: Phone A Friend: Jeff Main.

UNFTR: Phone A Friend: Tad DeLay.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Protest and Anti-Semitism: Listening through propaganda.

Sat, 11 May 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Max takes aim at NYU professor Scott Galloway who recently appeared on CNN to criticize student protests with the most bizarre analysis that smacks of laziness and propaganda. While “takedowns” and “gotchas” aren’t Max’s favorite thing, he makes an exception for Galloway because of the space he occupies in the media ecosystem and on the spectrum of white male bro-influencers with independent platforms that are poisoning the media. Max also provides closing thoughts on the rise of anti-Semitism and the dangers of conflating Judaism with the far-right ruling government in Israel.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:34

Section One: 00:11:05

Section Two: 00:17:11

Section Three: 00:19:01

Section Four: 00:20:25

Section Five: 00:25:40

Post Show Musings: 00:39:30

Outro: 00:48:32

Resources

CNN: Why NYU professor says instructors who are protesting should be fired

ACLU: Know Your Rights: Students in Higher Education & the First Amendment

ACLU: Defending Speech We Hate

Axios: Over 2,000 protesters arrested at college campuses across the U.S.

Los Angeles Times: Striking deals to end campus protests, some colleges invite discussion of their investments

PBS: Protests and Backlash

Niche.com: Most Conservative Colleges in the U.S.

Common Dreams: Israeli Finance Minister Denounced for Calling for 'Total Annihilation' of Gaza

Haaretz: They Incited Rabin’s Murder. Now They’re Murdering Israel’s Democracy

Vox: TikTok isn’t creating false support for Palestine. It’s just reflecting what’s already there.

The Baffler: Parting Waters: Passover at the Columbia encampment

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

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Show Notes [Over The Borderline: Part Three. + Phone A Friend: Jeff Main.]

Fri, 10 May 2024 19:17:40 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 get into many spirited discussions inspired by Unf*cker feedback—from climate change to faux intellectual influencers. Additionally, they touch on some topical headlines relevant to the Over The Borderline Series and Point of Pride Phone A Friend. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:34:25

Outro: 01:30:00

Resources

Phone A Friend: Jeff Main, Executive Director of Point of Pride.

Point of Pride Resource Library

Erin Reed Substack, @erininthemorn on Twitter and TikTok

@pointofprideorg on Instagram, @pointofpride on Facebook

BBC: José Raúl Mulino: Stand-in for convicted candidate wins Panama presidency

New York Magazine: Andrew Huberman’s Mechanisms of Control

Phone A Friend: Tad Delay, author of Future of Denial.

UNFTR Episode: A (Mostly) Vegan World.

UNFTR Episode: Building the Climate Industrial Complex.

Highland Lakes Canine Rescue (HLCR)

@hlcaninerescue on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok

Unf*cker Recommendations

George Orwell: The Road to Wigan Pier

Jacobin Radio: Behind the News: Criminalizing Protest w/ Adam Federman

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Phone A Friend: Jeff Main, Executive Director of Point of Pride.

Tue, 07 May 2024 16:25:15 +0000

One half of one percent of Americans identify as a gender other than the one assigned to them at birth. And yet our state legislatures found the time to propose more than 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills in 2023, with over 80 passed into law and nearly all focused narrowly on restricting trans rights. According to Human Rights Watch, since the Transgender Day of Remembrance in November of 2022, at least 33 transgender and gender non-conforming people have been killed in the United States. In 2024, state legislatures are on pace to drop even more legislation.

To help us wrap our minds around the challenges facing the trans community, I spoke with Jeff Main, executive director of Point of Pride, an organization dedicated to helping trans youth and adults access necessary, life-saving health and wellness services. Point of Pride’s vision is a world where trans and gender diverse people see a bright future for themselves—living their authentic truth.

Resources

Point of Pride

Point of Pride Instagram

Point of Pride Facebook

Mercury Stardust Instagram

Alluring Skull Instagram

Erin Reed Substack

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Over the Borderline: Part Three. The Economics of Migration.

Sat, 04 May 2024 04:48:36 +0000

Our third and final installment of Over The Borderline stays below the U.S. southern border to look at the economic factors that contribute to mass migration from Central and South American countries specifically. We look at the root economic causes of migration, the U.S. failure to meaningfully partner with LAC nations to promote mutually beneficial economic conditions and the expansion of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in Latin America and the geopolitical impact that’s having on our relationships.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:01

Chapter One: 00:02:45

Chapter Two: 00:10:19

Chapter Three: 00:22:16

Chapter Four: 00:31:02

Post Show Musings: 00:38:18

Outro: 00:53:01

Book Love

Alan McPherson: A Short History of U.S. Interventions in Latin America and the Caribbean

Carol Wise: Dragonomics: How Latin America is Maximizing (or Missing Out on) China’s International Development Strategy

Tad DeLay: Future of Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change

Imperialism, Neoliberalism, And Social Struggles in Latin America

Resources

El Pais: Mexican Tycoon Carlos Slim Takes Stock of the last six years…

Congressional Research Service: Central American Migration

U.S. State Department: Dollar Diplomacy

World Population Review: Country Rank by GDP

World Bank: Latin America and the Caribbean Economic Review (LACER); April, 2024

Council on Foreign Relations: China’s Massive Belt and Road Initiative

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Washington Consensus

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

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Show Notes [Phone A Friend: Tad DeLay.]

Fri, 03 May 2024 15:33:35 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 review Unf*cker feedback from the Over The Borderline series and the recent Phone A Friend with Tad DeLay. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:08:55

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:43:09

Member Shout Outs: 00:46:28

Outro: 00:47:04

Resources

Phone A Friend: Tad DeLay.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Phone A Friend: Tad DeLay, author of Future of Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change.

Sat, 27 Apr 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Welcome to Phone A Friend. Today we’re speaking with Tad DeLay, the author of the newly released book Future of Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change. Tad Delay is a philosopher, religion scholar and interdisciplinary critical theorist. His books include Against: What Does the White Evangelical Want?, The Cynic and the Fool, and God is Unconscious. He is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy in Baltimore. I positively devoured this book and am anxious to dig into his previous titles as well. There are so many intersections that speak to the work that we do on UNFTR that I know it will resonate with you. Philosophy. Theology. Science. And even the dismal science. Future of Denial takes a multidisciplinary approach woven together with factual anecdotes and projections of science fiction. It is at once deeply intellectual and approachable; a delicate feat. Marx and Engels in dialogue with Freud and Greta Thunberg concluding with the words of Rosa Luxemburg…obviously I was in pure heaven digesting this work.

Access the transcript.

Resources

Tad DeLay: Future of Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change

Verso: Future of Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change

TadDelay.com

Tad on Facebook

Tad on Twitter

First Paper to Link CO2 and Global Warming, by Eunice Foote (1856)

John Tyndall: Heat considered as a Mode of Motion

Karl Marx: Capital Vol. 1, 2, & 3

John Bellamy Foster: Marx's Ecology: Materialism and Nature

Erik M. Conway + Naomi Oreskes: Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Climate Change

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Show Notes [RFK Jr.’s Trojan Horse Campaign.]

Fri, 26 Apr 2024 17:56:54 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max & 99 dive into some headlines, as well as the divisive feedback from the recent UNFTR episode/video on RFK Jr. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:23:16

Emails + YouTube Comments: 00:43:22

Outro: 01:06:08

UNFTR Episode Resources

Video: RFK's Trojan Horse Campaign: What Michigan Ballot Access Means

Episode: RFK's Trojan Horse Campaign: What Michigan Ballot Access Means

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

RFK Jr.’s Trojan Horse Campaign: On the Ballot in Michigan.

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 20:06:09 +0000

For months we’ve said that RFK Jr. is the biggest threat to Biden’s re-election. Now that he’s gained ballot access in Michigan, it’s time to go beyond the vaccine headlines to examine Kennedy the nascent politician and what his candidacy means to this election cycle. Just as the pollsters missed several important cues during the 2016 election, we might be underestimating the impact Kennedy has beyond his loyal environmental and anti-vaccine followers the media focuses on.

Resources

FiveThirtyEight: 2016 Election Forecast

Associate Press: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. secures ballot access in battleground state of Michigan

New York Times: The Ex-Bernie Sanders Pollster Raising Alarms About R.F.K. Jr.’s Appeal Among Latinos and Young Voters

Quinnipiac Poll: Is Democracy In The U.S. Working? It's A Toss-Up, But Voters Don't See It Ending In Their Lifetimes

The Conversation: Anti-vaccination beliefs don’t follow the usual political polarization

Wired: RFK Jr.’s Very Online, Conspiracy-Filled Campaign

New York Times: R.F.K. Jr.’s Environmental Colleagues Urge Him to Drop Presidential Bid

CNN: Kennedy family brushes off RFK Jr.’s campaign as they endorse Biden

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The Evolution of AOC and Behind the Trump Bump.

Sat, 20 Apr 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Distracted Max reached new heights this week so instead of releasing the third installment of the Over the Borderline series, he mashed up two shorter Topical Creams from YouTube into an episode. Both cover familiar ground to keep a focus on what matters politically. The “silly season” is when narratives harden so sometimes it’s important to reassert certain claims. The first segment is about AOC’s recent decision to fund the Democratic Party in the upcoming election for the first time in her brief career. The second is a reminder that the things that people recall fondly from the Trump era were predominantly socialist-style and Keynesian interventions that provided momentary relief and financial security for all those who made it through COVID.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:18

The Evolution of AOC: 00:02:16

Behind the Trump Bump: 00:10:36

Post Show Musings: 00:18:33

Outro: 01:16:25

Resources

OpenSecrets: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

The Moscow Times: Why Is Stalin’s Popularity On the Rise?

The Guardian: Trump suggests 'nuking hurricanes' to stop them hitting America – report

Newsweek: Trump Suggests Not Raking Leaves Is Bigger Cause of California Wildfires Than Climate Change

Brookings: What did the Fed do in response to the COVID-19 crisis?

UNFTR Episode Resources

Hands Off AOC.

AOC & the Lying Men Hydra.

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Over the Borderline: Part Two. The Politics of Migration.

Sat, 13 Apr 2024 04:00:00 +0000

In today’s episode, we head to the border and below to examine the root causes and circumstances that factor into immigration patterns, from economic opportunity to asylum. Max speaks with Maureen Meyer from The Washington Office on Latin America, known as WOLA, a D.C. based organization that advocates for human rights in the Americas. Meyer serves as WOLA’s Vice President for Programs, working with senior staff to develop policy priorities and strategies to advance human rights and social justice in Latin America. We’re still following the blended episodic and Phone A Friend approach for this series, so Max begins with a brief discussion about the complex nature of immigration policy and the historical relationship between the United States and Latin America.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Episode Section: 00:03:30

Interview: 00:21:20

Resources

WNYC: WNYC's Suds & Civics project brings political dialogue to laundromats across the NY metro area

American Immigration Council: CBP One: An Overview

Pew Research Center: Migrant encounters at U.S.-Mexico border hit record high at end of 2023

Human Rights Watch: Venezuela: Events of 2023

Migration Policy Institute: Shifting Patterns and Policies Reshape Migration to U.S.-Mexico Border in Major Ways in 2023

The Baffler: Enigmas of Ecuador | Pablo Ospina Peralta

WhiteHouse.gov: FACT SHEET: The United States and Central America: Honoring Our Commitments

Forbes: 2024: A New Age For Venezuela-U.S. Relations

Gobierno de Mêxico: México y Venezuela estrechan cooperación en materia migratoria

El País: United States reactivates mass deportations of Venezuelans to relieve pressure on the border with Mexico

Council on Foreign Relations: Central America’s Turbulent Northern Triangle

Council on Foreign Relations: Climate Change and Regional Instability in Central America

Congressional Research Service: Central American Migration: Root Causes and U.S. Policy

Vice: The Violence Central American Migrants Are Fleeing Was Stoked by the US

Time: Welcome to the Immigration Election

Pew Research Center: How Americans View the Situation at the U.S.-Mexico Border, Its Causes and Consequences

Brookings: The collapse of bipartisan immigration reform: A guide for the perplexed

The Hill: Manchin: Failed border bill factored into decision not to run for White House

DW News: Ecuador raid on embassy in Mexico

Yahoo Finance:Border crisis might be boon for economy

WOLA: Migration in the Americas: 'A root causes strategy only for Central America falls far short of addressing the type of migration we are seeing'

Congressional Budget Office: Director’s Statement on the Budget and Economic Outlook for 2024 to 2034

WOLA

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Show Notes [SPACtacular Bullsh*t.]

Sat, 06 Apr 2024 18:07:53 +0000

Max and 99 are back today to talk "SPACtacular Bullsh*t" feedback, catch up with the Unf*ckers and get into numerous tangents, of course. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:07:13

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:52:14

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:59:51

Members + Outro: 01:05:39

Resources

Deep Blue Something: Breakfast At Tiffany's

Project 2025 YouTube Video

Unf*cker Recommendations

McFleshman's Brewing Co: Respecting the Beer Podcast

UNFTR Episode Resources

Immigration Nation: A Crisis Of Our Own Design.

SPACtacular Bullsh*t: Inside Trump’s Multi-Billion Dollar Sham.

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SPACtacular Bullsh*t: Inside Trump’s Multi-Billion Dollar Sham.

Sat, 30 Mar 2024 04:00:00 +0000

He did it again. The Donald pulled off yet another miracle by taking his (failing) social media platform public. The deal had been in the works for a while and looked DOA last year. But it was revived recently and when it hit the Nasdaq this week it added billions to Trump's net worth and gave him an immediate cash infusion that will likely prevent him having to sell assets to make the (reduced) bond in his civil fraud case. The wealthy in this country truly operate under different rules. The mechanism Trump used to take a losing company public quickly and with relative ease compared to normal IPOs is called a SPAC, or Special Purpose Acquisition Company. SPACs gained a lot of attention a few years back before basically imploding as regulators frowned upon them and investments fizzled. As quickly as they gained prominence, they flamed out and were basically revealed to be scams. But it didn't stop the biggest SCAM artist in the world from packaging up his SCAM social media platform inside a SCAM financial vehicle. God bless 'Murica.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:38

Chapter One: 00:07:01

Chapter Two: 00:17:57

Chapter Three: 00:26:44

Post Show Musings: 00:26:$4

Resources

New York Times: Why Only One Top Banker Went to Jail for the Financial Crisis

Morningstar: How to Lose Money: Buy Digital World Acquisition Corp.

SPACInsider: Benessere Capital Acquisition Corp. (BENE) to Liquidate Trust

SPAC Insider: Executive Drama at Digital World Acquisition Corp. (DWAC) Provides New Source of Risk

Financial Review: Meet the Brazilian ‘prince’, Luiz Philippe de Orléans e Braganza, backing Donald Trump’s media venture

Investment Adviser Public Disclosure: Brian C. Shevland

CBS News: Trump's Truth Social is losing money and has scant sales. Yet it could trade at a $5 billion value.

Mizuho Insights: The SPAC Roller Coaster – Is a Renaissance Coming?

Fast Company: DWAC says Truth Social won't be profitable 'for the foreseeable future' as investors eye risky SPAC merger

Bloomberg Law: SEC Imposes New Rules on Blank-Check Deals as SPACs Fizzle (3)

US News: What Is a SPAC? 6 Best SPACs to Invest In

Yahoo Finance: Chamath Palihapitiya’s Crumbling SPAC Empire: Where His Top 5 Deals Are Today

Casetext: Shevland v. Orlando, 629 F. Supp. 3d 1252

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Show Notes [“Project 2025.”]

Thu, 28 Mar 2024 22:10:38 +0000

Max and 99 are back together in the studio to discuss Project 2025 Feedback, share Over the Borderline updates, and of course, tell a silly story or two. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:31:51

Instagram Shoutouts: 00:39:19

YouTube Shoutouts: 00:40:05

New Members: 01:02:16

Outro: 01:04:02

Resources

Don’t sweat the election. We already lost.

UNFTR Series

The Kosh Podcast: Episode 121: Bob Knudsen - County Board Supervisor Candidate District #16

Unf*cker Recommendations

Rutger Bregman: Humankind: A Hopeful History

Unf*cking Episode Resources

"Project 2025."

Over The Borderline.

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Unf*cking Flashback: Corporate (Ir)Responsibility: Parts One and Two.

Sat, 23 Mar 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Silly season is in full swing so politicians take center stage. But it's important to remember who really pulls the strings and runs the show. This week is an overdue flashback to our Corporate (Ir)Responsibility episodes that have been combined for the first time by the great Manny Faces for your listening pleasure. It's a good refresh on the bad actors that came together to rig the system. We'll be back next week with more original content as we plug away at the border crisis and other pressing issues. For now, enjoy!

This episode online

Essay + Show Notes

Resources

HBR: Why Are Companies Sitting on So Much Cash?

The Atlantic: When the Top U.S. Tax Rate was 70 Percent—or Higher

Bloomberg Tax: 10 Steps States Should Take to End Corporate Giveaways

Politico: Actually, it was Democrats who killed the 70 percent tax

Foreign Policy: To Pay for the Pandemic, Dry Out the Tax Havens

Tax Policy Center: What is the TCJA repatriation tax and how does it work

Tax Justice Network: Financial Secrecy Index - 2020 Results

OCCRP: Giant Leak of Offshore Financial Records Exposes Global Array of Crime and Corruption

Tax Foundation: How Much Revenue Would a 70% Top Tax Rate Raise? An Initial Analysis

FRED: Unemployment Rate

Trading Economics: Corporate Tax Rate in the United States remained unchanged at 21 percent in 2021 from 21 percent in 2020

BLS: Inheritances and the Distribution of Wealth, Or Whatever Happened to the Great Inheritance Boom?

Tax Foundation: Corporate Tax Rates around the World, 2020

Road & Track: Yes, The Chevrolet Corvair Really Was a Handful to Drive

GoodJobsFirst.Org

Book Love

Matt Taibbi: Griftopia: A Story of Bankers, Politicians, and the Most Audacious Power Grab in American History

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

Zachary D. Carter: The Price of Peace: Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes

Pod Love

Useful Idiots: David Sirota on the SALT Tax Cap, Plus: Is Biden Really the new FDR?

Best of The Left: #1414 Go Home and Go Big (Infrastructure Investment, Jobs and Climate Mitigation)

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“Project 2025.” Republicans With Time.

Sat, 16 Mar 2024 04:00:00 +0000

There are few things in this world as dangerous as Republicans with time on their hands. When Republicans find themselves out of office, they stay busy hatching evil plans in undisclosed lairs somewhere. Actually, they do it in think tanks. What’s impressive is how many plans they concoct during these periods that actually wind up as legislative public policy when they’re re-elected. The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 playbook is one of the more devastating handbooks ever written and it’s really important that we take them at their word given prior successes. This week’s episode is a deep dive into the 900+ book they recently published to help guide the next conservative president’s first 180 days in office.

Resources

Project 2025

The Project for the New American Century: Rebuilding America's Defenses

Project 2025: Mandate For Leadership

Global Project Against Hate and Extremism: Project 2025: The Far-Right Playbook for American Authoritarianism

The New York Times: Trump’s Tariffs Hurt U.S. Jobs but Swayed American Voters, Study Says

Unf*cking Episode Resources

The American Propaganda Machine.

The Carter Series.

Don’t sweat the election. We already lost.

The Clinton Years.

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Show Notes [Over the Borderline: Part One.]

Fri, 15 Mar 2024 22:40:59 +0000

Today is a Max solo adventure; join him as he covers feedback from the new Over the Borderline series, as well as some Unf*cker comments from the recent Phone A Friends.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:02:31

Outro: 00:42:34

Resources

Over the Borderline: Part One.

Phone A Friend: George Laws García, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Statehood Council.

Phone A Friend: Briahna Joy Gray of the Bad Faith Podcast.

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Over the Borderline: Part One. New York’s Migrant Crisis.

Sat, 09 Mar 2024 05:00:00 +0000

We kick off the first installment in our series “Over the Borderline” where we examine the plight of immigrant families, the socioeconomic and political conditions that drive people to migrate to the United States and the current crisis that has become a central talking point in the 2024 election. This first episode is a spotlight on New York City, which has been overwhelmed by a surge in migrant families being bused from border states as part of a political maneuver to deposit the immigration issue at the feet of leaders in Blue States. After a brief summary and update of how the situation has changed over the past two years, we speak with Marlene Galaz, Director of Immigrant Rights Policy at the New York Immigration Coalition.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Interview: 00:12:41

Resources

Associated Press: With beds scarce and winter bearing down, a tent camp grows outside NYC’s largest migrant shelter

NYC.gov: NYC Shelter Information

The City: What Exactly Is a Sanctuary City and What Does That Mean for NYC?

Gothamist: Nearly 80% of New Yorkers back right to shelter, poll finds

New York City Police Department: NYPD Announces January 2024 Citywide Crime Statistics

The New York Times: National Guard and State Police Will Patrol the Subways and Check Bags

NYC.gov: Seven Major Felony Offenses

City & State New York: As migrant families receive 60 day eviction notices, advocates rally to ditch the policy

New York Immigration Coalition

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Show Notes [Phone A Friend: George Laws García + Briahna Joy Gray.]

Fri, 08 Mar 2024 18:41:18 +0000

Max and 99 are apart this week but meet up ~virtually~ to discuss feedback from the two recent Phone A Friends!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Email: 00:10:43

Outro: 00:33:19

Resources

Phone A Friend: George Laws García, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Statehood Council.

Phone A Friend: Briahna Joy Gray of the Bad Faith Podcast.

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Over the Borderline: An Introduction.

Thu, 07 Mar 2024 22:51:20 +0000

This is the brief introduction to our series “Over the Borderline” where we update our reporting on immigration and the border crisis to examine the myriad moving parts of this hot button topic. The series kicks off this weekend with a look at the current crisis facing New York City with busloads of migrants continually flowing into the city on a daily basis and stretching city services to their limits. Then we’ll head south of the border to examine the root causes of mass migration from economic and political perspectives. In this introduction we set the table for the discussion going forward and speak to the highly charged political nature of immigration and how it’s playing out in the presidential election cycle.

Resources

U.S. Government Accountability Office: U.S. Immigration Courts See a Significant and Growing Backlog

Associated Press: With beds scarce and winter bearing down, a tent camp grows outside NYC’s largest migrant shelter

UNFTR Episode Resources

Immigration Nation: A Crisis of Our Own Design.

Quickie: Fox in the Outhouse. Invasion, Immigration & Inflation.

The Washington Consensus: Consensus is not consent.

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Phone A Friend: George Laws García, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Statehood Council.

Sat, 02 Mar 2024 05:00:00 +0000

Our guest this week is George Laws-García, the Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Statehood Council. A longtime policy advocate and consultant and native of San Juan, Laws-García was tapped to be the organization’s first executive director to increase the engagement of Puerto Rico statehood supporters. George and I have a great conversation about the hows and whys of statehood, roadblocks and resistance the movement faces and the tension between advocates for statehood versus full independence. He is a wealth of information and an extremely thoughtful approach that I know you’ll appreciate. He doesn’t shy away from the dark side of the imperial and colonial relationship between the U.S. and Puerto Rico and some of the atrocities that those we are unfamiliar with our past might find surprising.

Resources

Puerto Rico 51st

Puerto Rico 51st on Twitter

Puerto Rico 51st on Facebook

Puerto Rico 51st on Instagram

Puerto Rico 51st on YouTube

George H. Laws García on Twitter

George H. Laws García on Instagram

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Phone A Friend: Briahna Joy Gray of the Bad Faith Podcast.

Wed, 28 Feb 2024 23:22:34 +0000

On this week’s UNFTR Phone a Friend we’re speaking with the incomparable Briahna Joy Gray. Briahna is the host of the popular politics podcast and YouTube channel Bad Faith and co-host of The Hill’s Rising. Prior to this she was the National Press Secretary for the Bernie Sanders 2020 campaign, was senior politics editor at The Intercept and has written for The Guardian, Rolling Stone, New York Magazine and for our friends over at Current Affairs Magazine. She has a B.A. and a law degree from Harvard University and I personally believe her to be one of the most uncompromising intellectuals and searing interrogators in the news media. We cover a lot of ground in a short period of time so buckle up.

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Resources

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Show Notes [The Banality of Violence.]

Wed, 28 Feb 2024 00:58:12 +0000

In today's Show Notes Max and 99 catch up on the last few weeks, discussing 'The Banality of Violence,' 'Unf*cking Healthcare,' the 'Palestine' series + more. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:40

Housekeeping: 00:08:07

Emails: 00:38:18

Memberships: 01:24:10

Outro: 01:27:23

Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Bobby McD's new book: The Occulting Light

Manny Faces Online

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Immigration Nation A Crisis of Our Own Design.

Sat, 24 Feb 2024 05:00:00 +0000

This week is a flashback. Yes, that means re-run but there’s a good reason for it as we covered in Show Notes. We’re bringing back our episode titled Immigration Nation to refresh crucial misconceptions around migration so we can update certain data points and troubling trends. In the weeks to come we’re digging back into the border crisis as it has become one of the central talking points in the upcoming election. Plus, a great deal has changed south of the U.S. border that needs to be incorporated into our understanding of migration patterns, foreign policy and current legislative agendas in D.C. It’s a hot fucking mess that we’re going to untangle one thread at a time.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:13

Chapter One: 00:05:52

Chapter Two: 00:11:11

Chapter Three: 00:16:43

Chapter Four: 00:23:25

Chapter Five: 00:29:20

Post Show Musings: 00:34:18

Outro: 00:46:28

Resources

BBC News: How many Ukrainians have fled their homes and where have they gone?

The Intercept: As Immigration Plummeted, Conservatives Falsely Accused Biden of Fueling a Crisis

OECD Statistics: Net Migration

National Immigration Law Center: Overview of Immigrant Eligibility for Federal Programs

Marketplace: Undocumented immigrants quietly pay billions into Social Security and receive no benefits

Congress.gov: H.R.3355 - Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994

Legal Information Institute: Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act

The Atlantic: Bill Clinton Owes My Father an Apology

Pew Research Center: Most Cuban American voters identify as Republican in 2020

Pew Research Center: The Hispanic Vote in Presidential Elections,
1980-2012

International Policy Digest: U.S. Agriculture is in Crisis

The New York Times: Fleeing War in Ukraine, They’re Met With Employers Offering Paychecks

Schoolhouse Rock: The Great American Melting Pot

Book Love

Howard Zinn: A People's History of the United States

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The Banality of Violence: Our troubling indifference to suffering.

Sat, 17 Feb 2024 05:00:00 +0000

Watching Sean Hannity casually ask Curtis Sliwa to turn the cameras toward Sliwa’s Guardian Angels crew “taking down” a person they perceived to be an undocumented migrant in the streets of New York stuck with me. This particular moment falls so far down on the list of horrifying takes from Hannity and Fox News but for some reason it hit a nerve. The detached indifference of the brief affair prompted me to revisit the writings of Hannah Arendt, one of the great 20th Century philosophers who tackled totalitarianism and morality. This sent me on a journey to examine the way in which the tragedy in Gaza is covered, how we speak about undocumented migrants in this country and our relationship with violence in general.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:42

Post Show Musings: 00:21:19

Outro: 00:35:53

This Episode Online

CNN: At least 16 cemeteries in Gaza have been desecrated by Israeli forces, satellite imagery and videos reveal

Resources

Resources

Al Jazeera: Israel-Gaza war in maps and charts: Live tracker

Democracy Now!: Israel Shoots Dead 17-Year-old Palestinian American in Occupied West Bank

The New York Times: The Decline of Deaths in Gaza

ABC News: Netanyahu ahead of Rafah ground invasion: 'Victory is within reach'

The Intercept: Coverage of Gaza War in the New York Times and Other Major Newspapers Heavily Favored Israel, Analysis Shows

The Guardian: Hannah Arendt's challenge to Adolf Eichmann

The Intercept: Erik Prince Calls for U.S. to Colonize Africa and Latin America

U.S. Department of State: U.S. Relations With El Salvador

NPR: Why the 'world's coolest dictator' is on course for a landslide win in El Salvador

Vox: Ecuador’s political instability, explained

BBC: Has Honduras become a 'narco-state'?

The New York Times: On Live TV, Guardian Angels Tackle Man Sliwa Misidentified as Migrant

Book Love

Chris Hedges: War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning

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Phone A Friend: Ben Burgis, author, journalist and podcaster.

Sat, 10 Feb 2024 17:28:55 +0000

Today we get to all live tuition free inside the head of one of the most prominent intellectuals on the left, Ben Burgis. Ben is a Jacobin columnist, an adjunct philosophy professor at Rutgers University, and the host of the YouTube show and podcast Give Them An Argument. He’s also the author of several books including Give Them an Argument: Logic for the Left, Canceling Comedians While the World Burns, and Christopher Hitchens: What He Got Right, How He Went Wrong, and Why it Matters. Ben joins Max in a wide ranging discussion from the presidential election and the fracture among liberals and leftists to socialist tendencies and worker cooperatives.

Resources

Give Them An Argument w/Ben Burgis

Jacobin: Ben Burgis

Ben Burgis on Twitter

Ben Burgis Online

Ben Burgis on Substack

Christopher Hitchens: What He Got Right, How He Went Wrong, and Why He Still Matters

Canceling Comedians While the World Burns: A Critique of the Contemporary Left

Myth and Mayhem: A Leftist Critique of Jordan Peterson

Give Them an Argument: Logic for the Left

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Show Notes [Don’t sweat the election. We already lost.]

Thu, 08 Feb 2024 23:12:55 +0000

In today's episode of Show Notes, Max & 99 talk 'Don't Sweat The Election' + 'Mental Health Care in America' feedback, and spend plenty of time lightening the mood with pop culture tangents. Enjoy!

Resources

To access the Premium Newsletter, become a member today!

The Ringer: Dewey Cox Ain’t Dead: An Oral History of ‘Walk Hard’

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Don’t sweat the election. We already lost: A progressive meditation on the 2024 election.

Sat, 03 Feb 2024 05:00:00 +0000

Some of you are upset that I’ve targeted Biden so much lately given the threat of another Trump term. We’ve hashed and rehashed this on Show Notes but I did a little soul searching on my own to address this situation. We’re off to a strong start this year in terms of our editorial calendar but I’ve been finding it difficult to dig further into several topics knowing that there’s a growing sense of frustration with my intransigence. So I thought this was as good a time as any to work through this subject and have it out.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:07

Post Show Musings: 00:32:17

Outro: 00:44:30

This Episode Online

Vice: Extremists Call for ‘Civil War’ and ‘Secession’ Over Texas Border Ruling

All Resources

Resources

The Hill: Democratic concerns grow amid RFK Jr. ballot push in battleground states

Letterboxd: Civil War

MSNBC: Convicted Trump aide Bannon takes ‘deep state’ crusade to Supreme Court

TIME: Donald Trump Picks Andrew Jackson Portrait for Oval Office

The Jersualem Post: Pro-Palestine protesters chant 'Genocide Joe' at every Biden campaign event - report

ABC News: Bernie Sanders endorses Joe Biden

KFF: Key Facts about the Uninsured Population

U.S. Department of Labor: Final Rule: Increasing the Minimum Wage for Federal Contractors (Executive Order 14026)

Truthout: Biden Can Still Cancel Student Debt — Not Just Up to $20,000, But All of It

Global Project Against Hate and Extremism: Robert F. Kennedy Tweet Mobilizes Neo-Nazis

CBS News: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. condemned over false claims that COVID-19 was "ethnically targeted"

Secular Talk: SPICY DEBATE w/ Briahna Joy Gray On Cornel West, Biden & Trump!

Give Them An Argument W/ Ben Burgis: Biden is a Monster. Should Leftists Vote for Him Anyway?

NBC News: At least 33 transgender and gender-nonconforming people were killed in the past year, report finds

Trans Legislation Tracker

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Show Notes [Mental Health Care in America.]

Tue, 30 Jan 2024 20:07:59 +0000

Max and 99 take some time to read feedback from the mental health episode. Unf*ckers were very gracious with their submissions and openness. Thank you all!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:10:21

Social Shout Outs: 01:07:46

Memberships + Donations: 01:13:21

Reviews: 01:15:18

Outro: 01:16:33

This Episode Online

Resources

Snopes: Is PETA Stealing and Killing Pets?

Green Eco Friend: Why Do So Many People Hate PETA?

Un*cker Recommendations

SecularTherapy.org

HoosLeft

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Revenge of the “Strongman.” Lessons from around the globe.

Sat, 27 Jan 2024 06:51:56 +0000

Back-to-back wins in Iowa and New Hampshire have the nation bracing for a rematch between Trump and Biden. This episode explores how other nations are dealing with the ‘strongman’ wannabe dictator phenomenon. Maybe there are lessons to glean from the experiences of other countries. So in that spirit we’re going to do some globetrotting to look at three countries in two states of authoritarianism at present and one in recovery like the U.S.

Chapters

Sketch: 00:00:00

Intro: 00:04:33

Subject One: Brazil: 00:07:37

Subject Two: China: 00:16:37

Subject Three: India: 00:22:35

This Episode Online

CNBC: China's big property market problem will take at least 4 to 6 years to resolve

Resources

Video

Resources

Agência Brasil: Brazil jumps two places, becomes world’s ninth largest economy in 2023

International Valor: Brazil’s GDP growth to halve in 2024 without economic stimulus

Diálogo Chino: Lula’s first year sees mixed results on climate and environment

World Socialist Web Site: International financial markets hail first year of Brazil’s Lula government

Reuters: Lula's approval ratings inch up ahead of Brazil's local elections -poll

Reuters: Brazil's Lula to leave with record-high popularity

Independent: Watch Antony Blinken's reaction as Joe Biden calls Xi Jinping 'dictator'

Business Insider: China's economy is trapped in a downward spiral that authoritarian regimes are doomed to repeat

The Guardian: Xi Jinping handed unprecedented third term as China’s president

Jeffrey D. Sachs: The US economic war on China

Financial Times: Antony Blinken blasts China in first phone call

Reuters: Blinken expresses U.S. concern about China's growing nuclear arsenal

Buildr: China's Ghost Cities: The Truth Behind The Empty Megacities

The New York Times: China Is Lending Billions to Countries in Financial Trouble

USA Today: He's into yoga, Hindu nationalism: India's leader Modi, once banned by US, now Biden's guest

Times of India: With approval rating of 76%, PM Modi most popular global leader: Morning Consult

Forbes India :The top 10 largest economies in the world in 2024

NPR: India's population passes 1.4 billion — and that's not a bad thing

Oxfam International: India: extreme inequality in numbers

Al Jazeera: ‘Might get worse’: As Modi unveils Ram temple, Indian Muslims fear future

Council on Foreign Relations: India’s Muslims: An Increasingly Marginalized Population

TIME: How India Became Pro-Israel

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Mental Health Care in America: Capitalism’s Invisible Blight on the American Mind.

Sat, 20 Jan 2024 22:06:11 +0000

This week’s episode examines the connection between capitalism and declining mental health in the United States. From the pressure the system places on workers to its ruthless manner of discarding those who suffer from mental illness, capitalism has become a central figure in the mental health narrative in frightening ways.

This Episode Online

TIME: America Has No Way to Take Care of Mentally Ill People

Resources

Video

Resources

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): Mental Illness

National Library of Medicine: António Egas Moniz (1874–1955): Lobotomy pioneer and Nobel laureate

Salon: Ronald Reagan's shameful legacy: Violence, the homeless, mental illness

Psychiatry.org: About DSM-5-TR

WHO: COVID-19 pandemic triggers 25% increase in prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide

New York Times: New York City to Involuntarily Remove Mentally Ill People From Streets

Medical News Today: 'Weathering': The health effects of stress and discrimination

Mad in America

Book Love

Kay Redfield Jamison: An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness

Micha Frazer-Carroll: Mad World: The Politics of Mental Health

Kenneth Paul Rosenberg, MD: Bedlam: An Intimate Journey into America’s Mental Health Crisis

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Show Notes [2024: Welcome to Another Year in Bizarro America.]

Fri, 19 Jan 2024 21:36:29 +0000

In today's Show Notes Max and 99 catch up and discuss the most recent two episodes. Enjoy!

Resources

UNFTR Memberships

UNFTR Resource Directory

NPR: The pope wants surrogacy banned. Here's why one advocate says that's misguided

Unf*cker Recommendations

David Fleming: Lean Logic: A Dictionary for the Future and How to Survive It

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Phone A Friend: Reverend Roger C. Williams.

Sat, 13 Jan 2024 05:00:00 +0000

In response to a number of listeners suggesting that Max be less dismissive of religion and pay attention to the UNFTR creed of meeting people where they are, Max invited his friend Reverend Roger Williams on the show. The wide ranging discussion covers fundamentalist interpretations of the Bible, the struggle Black Americans have aligning with political parties, and how the next generation of voters will shape the country moving forward.

This Episode Online

Transcript (Coming Soon)

Show Notes

Resources

First Baptist Church GC Facebook

First Baptist Church GC YouTube

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Black & Jewish Divide in America.

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2024: Welcome to Another Year in Bizarro America. Max Unfiltered.

Sat, 06 Jan 2024 19:28:04 +0000

Max shakes off the cobwebs to take stock of where the country is as we head into 2024. In this “Max Unfiltered” take to start the year he examines the tension between the past and present. Has the arc of history bent toward progress? Sure. But it's maddening to know that there is still so much unnecessary suffering in the world when the U.S. has the capacity to solve so much of it both at home and abroad.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:27

Post Show Musings: 00:24:08

Outro: 00:37:15

This Episode Online

CBS News: 2023 is officially the hottest year ever recorded, and scientists say "the temperature will keep rising"

Show Notes

Video

Resources

New York Times: Claudine Gay: What Just Happened at Harvard Is Bigger Than Me

CBS News: After exit of Claudine Gay, Bill Ackman paints bull's-eye on diversity programs

The New Yorker: How a Conservative Activist Invented the Conflict Over Critical Race Theory

Lee Fang: The Secret Dossier Behind Claudine Gay’s Downfall

Marc Lamont Hill YouTube

USA Today: The number of homeless people in America grew in 2023 as high cost of living took a toll

CBS News: Stocks close out 2023 with a 24% gain, buoyed by a resilient economy

Washington Post: Visualizing the size of Gaza City compared with U.S. cities

Times of Israel: Israel in talks with Congo and other countries on Gaza ‘voluntary migration’ plan

Human Rights Watch: Human Rights and Humanitarian Organizations Urge United Nations to Mobilize to Address Crisis in Sudan

Human Rights Watch: Democratic Republic of Congo

AP: How Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea are affecting global trade

AP: Iran says at least 84 were killed in blasts at a ceremony honoring slain general

Haaretz: No, an Israeli Real Estate Company Is Not Selling Beachfront Homes in Gaza

Bad Faith: DEBATE: Vote For Joe Biden vs Cornel West?

FiveThirtyEight: Latest Polls

New York Times: The World’s Population May Peak in Your Lifetime. What Happens Next?

Slate: The Squad Is About to Fight for Its Political Life

NBC News: 'I'm not a progressive': Fetterman breaks with the left, showing a maverick side

UNFTR: Progressive Resource Directory

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [The Carter Years One–Three.]

Sat, 23 Dec 2023 05:00:00 +0000

In this episode, the team winds down 2023 with a very special edition of Show Notes. Max and 99 experience peak silliness as they discuss the new UNFTR website, headlines, and hear from a special guest. Happy holidays Unf*ckers!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Hold Fast Theme: 00:11:39

Headlines: 00:26:41

Emails: 00:37:03

Social Shout Outs: 01:23:01

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:28:41

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:30:20

Special Guest: 01:31:48

Headlines

The Guardian: US child poverty doubled in 2022, thanks to Joe Manchin. We must reverse course

AP: Donald Trump banned from Colorado ballot in a historic ruling by the state’s Supreme Court

The New Yorker: What Would It Mean To Treat Animals Fairly?

WSWS: Record high for debt repayments by low-income nations

Resources

SNL: Dylan McDermott or Dermot Mulroney

SNL: New Cast Member or Arcade Fire?

Behind the Bastards: Part One Kissinger

News Beat: Racist AI: Facial Recognition & Wrongful Arrests

Will Watkins Art

Unf*cker Recommendations

Johnny Harris: Why the Swiss Love Their Guns (more than Americans)

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic® is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is written and hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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The Carter Years: Part One, Two, Three + Epilogue.

Sat, 16 Dec 2023 06:26:09 +0000

Our series on The Carter Years looks back at the brief but remarkable tenure of President Jimmy Carter. In Part One we cover Carter's rise to the Presidency. Part Two peers into the first half of the White House years to understand the challenges that faced the new administration. In Part Three, trouble brews from within the Democratic ranks, and the global economy plus several bad actors abroad coalesce seemingly overnight to challenge the president. And lastly, the final installment of the series examines the events of 1980 and offers some final reflections on Jimmy Carter the man, and his legacy.

Chapters

Intro: 00:02:04

Chapter One: 00:08:18

Chapter Two: 00:14:29

Chapter Three: 00:23:07

Chapter Four: 00:31:59

Chapter Five: 00:46:56

Chapter Six: 00:56:31

Chapter Seven: 01:10:44

Chapter Eight: 01:18:52

Chapter Nine: 01:36:52

Resources

Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute: The Panama Canal and the Torrijos-Carter Treaties

The New York Times: Jimmy Carter’s Unheralded Legacy

The Atlantic: The Passionless Presidency

Vox: The Republican myth of Ronald Reagan and the Iran hostages, debunked

Politico: The Humiliating Handshake and the Near-Fistfight that Broke the Democratic Party

Brookings: Today’s global economy is eerily similar to the 1970s, but governments can still escape a stagflation episode

HISTORY: Jimmy Carter and Leonid Brezhnev sign the SALT-II nuclear treaty

Book Love

Kai Bird: The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter

David Rockefeller: Memoirs

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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The Montreal Protocol: When we listened to science.

Sat, 09 Dec 2023 07:55:01 +0000

There was a time when we listened to scientists. Believe it or not, it actually happened in the 1980s. Under Ronald Reagan. (Don’t get me wrong, he’s still a quasi-villain in this story.) When set against the backdrop of Cop28 being run by an oil and gas executive, that time we banned a whole bunch of products and chemicals in the 80s will make you wistful. When scientists discovered a hole in the ozone layer, the world came together to pass the Montreal Protocol and then something even more miraculous occurred: it worked. In 2017 scientists noticed that the hole had started to repair itself and was shrinking. Here’s the story of how it all came together.

Resources

The Guardian: Cop28 president says there is ‘no science’ behind demands for phase-out of fossil fuels

European Central Bank: A new age of energy inflation: climateflation, fossilflation and greenflation

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Time: Reagan Administration Officials at First Dismissed the Ozone Hole. Here's What Changed

UNIDO: HCFC Phase Out

Los Angeles Times: Op-Ed: Reagan made a massive environmental mistake. Trump is repeating it, only worse

NOAA: 4 facts you might not know about ozone and the Montreal Protocol

Goldman Sachs Publishing: Lithium: The short trade must go on

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [Quickie 15: The 3 Men Who Will Defeat Biden.]

Fri, 08 Dec 2023 21:18:05 +0000

In today’s Show Notes Max and 99 review the schedule for the rest of December and trade some stories on the heels of the (thankfully) lighter Quickie episode. Enjoy!

Listen to the corresponding episode.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:03:41

Emails: 00:30:30

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:25:20

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:26:55

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:28:27

Outro: 01:28:43

Headlines

The Guardian: White House warns it is ‘out of money and nearly out of time’ to aid Ukraine

NPR: Senator hires an indicted and ousted representative to troll an indicted senator

The Guardian: Cop28 president says there is ‘no science’ behind demands for phase-out of fossil fuels

Resources

Outrage + Optimism Podcast

Holiday Merch

Unf*cker Recommendations

Cathy O'Neil: Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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The 3 Men Who Will Defeat Biden: A UNFTR Quickie.

Sat, 02 Dec 2023 05:00:00 +0000

Today’s Quickie predicts the three men who will combine to beat Joe Biden next November. Can you guess any one of them?

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:12

Subject One: 00:01:12

Subject Two: 00:06:35

Subject Three: 00:11:30

Outro: 00:17:51

Sketch: 00:19:54

Post Show Musings: 00:22:26

Resources

The Guardian: ‘Steve Bannon is watching us closely’: Naomi Klein on populists, conspiracists and real-world activism

Esquire: In the War Room with Steve Bannon

The Conference Board: Economic Forecast for the US Economy

PBS: U.S. may need slower economic growth to beat inflation, Fed chair says

The Hill: Democrats nearly double Republicans in October fundraising

Politico: The generational divide over Israel and Palestine is widening

The Nation: Biden’s Quagmire: Israel, Gaza, and Those Really Scary Polls

Book Love

Jeanna Smialek: Limitless: The Federal Reserve Takes on a New Age of Crisis

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [Palestine: Part Three + Epilogue, and Phone A Friend: Rashid Khalidi.]

Fri, 01 Dec 2023 17:06:34 +0000

This week's Show Notes has Max and 99 catching up on the last three episodes; they cover more Palestine series feedback from the Unf*ckers, and announced some exciting holiday merch!

Resources

Holiday Merch

Shop Coffee

UNFTR Bookshop.org Shop

UNFTR Episode Resources

Palestine: An Introduction. The Land Imperialism Left Behind.

Palestine: Part Two. The Palestinian Cause.

Palestine: Part Three. Two states, one state, none.

Phone A Friend: Rashid Khalidi, author of The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine.

Palestine: Epilogue. “Never Forget.”

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Palestine: Epilogue. “Never Forget.”

Fri, 24 Nov 2023 21:00:00 +0000

The epilogue to the Palestine series is an essay from Max that draws upon personal experience and reveals what he learned from putting together these episodes. The conclusions are far from uplifting. In fact, they’re dire.

Resources

Marxists.org: Leon Trotsky on Zionism

Council on Foreign Relations: What to Know About the Arab Citizens of Israel

PBS: Parallel Realities - Resolution 242 And The Aftermath Of 1967 | Shattered Dreams Of Peace

Wikipedia: Six-Day War

Opinio Juris: The Biden Administration and the Golan Heights

Al Jazeera: Mapping Israeli occupation | Infographic News

Jewish Virtual Library: Vital Statistics: Jewish Population of the World

BBC News: Golan Heights profile

JCPA: Ben-Gurion’s Concept of Mamlahtiut and the Forming Reality of the State of Israel

My Jewish Learning: Sephardic, Ashkenazic, Mizrahi and Ethiopian Jews

Council on Foreign Relations: The Sunni-Shia Divide

Council on Foreign Relations: What Is U.S. Policy on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?

Council on Foreign Relations: How Evictions in Jerusalem Led to Israeli-Palestinian Violence

NPR: This is how the Republican Party became so strongly pro-Israel

The Jewish Agency: Modern Zionist Aliyot

The Weiner Holocaust Library: How did the Holocaust happen?

Holocaust Encyclopedia: The Evian Conference

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Issa al-Sifri

UN: Faisal-Weizmann agreement/Non-UN document - Question of Palestine

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Musa Kazim Husseini

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Great Arab Revolt, 1936-1939

Fanack: Historic Palestine: The Arab Executive (1920 -1934)

MERIP: Owen, Studies in the Economic and Social History of Palestine

MERIP: Conspiracy of Praise

Just Vision: Izz ad-Din al-Qassam

The New York Times Archive: The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World since 1948

Jewish Virtual Library: Ze’ev (Vladimir) Jabotinsky

Encyclopedia: Altalena

Palestine Nexus

Palquest: Abd al-Aziz Rantisi

MERIP: The War of Numbers

The Washington Post: War Casualties Put at 48,000 in Lebanon

Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute: The Reagan Administration and Lebanon, 1981–1984

Al Jazeera: Who is Israel’s far-right, pro-settler Security Minister Ben-Gvir?

Blowback: How Israel Went From Helping Create Hamas To Bombing It

HRW: Israel: Gaza Killings Unlawful, Calculated

The Hill: Trump on Israel embassy move: ‘Evangelicals appreciate it more than the Jews’

HRW: A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution

Pew Research Center: Israel’s Religiously Divided Society

The Guardian: Red Cross and Vatican helped thousands of Nazis to escape

Pew Research Center: The most (and least) culturally diverse countries in the world

Mosaic Magazine: The Looming War Over Israel’s Law of Return

The Daily: Israeli Citizenship for Non-Jews - Exploring the Naturalization Process

The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel: Discriminatory Laws in Israel

Council on Foreign Relations: What to Know About the Arab Citizens of Israel

Human Rights Watch: A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution

Reuters: How Hamas secretly built a 'mini-army' to fight Israel

Human Rights Watch: Israel: Gaza Killings Unlawful, Calculated

Wilson Center: The US Discovery of Israel's Secret Nuclear Project

Associated Press: With the world’s eyes on Gaza, attacks are on the rise in the West Bank, which faces its own war

Council on Foreign Relations: Conflict in Syria

Reuters: Lebanon economic crisis worsened by vested interests, IMF says

United Nations: Ethnic Cleansing

NPR: Half of Gaza's population is under 18. Here's what that means for the conflict

Mediaite: Former Mossad Chief Makes Shocking Claim on CNN: There’s No Such Thing as ‘Non-Combatant Population in the Gaza Strip’ Because ‘All of the Gazans Voted For Hamas’

Committee to Protect Journalists: Journalist casualties in the Israel-Gaza war

Book Love

Rashid Khalidi: The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017

Moshé Machover: Israelis and Palestinians: Conflict and Resolution

Dennis Ross: Missing Peace: The Inside Story of the Fight for Middle East Peace

James L. Gelvin: The Israel-Palestine Conflict

Jeremy Wilson: Lawrence of Arabia: The Authorised Biography of T. E. Lawrence

Jim Newton: Eisenhower: The White House Years

Augustus Richard Norton: Hezbollah: A Short History Updated and Expanded Third Edition

UNFTR Episode Resources

Palestine: An Introduction. The Land Imperialism Left Behind.

Palestine: Part Two. The Palestinian Cause.

Palestine: Part Three. Two states, one state, none.

Phone A Friend: Rashid Khalidi, author of The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Phone A Friend: Rashid Khalidi, author of The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine.

Wed, 22 Nov 2023 16:14:48 +0000

Rashid Khalidi is the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University. Professor Khalidi received his BA from Yale in 1970, and Doctor of Philosophy from Oxford in 1974. He's co-editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies and was president of the Middle East Studies Association, and an advisor to the Palestinian delegation to the Madrid and Washington Arab-Israeli Peace negotiations from October, 1991 until June of 1993. He's the author of eight books, including most recently, The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine. His research inspired a significant amount of the work in our series on Palestine, and it's a privilege to welcome him today.

Watch the video interview.

Resources

Journal of Palestine Studies

Rashid Khalidi: The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017

Rashid Khalidi Online

Rashid’s Recommendations

Salim Tamari: The Storyteller of Jerusalem: The Life and Times of Wasif Jawhariyyeh, 1904-1948

Tareq Baconi: Hamas Contained: The Rise and Pacification of Palestinian Resistance

Sara Roy: Hamas and Civil Society in Gaza: Engaging the Islamist Social Sector

Jean-Pierre Filiu: Gaza: A History

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Palestine: Part Three. Two states, one state, none.

Sat, 18 Nov 2023 19:09:36 +0000

The final installment of our series on Israel/Palestine covers the Arab Revolts of the late 1930s through present day, highlighting the agreements, wars, uprisings and accords that explain how the chasm widened between Jews and Palestinians, and why every attempt at reconciling the two sides has failed. It’s a sweeping narrative that involves generational actors, imperial interests of neighboring countries and acts of violence, bravery and betrayal.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:23

Chapter One: On the Precipice. 00:05:21

Chapter Two: No Turning Back. 00:15:31

Chapter Three: Six Days in June, Nineteen in October. 00:26:00

Chapter Four: The Politics of War. 00:30:00

Resources

Marxists.org: Leon Trotsky on Zionism

Council on Foreign Relations: What to Know About the Arab Citizens of Israel

PBS: Parallel Realities - Resolution 242 And The Aftermath Of 1967 | Shattered Dreams Of Peace

Wikipedia: Six-Day War

Opinio Juris: The Biden Administration and the Golan Heights

Al Jazeera: Mapping Israeli occupation | Infographic News

Jewish Virtual Library: Vital Statistics: Jewish Population of the World

BBC News: Golan Heights profile

JCPA: Ben-Gurion’s Concept of Mamlahtiut and the Forming Reality of the State of Israel

My Jewish Learning: Sephardic, Ashkenazic, Mizrahi and Ethiopian Jews

Council on Foreign Relations: The Sunni-Shia Divide

Council on Foreign Relations: What Is U.S. Policy on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?

Council on Foreign Relations: How Evictions in Jerusalem Led to Israeli-Palestinian Violence

NPR: This is how the Republican Party became so strongly pro-Israel

The Jewish Agency: Modern Zionist Aliyot

The Weiner Holocaust Library: How did the Holocaust happen?

Holocaust Encyclopedia: The Evian Conference

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Issa al-Sifri

UN: Faisal-Weizmann agreement/Non-UN document - Question of Palestine

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Musa Kazim Husseini

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Great Arab Revolt, 1936-1939

Fanack: Historic Palestine: The Arab Executive (1920 -1934)

MERIP: Owen, Studies in the Economic and Social History of Palestine

MERIP: Conspiracy of Praise

Just Vision: Izz ad-Din al-Qassam

The New York Times Archive: The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World since 1948

Jewish Virtual Library: Ze’ev (Vladimir) Jabotinsky

Encyclopedia: Altalena

Palestine Nexus

Palquest: Abd al-Aziz Rantisi

MERIP: The War of Numbers

The Washington Post: War Casualties Put at 48,000 in Lebanon

Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute: The Reagan Administration and Lebanon, 1981–1984

Al Jazeera: Who is Israel’s far-right, pro-settler Security Minister Ben-Gvir?

Blowback: How Israel Went From Helping Create Hamas To Bombing It

HRW: Israel: Gaza Killings Unlawful, Calculated

The Hill: Trump on Israel embassy move: ‘Evangelicals appreciate it more than the Jews’

HRW: A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution

Pew Research Center: Israel’s Religiously Divided Society

Book Love

Rashid Khalidi: The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017

Moshé Machover: Israelis and Palestinians: Conflict and Resolution

Dennis Ross: Missing Peace: The Inside Story of the Fight for Middle East Peace

James L. Gelvin: The Israel-Palestine Conflict

Jeremy Wilson: Lawrence of Arabia: The Authorised Biography of T. E. Lawrence

Jim Newton: Eisenhower: The White House Years

Augustus Richard Norton: Hezbollah: A Short History Updated and Expanded Third Edition

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [Palestine: Part Two.]

Thu, 16 Nov 2023 21:19:51 +0000

Today's Show Notes features more Palestine Series feedback, some punch ins from Manny Faces, and a smattering of Max and 99 tangents. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:17:00

Emails: 00:31:02

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:06:50

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:08:37

Outro: 01:09:56

Resources

Fall Fund-Friend-Hell-Raiser:

Leave us a review. It really helps people find the podcast!

Subscribe to the YouTube channel and share the videos when they’re released.

Consider taking out a membership to the show.

If you drink coffee… Drink our coffee!

Purchase books from our bookshop.org store.

New York Times: No, Immigrants Aren’t ‘Poisoning the Blood of Our Country’

Unf*cker Recommendations

michael__mezz on Instagram: 'ecological economics'

UNFTR Episode Resources

Palestine: An Introduction. The Land Imperialism Left Behind.

Palestine: Part Two. The Palestinian Cause.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Palestine: Part Two. The Palestinian Cause.

Sat, 11 Nov 2023 17:43:55 +0000

Part Two of our series on Israel/Palestine turns back the clock to examine the time period from Part One but from the Palestinian perspective. By establishing the foundation of the conflict in parallel, it helps organize internal and external events that explain sympathies toward Jews and Palestinians alike. This episode digs into the cultural underpinnings of Arab society in the 19th and early 20th centuries and examines the fault lines that occur as a result of Jewish migration, industrialization, the collapse of Ottoman rule and fallout from World War One.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Chapter One: Origin Stories. 00:07:36

Chapter Two: Historic Palestine. 00:16:17

Chapter Three: Pan-Arab Nationalism. 00:24:25

Chapter Four: The Palestinian Identity. 00:36:01

Resources

Marxists.org: Leon Trotsky on Zionism

Council on Foreign Relations: What to Know About the Arab Citizens of Israel

PBS: Parallel Realities - Resolution 242 And The Aftermath Of 1967 | Shattered Dreams Of Peace

Wikipedia: Six-Day War

Opinio Juris: The Biden Administration and the Golan Heights

Al Jazeera: Mapping Israeli occupation | Infographic News

Jewish Virtual Library: Vital Statistics: Jewish Population of the World

BBC News: Golan Heights profile

JCPA: Ben-Gurion’s Concept of Mamlahtiut and the Forming Reality of the State of Israel

My Jewish Learning: Sephardic, Ashkenazic, Mizrahi and Ethiopian Jews

Council on Foreign Relations: The Sunni-Shia Divide

Council on Foreign Relations: What Is U.S. Policy on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?

Council on Foreign Relations: How Evictions in Jerusalem Led to Israeli-Palestinian Violence

NPR: This is how the Republican Party became so strongly pro-Israel

The Jewish Agency: Modern Zionist Aliyot

The Weiner Holocaust Library: How did the Holocaust happen?

Holocaust Encyclopedia: The Evian Conference

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Issa al-Sifri

UN: Faisal-Weizmann agreement/Non-UN document - Question of Palestine

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Musa Kazim Husseini

Palquest: Interactive Encyclopedia Of The Palestine Question: Great Arab Revolt, 1936-1939

Fanack: Historic Palestine: The Arab Executive (1920 -1934)

MERIP: Owen, Studies in the Economic and Social History of Palestine

MERIP: Conspiracy of Praise

Just Vision: Izz ad-Din al-Qassam

Book Love

Rashid Khalidi: The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017

Moshé Machover: Israelis and Palestinians: Conflict and Resolution

Dennis Ross: Missing Peace: The Inside Story of the Fight for Middle East Peace

James L. Gelvin: The Israel-Palestine Conflict

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Show Notes [Palestine: Part One.]

Fri, 10 Nov 2023 18:04:53 +0000

Today’s Show Notes covers all the feedback Max and 99 received from the Palestine: Part One episode. Give it a listen, Unf*ckers!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:05:18

Emails: 00:26:13

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:11:53

Reviews: 01:22:16

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:22:35

Outro: 01:23:07

UNFTR Episode Resources

Palestine: An Introduction. The Land Imperialism Left Behind.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Palestine: Part One. The Jewish Question.

Sat, 04 Nov 2023 04:00:00 +0000

Every story has a beginning. Every conflict has its roots. For some, the Israel/Palestine conflict is rooted in scripture and written in blood. Others claim it boils down to a deadly dispute over real estate. There’s a reason why “peace in the Middle East” feels out of reach and why so many have thrown their hands up. It’s complicated. But it’s not impossible to understand. We begin our journey in earnest by tackling the so-called “Jewish Question” and uncovering the roots and motives of the Zionist movement.

Chapters

Intro: 00:02:16

Chapter One: Diaspora. 00:04:48

Chapter Two: Beyond the Pale. 00:09:33

Chapter Three: France, the birthplace of Zionism. 00:13:52

Chapter Four: A congress in search of a state. 00:22:48

Chapter Five: The Fifth Aliyah. 00:39:16

Resources

Marxists.org: Leon Trotsky on Zionism

Council on Foreign Relations: What to Know About the Arab Citizens of Israel

PBS: Parallel Realities - Resolution 242 And The Aftermath Of 1967 | Shattered Dreams Of Peace

Wikipedia: Six-Day War

Opinio Juris: The Biden Administration and the Golan Heights

Al Jazeera: Mapping Israeli occupation | Infographic News

Jewish Virtual Library: Vital Statistics: Jewish Population of the World

BBC News: Golan Heights profile

JCPA: Ben-Gurion’s Concept of Mamlahtiut and the Forming Reality of the State of Israel

My Jewish Learning: Sephardic, Ashkenazic, Mizrahi and Ethiopian Jews

Council on Foreign Relations: The Sunni-Shia Divide

Council on Foreign Relations: What Is U.S. Policy on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?

Council on Foreign Relations: How Evictions in Jerusalem Led to Israeli-Palestinian Violence

NPR: This is how the Republican Party became so strongly pro-Israel

The Jewish Agency: Modern Zionist Aliyot

The Weiner Holocaust Library: How did the Holocaust happen?

Holocaust Encyclopedia: The Evian Conference

Book Love

Rashid Khalidi: The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017

Moshé Machover: Israelis and Palestinians: Conflict and Resolution

Dennis Ross: Missing Peace: The Inside Story of the Fight for Middle East Peace

James L. Gelvin: The Israel-Palestine Conflict

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

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Show Notes [Palestine.]

Tue, 31 Oct 2023 21:29:55 +0000

Max and 99 catch up in today's Show Notes, discussing Palestine intro feedback, why Boomers love their generation, and the canon of UNFTR songs. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:23

Emails: 00:39:37

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:59:53

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:08:54

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:12:08

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:32:31

Reviews: 01:33:29

Outro: 01:34:52

Headlines

The Intercept: Israel Warns Palestinians on Facebook — But Bombings Decimated Gaza Internet Access

The Heritage Foundation: Conservatives Can’t Sleep on the Fight for State Supreme Courts

Resources

Fall Fund-Friend-Hell-Raiser:

Leave us a review. It really helps people find the podcast!

Subscribe to the YouTube channel and share the videos when they’re released.

Consider taking out a membership to the show.

If you drink coffee… Drink our coffee!

Purchase books from our bookshop.org store.

Unf*cker Recommendations

Ed Zitron's Where's Your Ed At: Everything Looks Like A Nail

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Phone A Friend: Manny Faces of Hip-Hop Can Save America!

Sat, 28 Oct 2023 04:00:00 +0000

You've heard him on the pod. You know the magic of his sound design. But do you really know "Manny Faces?" Long-time, award winning Hip-Hop journalist and activist Manny Faces joins Max in studio to talk about Hip-Hop culture and its underreported influence on education, the criminal justice system and activism. If you listen/watch you’ll also be introduced to the coining of the phrase, “pimping off the Old Testament.” (Patent pending.)

Resources

Manny Faces Online

Hip-Hop Can Save America!

Manny Faces on Substack

Manny Faces on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Twittter

Manny Faces Patreon

News Beat Podcast

The Center for Hip-Hop Advocacy

The Far Right Infiltration of Hip-Hop

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Palestine: An Introduction. The Land Imperialism Left Behind.

Sat, 21 Oct 2023 04:01:00 +0000

Max finally takes aim at the Israel/Palestine conflict with an introduction that frames the approach for the mini-series and sets guardrails for what will undoubtedly be an emotional journey for many UNFTR listeners. This episode answers why we decided to tackle this issue and how we’re examining it through a socioeconomic lens and Marxist view of history. It also dismisses two foundational deceptions pertaining to the larger narrative surrounding the conflict. This introductory episode concludes with several “level-setting” statements and a challenge: “If you can hold these thoughts in your mind at once, we can proceed.”

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [Phone A Friend: Nick Hanauer]

Fri, 20 Oct 2023 07:28:12 +0000

Max flies solo while 99 goes on a long distance mission from god. Left to his own devices, Max dips his pinky toe into the Palestinian conflict to set the table for our upcoming series and responds to listener feedback from the last couple of episodes. Seems like Pitchfork Nick was particularly well received so cheers to the Pitchfork Economics crew for playing in our sandbox.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Phone A Friend: Nick Hanauer of Pitchfork Economics.

Sat, 14 Oct 2023 04:01:00 +0000

Max interviews Nick Hanauer, co-host of the Pitchfork Economics podcast and founder of Civic Ventures. They discuss Nick’s work at Civic Ventures to promote the $15 minimum wage among other initiatives and have a wide ranging discussion about the power of neoliberal messaging, Bidenomics and the struggle to break through the “pack of lies” we’ve been sold by corporations to maintain the status quo.

Resources

Corporate Bullsh*t: Exposing the Lies and Half-Truths That Protect Profit, Power, and Wealth in America

The Gardens of Democracy: A New American Story of Citizenship, the Economy, and the Role of Government

The True Patriot

Pitchfork Economics Podcast

Pitchfork Economics on Twitter

Pitchfork Economics on Instagram

NickHanauer.com

Nick Hanauer on Twitter

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [The House that Newt Built.]

Fri, 13 Oct 2023 19:19:08 +0000

In this episode of Show Notes, Max and 99 lightly discuss Israel/Palestine in preparation for a future episode, continue with some Socialism feedback, and 99 makes an admission about shoelaces.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:26:43

Emails: 00:34:22

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:09:54

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:11:38

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:13:12

Reviews: 01:15:02

Outro: 01:15:44

Headlines

The New York Times: In Search of Kamala Harris

Jacobin: Left Politicians Are Showing How to Respond to the Horrors in Israel and Palestine

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic®."

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The House that Newt Built: The Rise of Matt Gaetz.

Sat, 07 Oct 2023 04:01:00 +0000

Max struggles to understand exactly what Matt Gaetz is after, but has his suspicions. Regardless of the right-wing endgame, this week’s fiasco was made possible by Newt Gingrich in the 1990s. Gingrich’s run marked not only the end of civility, but the beginning of a GOP hostile to anything that impedes the complete destruction of the welfare state. We look at how this came to pass and who is the current architect of the GOP meltdown. (Hint: It’s not Matt Gaetz.)

Resources

The New Yorker: The Ringleader

The Intercept: Rep. Josh Gottheimer Headlines No Labels Call While Eyeing Run For Higher Office

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Clinton Years (Parts One–Three)

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [Understanding Socialism: Part Six.]

Fri, 06 Oct 2023 20:14:42 +0000

Today's Show Notes is brought to you by: Hip-Hop! Max and 99 get an assist from Manny Faces who responds to an Unf*cker, and DJs while Max and 99 sing. They also discuss capitalism, the working class and Max's new haircut.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:05:22

Emails: 00:10:02

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:46:09

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:49:59

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 00:51:56

Outro: 01:00:32

Headlines

World Socialist Web Site: California Governor Newsom picks long-time Democratic Party operative Laphonza Butler to replace Senator Feinstein

ACLU: On the Frontlines of the Fight Against Classroom Censorship

Resources

Hip-Hop Can Save America: Dr. Bettina Love [Hip-Hop Education & Civics]

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Understanding Socialism: Part Six. Epilogue.

Mon, 02 Oct 2023 15:20:20 +0000

The final, final (no really) installment in our series on socialism looks narrowly at the period between World War One and the Russian Revolution to identify factors that contributed to the Bolshevik departure from Marxist theory and how nationalism squashed any hope for an internationalist movement. We revisit the words of the theorists and activists we covered in the series from Jeremy Bentham to Eugene Debs and raise difficult questions about the future of socialist activity in the United States specifically and whether new ideas are required to battle the ravages of capitalism.

Chapters

Intro: 00:04:17

Part One: 00:05:41

Part Two: 00:16:08

Post Show Musings: 00:37:16

Outro: 00:55:37

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

John M. Thompson: Revolutionary Russia, 1917

Bernard Harcourt: Critique and Praxis

Ray Ginger: The Bending Cross: A Biography of Eugene Victor Debs

Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Michael Harrington: Socialism: Past and Future

Victor Serge + Natalia Ivanovna Sedova: Life and Death of Leon Trotsky

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Peter Kropotkin: The Conquest of Bread

Staughton Lynd + Andrej Grubačic: Wobblies and Zapatistas: Conversations on Anarchism, Marxism, and Radical History

Emma Goldman: Anarchism and Other Essays

Anthony J. Nocella II, Mark Seis and Jeff Shantz: Classic Writings in Anarchist Criminology: A Historical Dismantling of Punishment and Domination.

Margaret MacMillan: The War That Ended Peace: The Road to 1914

Resources

The Collector: What do Hegel and Marx Have in Common?

Socialist Alternative: Robert Owen and Utopian Socialism

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism: Events

Washington State University: Introduction to 19th-Century Socialism

Howard Zinn: Commemorating Emma Goldman: 'Living My Life'

Stanford: Hegel's Dialectics

The History of Economic Thought: Cesare Beccaria

Stanford: Jeremy Bentham

Foundation for Economic Education: Robert Owen: The Woolly-Minded Cotton Spinner

Stanford: Karl Marx

Central European Economic and Social History: Economic Development In Europe In The 19th Century

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism

The New Yorker: Karl Marx, Yesterday and Today

Marxists.org: Glossary of Organisations

Northwestern Whitepaper: The Second Industrial Revolution

The Collector: Revolutions of 1848

Chemins de Mémoire: Franco-Prussian War of 1870

Journal of Modern History: 1870 in European History and Historiography

JSTOR: Paul Avrich: The Legacy of Bakunin

Marxists.org: Bakunin

The Anarchist Library: The Federative Principle

The Anarchist Library: Property Is Theft

Jacobin: Why Kautsky was Right

The New Yorker: Dreyfus Affair

The Jacobin: John Dewey

Marxists.org: Anarchism and Anarcho-Syndicalism

Spartacus Ed: Karl Kautsky

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: FAQs

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [Strike!]

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 17:53:03 +0000

99 is back in this episode of Show Notes; her and Max talk Taylor Swift, unions + strikes, and read some opposing view feedback from Unf*ckers. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:17:43

Emails: 00:42:42

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:28:04

Outro: 01:30:55

Headlines

The Intercept: House Republicans Are Hurtling Toward the Most Pointless Shutdown Ever

Resources

UNFTR Facebook Group

House Delegate: Matt Christman: The Founder and Capitalism

Weiner

UNFTR: Republican Rehab

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Strike! Reality checking the labor movement.

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 21:04:12 +0000

Strike! Union actions are everywhere. High profile work stoppages from the Screen Actors Guild to the United Auto Workers have put the labor movement front and center in ways we haven’t seen for decades. How powerful is the impact of these actions? You’re not going to like my take on it. But we need to have some authentic dialogue about the labor movement, the corporate class and new strategies required to stem the tide of increasing inequality.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:15

Post Show Musings: 00:33:21

Outro: 00:45:05

Resources

Associated Press: United Auto Workers threaten to expand targeted strike if there is no substantive progress by Friday

Automotive News: GM CEO Mary Barra's 2022 compensation: $29M

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Annual work stoppages involving 1,000 or more workers, 1947 - Present

St. Louis Fed: Civilian Labor Force Level

Detroit Free Press: GM to reinstate a dividend and start stock buybacks, signaling confidence

GM Authority: GM Employees Receive Record $12,750 Profit-Sharing Check

Social Security Administration: National Average Wage Index

Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung: The French Labour Paradox

AFL-CIO: Collective Bargaining

NBER: Impacts of Right-to-Work Laws on Unionization and Wages

OECD: United States: Main indicators and characteristics of collective bargaining

Forbes: Remote Work Statistics And Trends In 2023

MckInsey & Company: Freelance, side hustles, and gigs: Many more Americans have become independent workers

CNBC: 61% of Americans say they are living paycheck to paycheck even as inflation cools

NLRB: Board Issues Decision Announcing New Framework for Union Representation Proceedings

Democracy at Work

Mondragon

The New Yorker: How Mondragon Became the World’s Largest Co-Op

Economic Policy Institute: CEO pay has skyrocketed 1,460% since 1978: CEOs were paid 399 times as much as a typical worker in 2021

Aspen Institute: Building and Sustaining Worker Cooperatives in the US

Worker Participation: Countries

UNDP: How Do Labor Unions Affect Inequality And Efficiency In Latin America And The Caribbean?

UNFTR Episode Resources

Understanding Socialism: Part One.

Labor Unions: From Pullman To Kellogg’s. Labor’s Long, Hard Road

The Clinton Years (Parts I, II, And III)

Corporate (Ir)Responsibility: Part One.

Book Love

Nelson Lichtenstein: State of the Union: A Century of American Labor

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Show Notes [Understanding Socialism: Part Five.]

Thu, 21 Sep 2023 19:03:22 +0000

Max flies solo in this episode of Show Notes while 99 is out with consumption (COVID). He covers AOC + Socialism feedback, goes on a Boebert rant, and reads tons of Unf*cker feedback. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:02:54

Emails: 00:07:41

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:33:03

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:41:13

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:41:43

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 00:54:13

Outro: 00:55:00

Headlines

Mother Jones: New Report: One-Third of States Have an Election Denier Overseeing Elections

Current Affairs: The Strong Towns Movement is Simply Right-Libertarianism Dressed in Progressive Garb

Resources

Naomi Klein: Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Understanding Socialism: Part Five. 1871 to 1917. Revolutionary Divide.

Sat, 16 Sep 2023 05:19:22 +0000

This is technically the final installment of our series “Understanding Socialism” where we cover the period between the Paris Commune in 1871 and onset of World War I, which precedes (and leads to) the Russian Revolution in 1917. We’re going to cover the Russian Revolution briefly in an epilogue that speaks to the divergence from classical Marxism from the Revolution forward and where socialist movements stand today. This final episode brings new figures into the spotlight such as Karl Kautsky and Rosa Luxemburg and crosses the pond to introduce the likes of Emma Goldman and Eugene Debs.

Chapters

Intro: 00:02:05

Chapter Ten: 00:07:16

Chapter Eleven: 00:22:43

Chapter Twelve: 00:50:52

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

John M. Thompson: Revolutionary Russia, 1917

Bernard Harcourt: Critique and Praxis

Ray Ginger: The Bending Cross: A Biography of Eugene Victor Debs

Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Michael Harrington: Socialism: Past and Future

Victor Serge + Natalia Ivanovna Sedova: Life and Death of Leon Trotsky

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Peter Kropotkin: The Conquest of Bread

Staughton Lynd + Andrej Grubačic: Wobblies and Zapatistas: Conversations on Anarchism, Marxism, and Radical History

Emma Goldman: Anarchism and Other Essays

Anthony J. Nocella II, Mark Seis and Jeff Shantz: Classic Writings in Anarchist Criminology: A Historical Dismantling of Punishment and Domination.

Resources

The Collector: What do Hegel and Marx Have in Common?

Socialist Alternative: Robert Owen and Utopian Socialism

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism: Events

Washington State University: Introduction to 19th-Century Socialism

Howard Zinn: Commemorating Emma Goldman: 'Living My Life'

Stanford: Hegel's Dialectics

The History of Economic Thought: Cesare Beccaria

Stanford: Jeremy Bentham

Foundation for Economic Education: Robert Owen: The Woolly-Minded Cotton Spinner

Stanford: Karl Marx

Central European Economic and Social History: Economic Development In Europe In The 19th Century

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism

The New Yorker: Karl Marx, Yesterday and Today

Marxists.org: Glossary of Organisations

Northwestern Whitepaper: The Second Industrial Revolution

The Collector: Revolutions of 1848

Chemins de Mémoire: Franco-Prussian War of 1870

Journal of Modern History: 1870 in European History and Historiography

JSTOR: Paul Avrich: The Legacy of Bakunin

Marxists.org: Bakunin

The Anarchist Library: The Federative Principle

The Anarchist Library: Property Is Theft

The Collector: What do Hegel and Marx Have in Common?

Socialist Alternative: Robert Owen and Utopian Socialism

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism: Events

Washington State University: Introduction to 19th-Century Socialism | Common Errors in English Usage and More

Howard Zinn: Commemorating Emma Goldman: 'Living My Life'

Stanford: Hegel's Dialectics

The History of Economic Thought: Cesare Beccaria

Stanford: Jeremy Bentham

Foundation for Economic Education: Robert Owen: The Woolly-Minded Cotton Spinner

Stanford: Karl Marx

Central European Economic and Social History: Economic Development In Europe In The 19th Century

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism

The New Yorker: Karl Marx, Yesterday and Today

Marxists.org: Glossary of Organisations

Northwestern Whitepaper: The Second Industrial Revolution

The Collector: Revolutions of 1848

Chemins de Mémoire: Franco-Prussian War of 1870

Journal of Modern History: 1870 in European History and Historiography

Jacobin: Why Kautsky was Right

The New Yorker: Dreyfus Affair

The Jacobin: John Dewey

Marxists.org: Anarchism and Anarcho-Syndicalism

Spartacus Ed: Karl Kautsky

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Hands Off AOC: Reply to the Slandering of a Revolutionist.

Sat, 02 Sep 2023 04:01:00 +0000

AOC. The country continues to obsess over the bright light of the progressive caucus and most high profile member of “The Squad.” From day one, AOC has been the subject of harsh criticisms steeped in misogyny and class resentment; mostly from the right. Oftentimes, however, the criticisms have come from inside the Democratic Party establishment. Recently, however, she’s been in the crosshairs of the far left end of the spectrum. Some of this isn’t new, but it seems to be growing. In this episode we look deeper at her record, set a few things straight about the nature of politics in America and make a haunting comparison from history that serves as a warning.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:32

Post Show Musings: 00:20:03

Outro: 00:36:33

Resources

The Militant: Hands of Rosa Luxemburg

Vanity Fair: Unearthed Video Shows Marjorie Taylor Greene Has Been Psychotically Stalking AOC for Years

Politico: From agitator to insider: The evolution of AOC

AOC's Pathetic Biden Endorsement

New York Magazine: AOC Is Just a Regular Old Democrat Now

Pod Save America: Exclusive: AOC Talks Honestly About Joe Biden, The Supreme Court, and the 2024 Presidential Election

Office of Congressional Ethics: OCE Referral Regarding Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

The New York Times: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Apologizes for Vote on Iron Dome Funding

Clerk: Roll Call 275 | Bill Number: HR 5323

Jacobin: Railroad Workers United: “We Would Never Concede Our Right to Strike”

Mother Jones: Railroad Workers Kept Applying Pressure For Sick Days. It’s Working.

Global Project Against Hate and Extremism: Robert F. Kennedy Tweet Mobilizes Neo-Nazis

Jacobin: AOC and the Squad’s List of Left-Wing Accomplishments Is Quite Long

LR 132: Evaluating The Squad w/ Branko Marcetic + @MinionDeathCult on the UPS Vote

UNFTR Episode Resources

April 2021 Quickie: AOC & the Lying Men Hydra

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [What is Bidenomics?]

Fri, 01 Sep 2023 18:18:13 +0000

Max and 99 are reunited in this episode of Show Notes! They talk Bidenomics, Phone A Friend, and sharting. (Sorry.)

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:16:41

Emails: 00:27:51

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:47:00

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:04:24

Reviews: 01:06:04

Outro: 01:06:21

Headlines

HRW: “They Fired on Us Like Rain”: Saudi Arabian Mass Killings of Ethiopian Migrants at the Yemen-Saudi Border

World Socialist Web Site: BRICS to expand to counter US dollar dependence

The New York Times: America Is Draining Its Groundwater Like There’s No Tomorrow

Resources

Oliver Anthony: Rich Men North Of Richmond

Billy Bragg: Rich Men Earning North of a Million

What Next Podcast: What’s Vivek Ramaswamy’s Deal?

The New Yorker: Elon Musk’s Shadow Rule

UNFTR: F*ck Milton Friedman

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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What is Bidenomics? Is anyone telling the truth?

Sat, 26 Aug 2023 04:01:00 +0000

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” “Is there life after death?”

“If the POTUS says the economy is great but no one feels it, is it really a recovery?”

I’ll leave the first two for philosophy majors. On the third question, I have some thoughts.

The administration is touting what it calls, “Bidenomics.” Much like Obama chose to own “Obamacare” and turn it into a positive, President Joe Biden is owning the U.S. economy and making it the centerpiece of his re-election campaign. Will it work? Depends.

This week’s episode is a deep(ish) dive into U.S. economic data. The U.S. might be doing better than the rest of the world. Inflation is cooling and people are working. But Americans are also racking up debt, getting priced out of the housing market, depleting their savings and are wholly uncertain about the future. Come election time, it will still be all about the economy, but it won’t be about the numbers. It will be about sentiment.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:58

Sketch: 00:04:54

Chapter One: 00:10:27

Chapter Two: 00:21:52

Post Show Musings: 00:46:06

Outro: 00:54:08

Resources

Foreign Affairs: The End of China’s Economic Miracle

Associated Press: Foreign companies are shifting investment out of China as confidence wanes, business group says

The New York Times: China’s Property Crisis: Why It’s So Hard for Beijing to Fix - The New York Times

Reuters: Analysis: US debt-ceiling deal dooms Biden's revolutionary tax plans

The Conference Board: Leading Economic Index

St. Louis Federal Reserve: Does Labor Market Tightness Vary across States?

Federal Reserve Board: Recent balance sheet trends

St. Louis Federal Reserve: Corporate Profits After Tax (without IVA and CCAdj) (CP)

San Francisco Fed: The Rise and Fall of Pandemic Excess Savings

Federal Reserve Bank of New York: Household Debt and Credit Report

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Phone A Friend: Francesca Fiorentini of The Bitchuation Room.

Mon, 21 Aug 2023 19:41:58 +0000

Francesca Fiorentini is a journalist, activist, comedian and host of the popular Bitchuation Room podcast and YouTube channel. Max and Francesca talk swimming pools, presidential politics, California candidates and the liberal obsession with tearing down AOC & the squad.

The Bitchuation Room Podcast

Resources

Francesa on YouTube

Francesca on Twitter

Francesca on Facebook

Francesca on Instagram

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Show Notes [Understanding Socialism: Part Four.]

Sun, 13 Aug 2023 22:16:45 +0000

Happy Max-less Show Notes to all who celebrate! 99 is joined by Manny this week and they discuss Socialism Part Four, Barbie, Hip-Hop and podcasts!

Chapters

Intro: 00:20:00

Start Barbie Spoilers: 00:07:37

End Barbie Spoilers: 00:10:56

Emails: 00:12:14

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:22:08

Reviews: 00:25:27

Podcasts: 00:27:43

Outro: 00:45:51

Resources

Bernard E. Harcourt: Critique and Praxis

News Beat: Invisible Wars: A Conversation With Norman Solomon

Norman Solomon: War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine

Nathan Rabin: You Don't Know Me But You Don't Like Me: Phish, Insane Clown Posse, and My Misadventures with Two of Music's Most Maligned Tribes

Hip-Hop Can Save America

Life Kit: Losing a pet is hard. Here's how to cope

Conspirituality: 163: The Huberman Paradox (w/Jonathan Jarry)

Scamanda

The Blog Era

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Phone A Friend: Nathan J. Robinson of Current Affairs.

Thu, 10 Aug 2023 15:39:30 +0000

Nathan J. Robinson is the author of 10 non-fiction books and four illustrated books. He defied modernity by launching a magazine (yes an actual physical magazine), called Current Affairs which blends eye-popping and fun illustrations with scathing prose and real, authentic journalism. Nathan and Max have a wide-ranging conversation from education to socialism in our Phone A Friend.

Resources

Current Affairs: The Intellectual We Deserve

Current Affairs: Admit Everybody

Current Affairs: The Great American World War II Story

Current Affairs Online

Current Affairs Magazine

Nathan J. Robinson: Why You Should Be a Socialist

Nathan J. Robinson: Superpredator: Bill Clinton's Use and Abuse of Black America

Nathan's Other Books

Current Affairs News Briefing

Current Affairs Podcast

Current Affairs on Twitter

Nathan on Twitter

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Understanding Socialism: Part Four. Praxis.

Mon, 31 Jul 2023 22:36:10 +0000

It’s Part Four this week, and things are really heating up. We’re bridging the gap between the “critique” years and the “praxis” years with a deep dive into the late 1800s. Mikhail Bakunin and Pierre-Joseph Proudhon make grand entrances into our narrative and bring some intrigue along with them. Part Four covers the pivotal year of 1870, the splinter between the anarchist and Democratic socialist wings of the party, and speaks to the variables present on the European continent at this critical juncture. The episode culminates with the Paris Commune of 1871 and lays the groundwork for Part Five where we’ll cover the rise of the Bolsheviks and the American labor movement. Are we having fun yet? (Don’t answer that.)

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:21

Chapter Eight: Socialist Fault Lines. 00:06:31

Coffee Break: 00:22:33

Chapter Nine: 1870. The year everything changed. 00:23:28

Bring It Home, Max: 00:36:33

Post Show Musings: 00:38:15

Outro: 00:51:39

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

John M. Thompson: Revolutionary Russia, 1917

Bernard Harcourt: Critique and Praxis

Ray Ginger: The Bending Cross: A Biography of Eugene Victor Debs

Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Michael Harrington: Socialism: Past and Future

Victor Serge + Natalia Ivanovna Sedova: Life and Death of Leon Trotsky

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Resources

The Collector: What do Hegel and Marx Have in Common?

Socialist Alternative: Robert Owen and Utopian Socialism

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism: Events

Washington State University: Introduction to 19th-Century Socialism

Howard Zinn: Commemorating Emma Goldman: 'Living My Life'

Stanford: Hegel's Dialectics

The History of Economic Thought: Cesare Beccaria

Stanford: Jeremy Bentham

Foundation for Economic Education: Robert Owen: The Woolly-Minded Cotton Spinner

Stanford: Karl Marx

Central European Economic and Social History: Economic Development In Europe In The 19th Century

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism

The New Yorker: Karl Marx, Yesterday and Today

Marxists.org: Glossary of Organisations

Northwestern Whitepaper: The Second Industrial Revolution

The Collector: Revolutions of 1848

Chemins de Mémoire: Franco-Prussian War of 1870

Journal of Modern History: 1870 in European History and Historiography

JSTOR: Paul Avrich: The Legacy of Bakunin

Marxists.org: Bakunin

The Anarchist Library: The Federative Principle

The Anarchist Library: Property Is Theft

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Show Notes [Understanding Socialism: Part Three.]

Fri, 28 Jul 2023 19:40:52 +0000

In this episode of Show Notes, Max and 99 review some housekeeping, Headlines (Leonard Leo, NY State + the ADA), and talk Socialism Part Three. Enjoy, Unf*ckers!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:22:43

Emails: 00:44:55

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:51:40

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:56:48

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:02:26

Outro: 01:02:58

Headlines

The Lever: The Church Of Leonard Leo

Office of the New York State Comptroller: DiNapoli: State's Fiscal Outlook Declines

Mother Jones: Disability “Testers” Keep Businesses Accessible. Will SCOTUS Ban Them?

The New York Times: White House Condemns Fox News Over Host’s Holocaust Comments

Resources

UNFTR Facebook Group

News Beat Website

Unf*cker Recommendations

The Atlantic: Mister Rogers Had a Simple Set of Rules for Talking to Children

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Understanding Socialism: Part Three. The “Critique Phase” (1825–1870).

Tue, 18 Jul 2023 19:12:23 +0000

We have the third installment in our socialism series, where we resume our journey beginning in 1825 and the collapse of Robert Owen’s New Harmony experiment. This next chapter introduces the work of John Stuart Mill and Karl Marx and touches on Mikhail Bakunin and Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, both of whom we’ll explore more fully in Part Four. Not gonna lie, this series may never end. But this is a critical piece of the puzzle that we’re calling the “Critique Period,” lasting from 1825 to around 1870. This era is punctuated by widespread revolts in 1848 that inform some of the new thinking around capitalism and the plight of the working class—all leading into the explosion of socialist philosophy that hits the mainstream consciousness following the events of 1870 (again, for Part Four).

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:07

Chapter Six: Revolutionary Conditions. 00:07:54

Chapter Seven: Marx and Mill. 00:18:42

Post Show Musings: 00:38:17

Book Love: 00:38:44

Outro: 00:53:41

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

John M. Thompson: Revolutionary Russia, 1917

Bernard Harcourt: Critique and Praxis

Ray Ginger: The Bending Cross: A Biography of Eugene Victor Debs

Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Michael Harrington: Socialism: Past and Future

Victor Serge + Natalia Ivanovna Sedova: Life and Death of Leon Trotsky

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Resources

The Collector: What do Hegel and Marx Have in Common?

Socialist Alternative: Robert Owen and Utopian Socialism

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism: Events

Washington State University: Introduction to 19th-Century Socialism

Howard Zinn: Commemorating Emma Goldman: 'Living My Life'

Stanford: Hegel's Dialectics

The History of Economic Thought: Cesare Beccaria

Stanford: Jeremy Bentham

Foundation for Economic Education: Robert Owen: The Woolly-Minded Cotton Spinner

Stanford: Karl Marx

Central European Economic and Social History: Economic Development In Europe In The 19th Century

Marxists.org: Encyclopedia of Marxism

The New Yorker: Karl Marx, Yesterday and Today

Marxists.org: Glossary of Organisations

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Show Notes Part Two [Unf*cking Flashback: The Assange Problem.]

Mon, 17 Jul 2023 21:31:46 +0000

In the second part of Show Notes, Max and 99 delve into Unf*cker emails and social comments; weighing in on some heavy hitting topics like Israel/Palestine and term limits.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:01:03

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:55:29

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:59:39

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:01:26

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:03:57

Outro: 01:08:25

Unf*cker Recommendations

Lessenberry Ink: The Failure of Term Limits

The Guardian: France has ignored racist police violence for decades. This uprising is the price of that denial

Jodi Dean+ Charisse Burden-Stelly: Organize, Fight, Win: Black Communist Women's Political Writing

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor: How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective

Brandon Weber: Class War, USA: Dispatches from Workers' Struggles in American History

Aja Monet: My Mother Was a Freedom Fighter

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Show Notes Part One [Unf*cking Flashback: The Assange Problem.]

Fri, 14 Jul 2023 18:45:39 +0000

Today we have a first: a two part Show Notes! In Part One, Max and 99 catch up, and delve into some headlines. Part Two to come tomorrow.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Manny’s Corner: 00:05:00

Headlines: 00:22:50

Outro: 00:52:28

Headlines

The Intercept: Judges Keep Ruling That Anti-Trans Health Care Bans Make Shitty Law. The GOP Isn't Giving Up.

Emissions Substack: The Food Problem Is Bigger Than Lettuce

Current Affairs: How To Explain Socialism Clearly In a Way That Actually Persuades People

Resources

News Beat: Interview With U.S. Presidential Candidate Dr. Cornel West

ACLU: Mapping Attacks on LGBTQ Rights in U.S. State Legislatures

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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News Beat's Exclusive Interview With Dr. Cornel West

Fri, 07 Jul 2023 17:31:00 +0000

"If our democracy is to survive, the empire must be dismantled.” That’s what Dr. Cornel West told our friends at News Beat in an exclusive, wide-ranging interview in which he talked about dismantling systems of oppression, uplifting the poor and working class, ending America’s military industrial complex, and abolishing poverty, homelessness, and prisons. West, who is vying for the Green Party nomination for U.S. President, said his third-party bid is also about putting an end to the corporate duopoly and dismissed claims that a candidate outside of the two-party system can’t win. He also said he’s entering the race not just to introduce new ideas but to fight for marginalized people, vowing to take on anyone who is hostile to the struggle of working people and those on the front-line of disastrous conflicts.

For more from News Beat, including the video version of this interview, visit newsbeat.substack.com and visit Manny's other show, www.hiphopcansaveamerica.com.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Unf*cking Flashback: The Assange Problem. Time is Running Out to Salvage Press Freedom.

Mon, 26 Jun 2023 18:30:34 +0000

[An update from Max, 6/26/23] Hey Unf*ckers. This episode updates the Assange piece we released a while back. It’s possible that by the time you hear this, there will have been movement on his case. If not, it seems likely that his extradition to the United States is imminent. So I’ve updated the episode with some new thoughts and generally cleaned up the text; it’s very similar, almost a re-release of the original, just tighter and more focused. Either way, it’s a good refresher considering how much the Espionage Act is in the news these days. But mostly it’s a necessary reminder of what’s at stake.

The Espionage Act is having quite the moment in the sun these days. Former President Donald Trump was charged under the act for knowingly absconding with and hiding classified documents said to contain sensitive nuclear capability secrets and theoretical attack plans. Daniel Ellsberg, famed whistleblower behind the release of the Pentagon Papers, passed away this week; perhaps the most high profile modern target of the Espionage Act until, of course, Trump. Amidst all of this newfound attention being paid to an arcane World War I era law designed to squash any objection to the war effort, there’s Julian Assange. He is the ultimate litmus test for America. A test to see just how committed we are to maintaining even a shred of a democratic facade.

Resources

RSF: UK: Julian Assange dangerously close to extradition following High Court rejection of appeal

Book Love

Glenn Greenwald: No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NSA, and the U.S. Surveillance State

Tariq Ali + Margaret Kunstler: In Defense of Julian Assange

Pod Love

Intercepted with Jeremy Scahill: Joe Biden's War Powers

Media Roots Radio with Abby & Robbie Martin: Assange Trial: Torture, Trumped Up Charges & A Warning to Us All w/ Kevin Gosztola

News Beat: Chelsea Manning: Collateral Murder Cover-Up

News Beat: Espionage Act & The Battle For The Free Press

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Show Notes [Ep 99: Understanding Socialism: Part Two.]

Fri, 23 Jun 2023 19:54:19 +0000

Today’s Show Notes is a rousing display of show notes. Headlines, emails + donations galore. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:03:50

Emails: 00:17:00

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:00:13

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:01:23

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:06:06

Outro: 01:06:52

Headlines

RSF: UK: Julian Assange dangerously close to extradition following High Court rejection of appeal

Mother Jones: The Weight of Water: Women Mariners Abused at Sea Are Finally Breaking Their Silence

The Intercept: The FBI Groomed a 16-Year-Old With “Brain Development Issues” to Become a Terrorist

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee® at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic® at unftr.com/blog to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Understanding Socialism: Part Two. The Seeds of Socialism.

Sat, 17 Jun 2023 05:13:13 +0000

Believe it or not, we’re still not up to Karl Marx because we’re mired in the turn of the 19th Century. Part Two reveals the progenitors of socialist theory toward the end of the Enlightenment era. Charles Fourier, Henri de Saint-Simon and Robert Owen lay the groundwork coming out of the American and French revolutions by imagining new societies and mechanisms of power. In their writings we begin to see the roots of Marxian philosophy and draw upon concepts and experiments that would influence Marx and others during the second industrial revolution.

Resources

The Collector: What do Hegel and Marx Have in Common?

Socialist Alternative: Robert Owen and Utopian Socialism

Encyclopedia of Marxism: Events

Washington State University: Introduction to 19th-Century Socialism | Common Errors in English Usage and More

Howard Zinn: Commemorating Emma Goldman: 'Living My Life'

Stanford: Hegel's Dialectics

The History of Economic Thought: Cesare Beccaria

Stanford: Jeremy Bentham

Foundation for Economic Education: Robert Owen: The Woolly-Minded Cotton Spinner

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

John M. Thompson: Revolutionary Russia, 1917

Bernard Harcourt: Critique and Praxis

Ray Ginger: The Bending Cross: A Biography of Eugene Victor Debs

Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Michael Harrington: Socialism: Past and Future

Victor Serge + Natalia Ivanovna Sedova: Life and Death of Leon Trotsky

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Bernie Sanders: It’s Ok to Be Angry about Capitalism

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Topical Cream 12: The Doctor is in.]

Thu, 15 Jun 2023 17:31:17 +0000

In this episode of Show Notes, Max and 99 read a comment from a disgruntled Unf*cker, discuss the weird number of conservatives who have done drag, and have a rousing conversation about menstruation. Oh, and the headlines! Enjoy y'all.

Listen to The Doctor is in: Dr. Cornel West announces bid for presidency.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:04:50

Emails: 00:14:38

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:52:41

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:58:30

Buy Me A Coffee + Reviews: 01:03:49

Outro: 01:04:36

Headlines

The New York Times: CPI Report Live: Inflation Rose 4% in May, Another Sign of Cooling

World Socialist Web Site: The Democratic Party, Donald Trump and the Espionage Act

ICIJ: About the Deforestation Inc. investigation

Unf*cker Recommendations

Cedric J. Robinson: Black Marxism, Revised and Updated Third Edition: The Making of the Black Radical Tradition

Jonathan M Katz: Gangsters of Capitalism: Smedley Butler, the Marines, and the Making and Breaking of America's Empire

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Show Notes [Ep. 98: SCOTUS Native Adoption Case.]

Thu, 08 Jun 2023 18:02:39 +0000

In this episode of Show Notes, Max and 99 spend too much time talking about Mad Men, cover pressing news in Headlines (the injustices being waged against the LGBTQ+ community, children in the work force & climate issues), plus they hear from friend of the show John Kane.

Listen to SCOTUS Native Adoption Case: Landmark Decision Due This Month.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:10:07

Emails: 00:19:57

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:47:38

Outro: 00:49:51

Resources

Leave UNFTR a Review

Let's Talk Native with John Kane

Headlines

Best of the Left: #1563 Putting Our Kids to Work for Corporate Profits

Mother Jones: Legislatures Passed 550 Anti-Trans Bills So Far This Year

Human Rights Campaign: National State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans

World Socialist Web Site: Leon Trotsky and the Struggle for Socialism in the Twenty-First Century

New York Times: Opinion | The Climate Solution That’s Horrible for the Climate

Emissions Substack

UNFTR Resources

Episode: The Economics of Racism.

Episode: The Black & Jewish Divide in America.

Unf*cker Recommendations

Pitchfork Economics: Can the economy be liberated? (with Jeremie Greer)

Raci$m Is Profitable podcast

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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The Doctor is In: Dr. Cornel West announces bid for presidency.

Wed, 07 Jun 2023 18:17:58 +0000

Cornel West is one of the most important public intellectuals of the modern era. And now he's running for President of the United States representing the People's Party. Right person. Wrong platform.

Resources

World Socialist Web Site: The Movement for a People’s Party: No program, no principles, no future

Cornel West for President

Dr. Cornel West

UNFTR Resources

Video: The Doctor is IN. Dr. Cornel West announces bid for presidency.

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SCOTUS Native Adoption Case: Landmark Decision Due This Month.

Sun, 04 Jun 2023 15:12:25 +0000

The SCOTUS is set to release a number of decisions this month. Top of mind for us is the decision on Haaland v. Brackeen, which places Native sovereignty at risk. The case involves a white couple from Texas and Native foster children. The couple is petitioning the court for full custody, despite the possibility of the children moving in with Native family members on Navajo territory. It’s a complex case that challenges federal law governing Native adoptions and—surprise, surprise—involves dark money libertarian forces eager to upend Native rights of sovereignty.

Resources

NARF: FAQ 18: Adoption - A Practical Guide to the Indian Child Welfare Act

The New York Times: Who Can Adopt a Native American Child? A Texas Couple vs. 573 Tribes

Oyez: Haaland v. Brackeen

Justia: United States v. Holliday :: 70 U.S. 407 (1865) :: Justia US Supreme Court Center

Justia: Brackeen v. Haaland, No. 18-11479 (5th Cir. 2021)

EdWeek: Native American Children Endured Brutal Treatment in U.S. Boarding Schools, Federal Report Shows

The Indigenous Foundation: The U.S. history of Native American Boarding Schools

American Civil Liberties Union: ACLU Files Amicus Brief Urging Supreme Court to Uphold the Indian Child Welfare Act

ICT News: The fate of Indian Child Welfare before the Supreme Court

UNFTR Resources

Episode: Boarding Schools from Hell.

Episode: Culture Cancel.

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Show Notes [Ep. 97: Understanding Socialism, Part One]

Fri, 02 Jun 2023 19:57:59 +0000

On this Show Notes episode, Max & 99 review brilliant and insightful listener and viewer feedback on our first of probably 63 Socialism episodes, admit a horrible secret that has to do with our website contact form, and reminisce about 9/11 and the Great Northeast Blackout of 2003, while the brilliant, talented and handsome Manny Faces offers a stark warning to help Max avoid losing two hours and fourteen minutes of his life.

Plus 99 is a potty mouth.

(Disclaimer: Manny Faces also wrote this intro instead of 99. Obviously.)

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Understanding Socialism: Part One. An Introduction to Socialism.

Sat, 27 May 2023 16:22:03 +0000

This week on UNFTR we have the first in the series on socialism. After our “ISMs” refresher last week, we dip our toes into the communal water and begin the process of unpacking an economic and ideological philosophy that inspires rage on the right, hope on the left and (mostly) fear in the middle. The episode starts off with listener feedback from a call we put out on social media and YouTube. We asked listeners to explain socialism in a couple of sentences and the responses were amazing. The episode continues with examples of how socialism is portrayed in the mainstream media, some basic misconceptions and UNFTR style level-setting on key terms and definitions.

Chapters

Chapter One: Audience feedback and answers. 00:05:58

Chapter Two: The Importance of Being Bernie. 00:15:00

Chapter Three: A brief overview of crucial concepts. 00:25:08

Post Show Musings: 00:34:56

Outro: 00:37:06

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

John M. Thompson: Revolutionary Russia, 1917

Bernard Harcourt: Critique and Praxis

Ray Ginger: The Bending Cross: A Biography of Eugene Victor Debs

Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Michael Harrington: Socialism: Past and Future

Victor Serge + Natalia Ivanovna Sedova: Life and Death of Leon Trotsky

Episode: Unf*cking Flashback: Capitasociafascilibdemarxism Exploring ISMs in the Modern Age.

Bernie Sanders: It’s Ok to Be Angry about Capitalism

UNFTR Resources

Video: Socialism, Communism & Marxism. Unpacking ISMs.

Episode: Capitalism

Video: We don't understand Capitalism- Part One.

Video: We don't understand Capitalism- Part Two.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [Unf*cking Flashback: Capitasociafascilibdemarxism.]

Fri, 26 May 2023 17:52:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 gear up for the Summer Socialism Series; they review feedback from the ISMs re-drop, hear from some global Unf*ckers on Socialism, and somehow squeeze in impressions and bad singing. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:09:46

Emails: 00:23:53

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:34:07

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:35:08

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Shout Outs: 01:18:03

Outro: 01:22:31

Resources

Subscribe to the UNFTR Newsletter

Buy Unf*cking Coffee®

Behind The Bastards: Part One- Kissinger

Conspirituality Podcast: 148: Marianne Williamson and Asshole Jesus

Headlines

Annenberg Media: Rep. Barbara Lee faces fundraising titans in the race for CA Senate seat

LA Times: Opinion: How to fill Dianne Feinstein's seat if she resigns? The Constitution offers a clear answer

Media Roots Radio: The Real Tucker Carlson Part 1 of 2: Who Are The Elites?

Unf*cker Recommendations

#FHK- The Economist: Henry Kissinger explains how to avoid world war three

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Unf*cking Flashback: Capitasociafascilibdemarxism Exploring ISMs in the Modern Age.

Sat, 20 May 2023 04:01:00 +0000

A while back we did an episode titled Capitasociafascilibdemarxism. It was an expression of the confusion surrounding the casual way insults are hurled in the political sphere. You’re a Marxist and fascist! That’s socialism! Capitalist pig! I’m a libertarian. Anarcho syndicalist. Communist. Minarchist. It’s the original form of identity politics, meant to convey a sweeping ideology to explain our worldviews or criticize others for theirs. We’re going to continue building on this for the foreseeable future because I recently found myself in a precarious position. When asked to define socialism, I realized I didn’t have all that great of an answer.

I’ve studied it to a degree. Read a bunch. Engaged in conversations and thought experiments, but when pressed to really nail it down I struggled. And for good reason. Socialism is a concept. A theory. It’s not in and of itself a practice. It’s a framework open to interpretation and constantly influenced by environmental circumstances.

So here I am with a podcast and now a video channel. Offering viewpoints and perspectives about socioeconomics and politics and yet incapable of delivering precise definitions that provide clarity on arguably the most important aspects of these disciplines. I suppose many of us suffer from imposter syndrome to an extent, but there’s something about not being schooled in the fundamentals of political science that, honestly, kind of haunts me. I know it’s true that the older we get, the less we understand. And the process of curating these shows an antidote to ignorance that I take very seriously. It’s why we painstakingly source our information and try hard to be nuanced and not reactive. There’s an inescapable emotional element to the work we do. Things that offend our sensibilities tend to elevate passion over reason and I think that’s okay. It’s empathic. But it’s also important to be critical and self aware, to constantly look for holes in our knowledge so we can make better connections. So that’s what this is about.

―

In today’s cure for insomnia episode, we explore the origins of the ISMs the pundit class abuses each and every day. We’re focusing on the big ones. Fascism, Socialism, Communism, Marxism and Capitalism. The show covers the theorists who created these theories, touch on the circumstances that inspired their thinking and how far from these concepts we have moved as a society. Plus, we’ll talk through how most of these theories (except fascism) are more alike than we’ve been led to believe. (99 and Manny note: “Not the most scintillating episode, but Max was so excited we didn’t have the heart to tell him.”)

Resources

Truthdig: Sheldon Wolin and Inverted Totalitarianism

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Adam Smith: The Wealth of Nations

Pod Love

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

American Scandal: The Ice Pick Surgeon

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Show Notes [Ep 96: Williamson and Kennedy: Damaging the Brand.]

Thu, 18 May 2023 20:59:55 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max & 99 wade through a litany of comments about the Williamson & Kennedy episode. 99 is nursing a back injury. Max cuts off his own mic by accident. No animals were harmed during the taping.

Listen to Williamson and Kennedy: Damaging the Brand. Sorry, not sorry.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:06:48

Emails: 00:40:40

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:20:38

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Shout Outs: 01:28:26

Outro: 01:29:47

Headlines

NYT: Why Are Americans So Negative About the Economy?

Reuters: Migrant crossings drop at U.S.-Mexico border after Title 42 expires

CD273: Inside Congressional Committees with Dr. Maya Kornberg

Popsci: Make your own seed bombs to garden on the go

UNFTR Resources

Episode: Capitasociafascilibdemarxism: Exploring ISMs in the Modern Age.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Williamson and Kennedy: Damaging the Brand. Sorry, not sorry.

Sat, 13 May 2023 04:01:00 +0000

Marianne Williamson and Robert Kennedy Jr. have entered the presidential race and are being cast as the progressives in the field. And to be fair, they’re talking a good game and have all the bullet points memorized. This episode speaks to why this is a disaster for the progressive movement and effectively torches Bernie’s legacy.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:04

Post Show Musings: 00:30:43

Outro: 00:36:23

Resources

The New York Times: George Santos Is Charged With Fraud and Lying in 13-Count Indictment

MSNBC: Texas Rep. Bryan Slaton expelled over ironic groomer allegations

Conspirituality Podcast: 148: Marianne Williamson and Asshole Jesus

Pew Research: Most Democrats and Republicans Know Biden Is Catholic, but They Differ Sharply About How Religious He Is

Real Time with Bill Maher: Marianne Williamson

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

CNN: Anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. launches 2024 presidential bid

POLITICO: RFK Jr. remarks on Anne Frank, vaccines draw condemnation

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Show Notes [Ep 95: Fox Untucked, Noam Undone, Taibbi Unhinged.]

Thu, 11 May 2023 19:46:59 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max and 99 continue discussing patriarchy, hero worship and Max’s modern nemesis, Tucker Carlson.

Listen to Fox Untucked, Noam Undone, Taibbi Unhinged: The Toxic Mix of Money and Patriarchy.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:04:29

Emails: 00:15:15

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:54:53

YouTube Shout Outs: 01:00:22

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:21:17

Outro: 01:22:34

Resources

Islam Peace Debate feat Mehdi Hassan at Oxford Union

Headlines

Washington Post: New cars, once part of the American Dream, now out of reach for many

Committee on Energy and Commerce: Chairs Rodgers, Griffith Announce Oversight Hearing on Broadband Deployment

The White House: The Potential Economic Impacts of Various Debt Ceiling Scenarios

UNFTR Resources

Dismantling the Oligarchy. | Video, Episode

Fox Untucked, Noam Undone, Taibbi Unhinged. | Video, Episode

Episode: Amazon (Part 1): The Unfulfillment Company.

Episode: A (Mostly) Vegan World: Plantf*ckers Can Save Us All.

Episode: New York’s Casual White Supremacy: Losing the Plot on Hochul & Buffalo Bills.

Episode: Hochul’s “Gift.” NY Governor Does it Again.

Episode: Airline Crisis: Why Is the FAA Failing Under Buttigieg?

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Fox Untucked, Noam Undone, Taibbi Unhinged: The Toxic Mix of Money and Patriarchy.

Sat, 06 May 2023 04:01:00 +0000

Can we separate the art from the artist? Do the misdeeds of our political and cultural icons diminish their accomplishments? “Cancel Culture” has cast a shadow over the discourse in the United States. Conservatives are twisting every talking point into a culture war issue in an effort to undermine genuine attempts to elevate our language and our behavior. One common thread that runs through narratives across the spectrum is legacy patriarchal thinking that infects our politics, personal interactions and societal hierarchies.

Media Matters for America

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:05

Sketch: 00:01:56

Prologue: 00:08:42

Chapter One: Fox, Untucked. 00:14:32

Chapter Two: Matt Taibbi. Show me the money. 00:20:48

Chapter Three: Uncle Noam. Say it isn’t so. 00:28:37

Bring it home, Max. 00:31:32

Post Show Musings: 00:37:20

Outro: 01:13:57

Resources

Watson Institute: Blood and Treasure: United States Budgetary Costs and Human Costs of 20 Years of War in Iraq and Syria, 2003-2023

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism: Obama’s covert drone war in numbers: ten times more strikes than Bush

Rolling Stone: Clarence Thomas' Billionaire Buddy Has a Vast Collection of Hitler Paintings, Nazi Memorabilia

The New York Times: Carlson’s Text That Alarmed Fox Leaders: ‘It’s Not How White Men Fight’

No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen: MORE Fox hosts on the chopping block after Tucker's firing

Media Matters for America: Fox News wants a massive increase in its cable fees — which will be paid for by all cable subscribers

Western Journal: Tucker Carlson Gets Best Job Offer Yet: $100 Million and President of the Company

Press Gazette: Revealed: Top 27 highest-earning Substack newsletters generate over $22m a year

MSNBC: The 'University of Austin' is the best cancel culture grift yet

The New Republic: Everybody Hates Henry David Thoreau

The American Prospect: Meet the Billionaire Brothers You Never Heard of Who Fund the Religious Right

The Nation: Tucker, Twitter, and Taibbi

Wall Street Journal: Jeffrey Epstein’s Private Calendar: CIA Director William Burns, Goldman Sachs’s Top Lawyer, Noam Chomsky - WSJ

Harvard Crimson: Jeffrey Epstein Met With Harvard Professor Martin Nowak and Noam Chomsky in 2015 in Harvard Office

Ludwig von Bertalanffy: General System Theory; Foundations, Development, Applications

UNFTR Resources

Episode: James Earl Carter (Part One).

Episode: Happy Noam Chomsky Day: Pundits, Public Intellectuals & Charlatans.

Episode: Manufacturing Dissent: How We Let an Aussie Destroy the U.S.

Video: Taibbi in the Crosshairs. A Cautionary Tale.

Episode: Fuck U, PragerU: The Internet’s Fake Toxic University

Episode: What’s the deal with Peter Thiel? Sociopathic billionaire man-child wants to eat the world.

Episode: “Independent” Men with Massive Platforms: Jon Stewart, Dave Chappelle & Joe Rogan.

Episode: Dismantling the Oligarchy: The Political Class is Intellectually Bankrupt.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Show Notes [Ep 94: Dismantling the Oligarchy.]

Thu, 04 May 2023 21:06:50 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max intentionally fucked up 99's audio in an attempt to assert his dominance. (Yell at him, Unf*ckers.) Other than that, they discuss some salacious headlines—Epstein and Chomsky, anyone? Plus, they cover feedback from Max’s grandiose essay. Enjoy!

Listen to Dismantling the Oligarchy: The Political Class is Intellectually Bankrupt.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:05:08

Emails: 00:18:43

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:29:29

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 00:44:10

Reviews: 00:45:52

Outro: 00:49:02

Resources

The National: The Alcott (feat. Taylor Swift)

Become a Member of UNFTR

#UnFoxMyCableBox

Headlines

American Prestige: Special - The Sudan Crisis w/ Joshua Craze

Media Matters for America: Fox News wants a massive increase in its cable fees — which will be paid for by all cable subscribers

The New York Times: Gordon Lightfoot, Hitmaking Singer-Songwriter, Is Dead at 84

WSJ: Jeffrey Epstein’s Private Calendar: CIA Director William Burns, Goldman Sachs’s Top Lawyer, Noam Chomsky

UNFTR Resources

Episode: Phone a Friend: Daniel Bessner + Derek Davison of the American Prestige Podcast.

Episode: The Global Order of Money: How exactly does it make the world go ‘round?

Episode: What’s the deal with Peter Thiel? Sociopathic billionaire man-child wants to eat the world.

Episode: Who To Trust in Media.

Unf*cker Recommendations

We're Not Wrong Podcast

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Dismantling the Oligarchy: The Political Class is Intellectually Bankrupt.

Sat, 29 Apr 2023 04:00:00 +0000

This episode explores both the majesty of our democracy and its failures. No matter the issue that motivates you as a voter and citizen, there is an artificial barrier that exists between our desire for change and ability to manifest it. The whims of an increasingly wealthy donor class ensures that each of the major parties play their respective roles in maintaining the status quo. Well intentioned political figures inevitably cave to the pressures of the donor class and unrelenting requirements of campaign funding. The founders of the nation crushed monarchical tyranny with the innovation of temporary rule. Modern oligarchs have found a way to negate this innovation and install a permanent ruling class of elites.

John Stuart Mill: On Liberty

Resources

The New York Review: Hannah Arendt: From an Interview

Hoover Institution: Make Ticker Tape Parades Great Again: A Conversation with Peter Thiel

Ludwig von Bertalanffy: General System Theory; Foundations, Development, Applications

Reuters: Chile's lithium nationalization shines light on emerging tech

NPR: Can Brazil's Lula save the Amazon?

Book Love

Jean-Jacques Rousseau: The Social Contract

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Show Notes [Ep 93: Updated Tax Evasion Figures.]

Thu, 27 Apr 2023 16:47:10 +0000

Max is back for today's Show Notes and there's plenty to review! Him and 99 cover important headlines (Tucker's departure, Biden's re-election, etc.), Updated Tax Evasion Figures feedback and discuss the prosperity doctrine.

Listen to Updated Tax Evasion Figures: Lifestyles of the Rich and Fraudulent.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:09:21

Emails: 00:44:37

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:55:58

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:57:52

Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:08:07

Reviews: 01:11:14

Outro: 01:11:52

Headlines

Joint Economic Committee Democrats: How The Default on America Act Hurts the U.S. Economy - State and District Data

NPR: Biden warns of rights under threat from Trump and 'MAGA extremists' in reelect launch

The Root: Black Twitter Celebrates the Life and Legacy of Harry Belafonte

The Wrap: Surprise! Tucker Carlson Draws the Most Democratic Viewers in Key Demo, Even Topping Rachel Maddow

Resources

Conspirituality Podcast: 148-Marianne Williamson and Asshole Jesus

Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power

Jeff Sharlet: C Street: The Fundamentalist Threat to American Democracy

Canadaland: The White Saviors Podcast

UNFTR Resources

Episode: The Prosperity Doctrine: Christ as Capitalist.

Video: The Prosperity Doctrine: Christ as Capitalist

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Updated Tax Evasion Figures: Lifestyles of the Rich and Fraudulent.

Fri, 21 Apr 2023 04:01:00 +0000

An explosive new report from the Bureau of Economic Research just landed, and it seems that no one in the media or political class cares. The report pulls together findings from new domestic regulations related to offshore banking and revelations from a treasure trove of documents leaked in the Pandora Papers. The Bureau estimates that billionaires are now holding nearly $4 trillion in assets in offshore accounts, an increase of nearly $1 trillion since the last estimate was published. And it’s likely a good deal more than this.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:44

Chapter One: The Magnitude of the Problem. 00:02:52

Chapter Two: Leak. Uncover. Match. Report. 00:10:45

Chapter Three: Assessing the impact. 00:15:11

Post Show Musings: 00:21:57

Outro: 00:33:15

Resources

Oxfam: Richest 1% bag nearly twice as much wealth as the rest of the world put together over the past two years

Investopedia: The Tax Implications of Opening a Foreign Bank Account

NBER: The Offshore World According to FATCA

Vox: Biden’s billionaire tax proposal, explained

ICIJ: Where are the key Panama Papers figures, seven years later?

WTTW: A Growing Worry for Charities: Tax Havens for the Rich

OpenSecrets: ‘Dark money’ groups aligned with party leadership steer hundreds of millions of dollars into 2022 federal elections

Tax Policy Center: Biden’s Budget Would Raise Taxes On High-Income Households, Cut Them For Many Others

United States Senate Committee on Finance: Wyden Investigation Uncovers Major Loophole In Offshore Account Reporting

IMF: The True Cost of Global Tax Havens

Mirror Online: Rishi Sunak accepted £60,000 from donors linked to offshore tax havens for leadership bid

POLITICO: Liberal 'dark-money' behemoth funneled more than $400M in 2020

UNFTR Resources

Episode: Modern Monetary Theory: Can we afford it? Yes. Yes, we can.

Episode: Corporate (Ir)Responsibility: Part One: Financial Fuckery and Tax Evasion.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Ep 92: The End of Affirmative Action.]

Wed, 12 Apr 2023 19:54:28 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, 99 flies solo while Max is on vacation. She covers affirmative action feedback, some housekeeping and YouTube comments. Plus, we get some bonus punch ins from Manny Faces!

Listen to The End of Affirmative Action: Civil rights advocates brace for the worst.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:01:35

Emails: 00:09:17

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:17:55

Reviews: 00:23:51

Outro: 00:24:46

Resources

Subscribe to the UNFTR Newsletter

Shop Unf*cking The Republic and UNFTR Merch

Bettina Love: We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom

Bettina Love: Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal

Headlines

Forbes: Twitter Inc. 'No Longer Exists' As Elon Musk Inches Closer To X 'Everything App' Ambitions

Food Waste Prevention Week

The FADER: Akademiks signs with controversial streaming platform Rumble

Unf*cker Recommendations

American Constitution Society's Broken Law Podcast (Episode: Dear Senate, Please Prioritize Judges)

Slate's Amicus with Dahlia Lithwick Podcast

Crooked's Strict Scrutiny Podcast

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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The End of Affirmative Action: Civil rights advocates brace for the worst.

Sat, 08 Apr 2023 04:01:00 +0000

Affirmative action has a long history in the United States, beginning with the labor movement in the 1930s. But over time, the country and the courts developed a far more narrow definition with respect to the college and university admissions process. Today, the vestiges of affirmative action are once again under attack and likely to fall apart completely under the conservative Trump court. In this episode, we review the history of affirmative action, how it came to be settled law and why it’s likely to be stripped away.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:15

Chapter One: Affirmative action has always been hanging by a thread. 00:03:04

Chapter Two: Everyone’s a winner, everyone’s a loser. 00:09:05

Chapter Three: As usual, there’s a villain behind all this. 00:17:16

Chapter Four: The unlevel playing field. 00:23:41

Chapter Five: Bring it home, Max. 00:29:12

Post Show Musings: 00:47:13

Outro: 00:49:10

Resources

Smithsonian Magazine: The Origins of the Term ‘Affirmative Action’

National Archives: Executive Order 11478 - Equal employment opportunity in the Federal Government

National Archives: Executive Order 8802 - Prohibition of Discrimination in the Defense Industry (1941)

The New York Times Magazine: Why Is Affirmative Action in Peril? One Man’s Decision.

ACLU: What You Need to Know about Affirmative Action at the Supreme Court

ACLU: Meet Edward Blum, the Man Who Wants to Kill Affirmative Action in Higher Education

The New York Times: He Took On the Voting Rights Act and Won. Now He’s Taking On Harvard

Mother Jones: Exposed: The Dark-Money ATM of the Conservative Movement

The Federal Reserve: Wealth Inequality and the Racial Wealth Gap

Economic Policy Institute: Understanding black-white disparities in labor market outcomes requires models that account for persistent discrimination and unequal bargaining power

Brookings: Unequal Opportunity: Race and Education

The Atlantic: Justice Jackson’s Crucial Argument About Affirmative Action

UNFTR Resources

Episode: America, Inc.

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Show Notes [Topical Cream 11: Hochul's “Gift.”]

Fri, 07 Apr 2023 18:30:55 +0000

In today's Show Notes Max and 99 cover headlines ranging from oil to Trump's Indictment, discuss MMT and review some Unf*cker updates.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:04:24

Emails: 00:16:46

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:34:34

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:37:51

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:56:03

Outro: 01:07:56t

Resources

Manny Faces Online, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Will Watkins on Instagram

Headlines

Forever Wars: The 'Indispensable Nation' Learns It Might Not Be Great-Power-Competitive

The Intercept: The Prosecution of Trump Is a Good First Step. Now Do Bush.

OilPrice.com: The Oil Bulls Are Back On The Attack

EIA: U.S. crude oil production will increase to new records in 2023 and 2024

UNFTR Resources

Episode: Peak Oil: It's a Crude, Crude World.

Episode: $5 Gasoline: The Real Culprit Revealed.

If you like the pod version of #UNFTR, make sure to check out the video version on YouTube where Max shows his beautiful face! www.youtube.com/@UNFTR

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Hochul’s “Gift.” NY Governor Does it Again.

Sat, 01 Apr 2023 04:01:00 +0000

NYS Governor Kathy Hochul is once again under scrutiny for vetoing a bill that would have protected unmarked graves of Native People. It’s another in a litany of demonic insults to Native tribes in New York. But this one comes with a kicker. In defending her administration’s policies toward Native territories in NY, she mentions the return of 1,000 acres to the Onondaga Nation. But there’s a whole lot more to that story.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:05

Section One: 00:01:08

Section Two: 00:03:57

Section Three: 00:07:13

Section Four: 00:14:33

Outro: 00:16:15

Resources

United States Department of the Interior: Remediation of Mudboil Discharges the Tully Valley of Central New York

The Daily Orange: Months after land return victory, transfer yet to be realized for Onondaga Nation

The New York Times: Clash Over Building Atop Native Burial Sites Angers N.Y. Tribes

Governor Kathy Hochul: Largest Returns of Land to an Indigenous Nation by Any State

Wikipedia: Solvay Process

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Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is written and hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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Show Notes [Ep 91: Has “Creative Destruction” Reached Silicon Valley?]

Thu, 30 Mar 2023 18:41:23 +0000

99 is back in today's Show Notes! She and Max talk Creative Destruction, YouTube production, and something else that rhymes. Enjoy, Unf*ckers!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:04:41

Emails: 00:15:20

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:37:06

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:51:30

Outro: 00:55:50

Resources

Headlines

The New York Times: After Doling Out Huge Loans, China Is Now Bailing Out Countries

The New York Times: Clash Over Building Atop Native Burial Sites Angers N.Y. Tribes

The Daily Orange: Months after land return victory, transfer yet to be realized for Onondaga Nation

Al Jazeera: Israel protesters vow to continue until judicial ‘reform’ gone

Unf*cker Recommendations

Mark Fisher: Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative?

Ellen Brown The Web of Debt Blog

Is This Democracy Podcast

UNFTR Resources

Podcast: BONUS: An interview with Unkechaug Chief Harry Wallace and Native Coffee Trader’s Amy Wallace.

Podcast: The Washington Consensus: Consensus is not consent.

Podcast: Playing Chicken with China: How Propaganda Rationalizes Conflict.

YouTube: Ayn Rand

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Has “Creative Destruction” Reached Silicon Valley? The Capitalism Trap.

Sat, 25 Mar 2023 04:01:00 +0000

Silicon Valley is in a slump. For all the talk about innovation, there’s a real question as to whether the U.S. tech sector is really all that innovative. Today’s episode digs into this question through the lens of a concept called “Creative Destruction,” a term coined by famed economist Joseph Schumpeter.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:04

Chapter One: What is Creative Destruction? 00:05:37

Chapter Two: Innovation or Iteration? 00:11:59

Chapter Three: The so-called disruptors. 00:17:45

Bring it home, Max. 00:24:42

Post Show Musings: 00:27:18

Book Love: 00:28:03

Outro: 00:37:03

Resources

TechCrunch: Is Silicon Valley really losing its crown?

The Guardian: The disruption con: why big tech’s favourite buzzword is nonsense

FRED Economic Data: Federal Funds Effective Rate (FEDFUNDS)

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

Philippe Aghion: The Power of Creative Destruction: Economic Upheaval and the Wealth of Nations

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Show Notes [Ep 90: Contagion!]

Thu, 23 Mar 2023 16:05:13 +0000

In today's Show Notes Max flies solo as 99 is 'Down With Disease.' He covers the new Times piece regarding Carter, makes some Book Love suggestions and responds to YouTube comments.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:02:33

Emails: 00:7:40

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:16:26

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:17:09

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:22:31

Outro: 00:023:39

Resources

The New York Times: An Untold Story Behind Jimmy Carter’s Presidential Defeat

DRILLED Podcast New Season

Adam Jentleson: Kill Switch: The Rise of the Modern Senate and the Crippling of American Democracy

Howard Zinn: A People's History of the United States

Kurt Andersen: Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America: A Recent History

Nancy MacLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

Michael Grunwald: The New New Deal: The Hidden Story of Change in the Obama Era

UNFTR Episode Resources

UNFTR YouTube: Weaponizing "Woke." Dumb Right-Wing Tropes. Episode Four.

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Weaponizing “Woke.” Dumb Right-Wing Tropes.

Thu, 23 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This is the audio version of the fourth installment of our “Dumb Right Wing Tropes” series on YouTube that looks at the word “woke” and how it has been increasingly used by the right to belittle and dehumanize groups on the Left. We look at the origin of the term, the meaning behind it and why being woke is so much better than the alternative.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:07

Section One: 00:01:20

Fuck Florida: 00:03:31

Section Two: 00:04:00

Section Three: 00:07:05

Outro: 00:07:43

Resources

NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.: How Woke Went From "Black" to "Bad"

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Contagion: When Banks Fail.

Sat, 18 Mar 2023 04:01:00 +0000

What goes up, must come down. Unless you’re a banker. In which case it’s up, up and away with bailouts and low interest loans! Today’s episode is an accessible explainer of the unfolding banking crisis. It explains the basics of banking business models, where certain banks have exposure, the regulatory environment and some predictions as to what happens next. Hopefully, you walk away with slightly more insight into the current crisis, why it’s happening and what’s at stake.

Chapters:

Intro: 00:00:30

Chapter One: All for one, one for all. 00:02:37

Chapter Two: Mark to Market. 00:06:36

Chapter Two and a Half: Fox Never Wastes a Crisis. 00:13:15

Chapter Three: What comes next? 00:15:31

Post Show Musings: 00:20:44

Outro: 00:30:48

Resources

Forbes: What To Know About Silicon Valley Bank's Collapse—The Biggest Bank Failure Since 2008

Forexlive: The hold-to-maturity problem is a real headache. The only remedy is stable deposits

Lyn Alden: March 2023 Newsletter: A Look at Bank Solvency

UBS: US bank turmoil: FAQ and investment implications

Wikipedia: September 2019 events in the U.S. repo market

Axios: The story behind Founders Fund and the run on Silicon Valley Bank

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Show Notes [Ep 89: The Fed and Inflation.]

Fri, 17 Mar 2023 19:31:16 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max and 99 lightly cover bank failures, and Project Willow. Plus a discussion on prison abolition and some closing thoughts on the Federal Reserve. Enjoy, Unf*ckers!

Listen to The Fed and Inflation: The stories we tell.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:01:19

Emails: 00:14:07

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:51:41

YouTube Shout Outs: 00:54:07

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:00:08

Reviews: 01:06:15

Outro: 01:07:08

Resources

Al Jazeera: Willow oil drilling project in Alaska: Here’s what to know

Unf*cker Recommendations

Rural Urban Bridge Initiative

UNFTR Episode Resources

UNFTR YouTube: Contagion! When Banks Fail.

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The Fed and Inflation: The stories we tell.

Sat, 11 Mar 2023 05:01:00 +0000

Today, we’re talking about the stories we tell. Narratives that take root and stubbornly refuse to die. The economic version of urban legends. Today’s culprit is the Federal Reserve. I watched the two-hour testimony of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, so you don’t have to. And it was a masterclass in euphemisms intended to cover the Fed’s desire to put more people out of work. Two million of you, to be exact. So let’s talk about stories and legends.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:05

Chapter One: In God we trust. In the consumer, not so much. 00:01:25

Chapter Two: Enter the Federal Reserve. 00:08:47

Chapter Three: Crossing the river. 00:16:58

Bring it home, Max. 00:24:46

Post Show Musings: 00:30:03

Book Love: 00:31:22

Outro: 00:47:35

Resources

St. Louis Fed: The Fed and the Dual Mandate

Politico: The Senate’s crypto queen has a sweeping new Bitcoin bill

The New York Times: Fed Chair Opens Door to Faster Rate Moves and a Higher Peak

Americans for Tax Reform: Student Loan Bailout Applicants Will Spend More on Vacation, Drugs, and Gambling

Intelligent: Nearly half of student loan forgiveness recipients will use relief to go on vacation

St. Louis Fed: CPI Vs. PCE Inflation: Choosing a Standard Measure

UNFTR Resources

Podcast: Student Debt: Hey Boomer, STFU.

Podcast: Biden’s Big Student Debt Announcement: PITOTWIU for the Indebted Masses.

YouTube: Student Debt. The Supreme Court and GOP team up against the working class.

Book Love

Robert J. Shiller: Narrative Economics: How Stories Go Viral and Drive Major Economic Events

Post Show Musings

Cornell: AI vs. AI. Two chatbots talking to each other

Clear + Vivid Podcast: Alan chats with the bots

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Show Notes [Ep 88: James Earl Carter (Epilogue).]

Fri, 10 Mar 2023 17:26:52 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max and 99 round out the Carter series; cover more Headlines (the TN drag bill, Nord Stream 2 and Chris Hedges), and read some Facebook and YouTube comments.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:03:52

Social Feedback: 00:37:47

YouTube Feedback: 00:45:22

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:59:30

Show Notes: 01:09:41

Resources

NPR: The anti-drag bills sweeping the U.S. are straight from history's playbook

The New York Times: Intelligence Suggests Pro-Ukrainian Group Sabotaged Pipelines, U.S. Officials Say

The Chris Hedges Report: Lynching the Deplorables

Dan G's UNFTR Video

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James Earl Carter (Epilogue).

Sat, 04 Mar 2023 05:01:00 +0000

President Carter ran out his final year in office from the confines of the Oval Office as he worked night and day to free the hostages in Iran. After 444 days, they were released on the day his successor was inaugurated. It was a bittersweet and undeserving end for an all-too-brief tenure. The final installment of our series examines the events of 1980 and offers some final reflections on Jimmy Carter the man, and his legacy.

Chapters

Chapter Nine: 00:00:01

Epilogue: 00:11:08

Outro: 00:17:39

Resources

The New York Times: Jimmy Carter’s Unheralded Legacy

Book Love

Kai Bird: The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter

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Show Notes [Ep 87: James Earl Carter (Part Three).]

Fri, 03 Mar 2023 17:37:27 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max and 99 talk even more about Carter; continue with the Headlines segment (covering a vegan news story, student debt and a rebuttal to Seymour Hersh), and hear from some all star Unf*ckers! Enjoy.

Listen to James Earl Carter (Part Three).

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:15:02

Emails: 00:41:48

Social Shout Outs: 00:47:59

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:53:47

Reviews: 00:53:47

Outro: 01:09:09

Resources

New Unf*cking the Republic and UNFTR Merch

UNFTR YouTube Videos: "Inner City." Dumb Right Wing Tropes. Episode One, "Back the Blue" Dumb Right-Wing Tropes. Episode Two and Immigration. What the United States Gets Wrong.

VegNews: Miyoko Schinner Removed as CEO From the $260 Million Vegan Cheese Brand That Bears Her Name

New York Times: Supreme Court Skeptical of Biden’s Student Loan Cancellation Plan

OSINT & Analysis by Oliver Alexander: Blowing Holes in Seymour Hersh's Pipe Dream

UNFTR Facebook Group

UNFTR Bookshop

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Spy Balloons: The ultimate distraction.

Thu, 02 Mar 2023 01:53:09 +0000

Somehow, we’re still talking about spy balloons. Long-forgotten are the revelations of Edward Snowden, who uncovered mass surveillance programs under the NSA and other U.S. agencies. Since that time, we’ve come to learn more and more about the capabilities of multiple U.S. agencies to surveil its own citizens. The spy balloon narrative overshadows the steady erosion of civil liberties in our own backyard.

Resources

James Fallows: What the Hell is Happening in the Sky?

The Soldiers Project: How Many US Military Bases Are There in the World?

The Guardian: US intelligence spending has doubled since 9/11, top secret budget reveals

South China Morning Post: Edward Snowden: US government has been hacking Hong Kong and China for years

Spiegel: European Union

Spiegel: NSA Spied on European Union Offices

WikiLeaks: Vault 7: CIA Hacking Tools Revealed

The Intercept: NSA Blimp Spied in the United States

Truthdig: Truthdigger of the Week: Alexa O’Brien

UNFTR YouTube: Much Ado About a Spy Balloon

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James Earl Carter (Part Three).

Mon, 27 Feb 2023 23:02:21 +0000

On the heels of multiple domestic and foreign policy successes, the Carter Administration headed into 1979 brimming with hope and optimism. And the American people were mostly supportive of their humble president who helped return some dignity and sanity to the Oval Office. But trouble was brewing from within the Democratic ranks, the global economy and several bad actors abroad that would coalesce seemingly overnight to challenge the president.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:25

Chapter Six: Carter on the World Stage. 00:01:54

Chapter Seven: Fallows’ Peripeteia. 00:16:08

Chapter Eight: Mudslide. 00:24:15

Outro: 00:41:53

Resources

Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute: The Panama Canal and the Torrijos-Carter Treaties

The New York Times: Jimmy Carter’s Unheralded Legacy

The Atlantic: The Passionless Presidency

Vox: The Republican myth of Ronald Reagan and the Iran hostages, debunked

Politico: The Humiliating Handshake and the Near-Fistfight that Broke the Democratic Party

Brookings: Today’s global economy is eerily similar to the 1970s, but governments can still escape a stagflation episode

HISTORY: Jimmy Carter and Leonid Brezhnev sign the SALT-II nuclear treaty

Book Love

Kai Bird: The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter

David Rockefeller: Memoirs

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Show Notes [Ep 86: James Earl Carter (Part Two).]

Fri, 24 Feb 2023 17:37:50 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss the recent Jimmy Carter news, review Carter Part Two feedback, and introduce a new recurring segment for Show Notes.

Listen to James Earl Carter (Part Two).

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Headlines: 00:01:23

Emails: 00:27:28

Social Shout Outs: 00:35:24

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:39:26

Reviews: 00:42:43

Outro: 00:44:19

Resources

The Lever: Driving The Narrative

Seymour Hersh on Substack: How America Took Out The Nord Stream Pipeline

Seymour M. Hersh: Reporter: A Memoir

UNFTR Neoliberalism YouTube Series

UNFTR Dumb Right Wing Tropes YouTube Series

Unf*cker Recommendations

Mary L. Trump: The Reckoning: Our Nation's Trauma and Finding a Way to Heal

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James Earl Carter (Part Two).

Sat, 18 Feb 2023 05:01:00 +0000

In Part One of our series, we discussed the persistent attempts on the right to draw parallels between the Carter and Biden administrations. We looked at the rise of James Earl Carter from humble beginnings on a farm, to the Naval Academy and into the governor’s office in Georgia. Each step of his early journey offers insight into the development of his worldview and governing style. In Part Two, we do a deep dive into the first half of the White House years to understand the challenges that faced the new administration, some significant early legislative wins and the undercurrent of trouble brewing on the horizon.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:32

Chapter Three: A President assembles his team. 00:01:07

Chapter Four: It was a very good year. 00:09:59

Chapter Five: The Lure of the Siren’s Song. 00:24:56

Post Show Musings: 00:33:15

Outro: 00:49:29

Resources

Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute: The Panama Canal and the Torrijos-Carter Treaties

The New York Times: Jimmy Carter’s Unheralded Legacy

The Atlantic: The Passionless Presidency

Vox: The Republican myth of Ronald Reagan and the Iran hostages, debunked

Politico: The Humiliating Handshake and the Near-Fistfight that Broke the Democratic Party

Brookings: Today’s global economy is eerily similar to the 1970s, but governments can still escape a stagflation episode

Book Love

Kai Bird: The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter

David Rockefeller: Memoirs

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Show Notes [Ep 85: James Earl Carter (Part One).]

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 20:51:21 +0000

In today's Show Notes, 99 returns! And her audio is a little fucky (sorry). Max and 99 review Carter feedback, Max has plenty of aggressive diatribes, and they discuss what's to come on YouTube and the main feed.

Listen to James Earl Carter (Part One).

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:23

Emails: 00:04:34

YouTube: 00:35:24

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:46:35

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:49:13

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:51:59

Outro: 00:56:16

Resources

Code Switch Podcast

Pod Save The People

CounterSpin

UNFTR YouTube: Biden's State of the Union. Has the "Bernie Effect" finally taken hold?

Elise Gravel: Killer Underwear Invasion!: How to Spot Fake News, Disinformation & Conspiracy Theories

UNFTR YouTube: The (Fake) Debt Ceiling Crisis

UNFTR Episode: The (Fake) Debt Ceiling Crisis

Arkansas SB43

Arkansas Advocate: “Gutted” Arkansas bill no longer targets drag performers or LGBTQ community, activists say

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The (Fake) Debt Ceiling Crisis: The GOP’s Dangerous Gamble.

Tue, 14 Feb 2023 16:52:40 +0000

The debt ceiling crisis is a completely manufactured, self-inflicted wound that only the GOP sees fit to weaponize when it suits them. Forget the fact that it has been raised 78 times since 1960, 49 of which were under a Republican president—the House Republicans are determined to derail Biden’s economic gains any way they can. Today’s Topical Cream breaks down the fallacy of the debate and puts our budget in context with our debt.

ProPublica: Donald Trump Built a National Debt So Big (Even Before the Pandemic) That It’ll Weigh Down the Economy for Years

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:34

Section One: 00:00:58

Section Two: 00:04:11

Section Three: 00:09:31

Outro: 00:12:30

Resources

The White House: The Debt Ceiling: An Explainer

Congressional Budget Office: Federal Debt: A Primer

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Policy Basics: Deficits, Debt, and Interest

U.S. Department of the Treasury: Debt Limit

Investopedia: Why China Buys U.S. Debt With Treasury Bonds

NPR: < China's slice of the US debt pie

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: House Republicans’ Pledge to Cut Appropriated Programs to 2022 Level Would Have Severe Effects, Particularly for Non-Defense Programs

CNBC: As U.S. hits debt ceiling, here’s what it could mean for Social Security and Medicare

National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare: Raising The Debt Limit: Impact on Social Security and Medicare

Politico: ‘Intellectually bankrupt’: Biden allies blast GOP debt-limit backup plan

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: 5 Reasons Why the House Balanced Budget Amendment Is a Bad Idea

Population Reference Bureau: Aging Baby Boomers to Face Caregiving, Obesity, Inequality Challenges

UNFTR Episode Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

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James Earl Carter (Part One).

Sat, 11 Feb 2023 05:01:00 +0000

Today we begin our look back at the brief but remarkable tenure of President Jimmy Carter. The late 70s is a fascinating period on a number of levels. Civil Rights groups had fractured into several pieces, the Vietnam era had come to a disgraceful close and the economy was beginning to falter after more than two decades of astounding post-war growth for the middle class in particular. The GOP’s grip on Washington was tenuous after Nixon’s resignation and the country wasn’t sure whether Ford was up to the task. For their part, Democrats were still healing from the ‘68 Convention and being sidelined by Nixon’s GOP. Out of the fog came a slow talking southern boy named Jimmy who shocked the world and secured the Democratic nomination for president. This is his origin story.

Chapters

Intro: 00:02:04

Chapter One: The Origin Story. 00:08:18

Chapter Two: A Good Old Boy Bids for the White House. 00:14:29

Post Show Musings: 00:23:22

Outro: 00:30:06

Resources

Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute: The Panama Canal and the Torrijos-Carter Treaties

The New York Times: Jimmy Carter’s Unheralded Legacy

The Atlantic: The Passionless Presidency

Vox: The Republican myth of Ronald Reagan and the Iran hostages, debunked

Politico: The Humiliating Handshake and the Near-Fistfight that Broke the Democratic Party

Brookings: Today’s global economy is eerily similar to the 1970s, but governments can still escape a stagflation episode

Book Love

Kai Bird: The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter

David Rockefeller: Memoirs

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Big Tech Layoffs: The Madness of Capitalism.

Sat, 04 Feb 2023 05:01:00 +0000

GDP growth was stronger than expected. Unemployment remains historically low. Supply chain issues continue to work themselves out. China is entering a period of strong projected growth. The Fed has even signaled that it will slow the pace of interest rate increases. And yet, the tech sector is laying people off like you read about? What’s behind the doom and gloom in Silicon Valley and some areas on Wall Street? We look into the recent spate of mass layoffs and try to square the tech industry narrative with real economic facts on the ground. But we begin with an update from Max on what’s in the works and behind our recent slowdown in episodes.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:53

Section One: 00:06:26

Section Two: 00:09:39

Section Three: 00:11:25

Section Four: 00:17:02

Outro: 00:19:30

Resources

BNN Bloomberg: San Francisco Mayor Warns of Budget Deficit as Remote Work Hits Revenue

The New York Times: Laid Off in Your Living Room: The Chaos of Remote Job Cuts

Bloomberg: Big Tech Layoffs Are Hitting Diversity and Inclusion Jobs Hard

Forbes: For Laid-Off Tech Workers On H-1B Visas, There Aren’t Enough Jobs To Go Around

The New York Times: For Tech Companies, Years of Easy Money Yield to Hard Times

NPR: 5 takeaways from the massive layoffs hitting Big Tech right now

The New York Times: How Tech Won the Pandemic and Now May Never Lose

Yale University: The Silicon Valley Syndrome

Fast Company: These types of tech workers are most likely to get laid off

Mark Zuckerberg on Facebook

The New York Times: ‘A Perfect Positive Storm’: Bonkers Dollars for Big Tech

Forbes: Spotify, Alphabet And Meta Lead Tech Stock Surge After Massive Layoff Announcements

Fast Company: Wall Street layoffs continue across the board. Here’s the latest.

Forbes: Goldman Sachs And Morgan Stanley Both Miss Earnings Estimates As Mixed Banking Results Continue

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Show Notes [Ep 84: Who To Trust In Media + Topical Cream 7: Airline Crisis]

Thu, 26 Jan 2023 20:00:00 +0000

Max is left to (mainly) fend for himself in this 99-less episode of Show Notes, as she takes a well deserved break. While her presence is missed, it's always worth hearing Max read listener feedback from Unf*ckers who disagree with him. This ep covers the Who to Trust in Media episode and the Airline Crisis Topical Cream (ew).

Listen to Who To Trust In Media

Listen to Airline Crisis: Why Is the FAA Failing Under Buttigieg?

Chapters

Intro 00:00:20

Housekeeping: 00:05:07

Emails: 00:09:35

Outro: 00:40:36

Unf*cker Recommendations

Have You Heard Podcast

DRILLED Podcast

Gaslit Nation

The Devil and Sonny Liston by Nick Tosches

THIS IS REVOLUTION Podcast

Pod Damn America

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Airline Crisis: Why Is the FAA Failing Under Buttigieg?

Sat, 21 Jan 2023 05:01:00 +0000

Pete Buttigieg is in the news a lot for a Transportation Secretary. Either he’s a media darling the democratic establishment is keen to keep in the public eye, or he’s really bad at his job. Methinks it’s both. Today’s Topical Cream examines Mayor Pete’s borderline catastrophic run as head of the agency and the fallout from the multiple airline crises that have plagued his tenure. There’s no doubt this guy wants to be POTUS, but what exactly is he qualified to do other than burn progressives?

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:16

Section One: 00:00:49

Section Two: 00:09:53

Outro: 00:15:30

Resources

CNN: Massive Southwest Airlines disruption leaves customers stranded and call centers swamped

Macrotrends: Southwest Airlines Gross Profit 2010-2022

Simply Flying: NTSB Predecessor: A Brief History Of The Civil Aeronautics Board

CNBC: A severe pilot shortage in the U.S. leaves airlines scrambling for solutions

Accountable.US: The Airline Industry's Self-Inflicted Labor Shortage Is Behind

Bureau of Transportation Statistics: Air Travel Consumer Report: Consumer Complaints Against Airlines Rise More Than 300 Percent Above Pre-Pandemic Levels

Economic Policy Institute: Flying Blind: The Failure of Airline Deregulation

The American Prospect: The Airline Bailout Is the CARES Act’s Biggest Debacle

AttorneyGeneral.gov: Airline Accountability and Increased Consumer Protection

BIG by Matt Stoller: What Will Come of the Nightmare Travel Summer of 2022?

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Who To Trust in Media.

Wed, 18 Jan 2023 19:40:07 +0000

We’re gearing up and doubling down in 2023. Today, Max makes a couple of big announcements (big to us, at least) before musing on the state of the media. The balance of the show is dedicated to highlighting other great work that we admire and follow. We are all the sum of our experiences. These experiences help cultivate our individual biases. As consumers of UNFTR—and in light of one of our announcements—we thought it appropriate to reveal the media sources we trust. We’re anxious to hear your thoughts as well, so let us know who you rely on for political news and information.

Chapters

Sketch: 00:00:05

Intro: 00:03:35

Post Show Musings: 00:36:18

Resources

Pew Research Center: News Platform Fact Sheet

Pew Research Center: Measuring News Consumption in a Digital Era

Chartable: Apple Podcasts — United States of America — News

Slate: The New Nightmare Scenario for the Media

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Public Education: Parts One, Two, and Three.

Sat, 07 Jan 2023 05:54:43 +0000

Public education is a universal part of the American experience. Every one of us interacts with our system of education whether directly or through taxation. Since the nation's founding, a commitment to universal education has been a pillar of our society. More recently, however, public education has come under attack from several places. Some of the criticism is fair. But some of the sharpest attacks have been coordinated by far right extremists determined to break the system and replace it with private enterprises, faith-based curriculums or even...nothing. This episode combines our previous three-part series into one thorough, albeit incomplete, history of public education and the challenges it faces.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:48

Chapter One: Framing the Inquiry: 00:05:40

Chapter Two: The Structure and Language of Education: 00:15:22

Chapter Three: The Opposition: 00:26:13

Chapter Four: Phase One: Expansion. The 16th Lot. 00:40:50

Chapter Five: Phase Two: Reconstruction. 00:46:27

Chapter Six: Phase Three: Desegregation. 00:56:24

Chapter Seven: Phase Four. Privatization. 01:12:09

Chapter Eight: Vouchers are stupid and racist and they don’t work. 01:19:21

Chapter Nine: Arne Dunks on Public Education. 01:30:16

Chapter Ten: The Propaganda Machine in Full Swing: 01:45:57

Chapter Eleven: Bring it home, Max. 01:58:12

Resources

World Socialist Web Site: 2.6 million US educators and staff quit public K-12 and higher education jobs during pandemic

National Center for Education Statistics: Public School Enrollment

The Nation’s Report Card: Student Performance Across Subjects

National Center for Education Statistics: Total number of public school teachers and percentage of public school teachers in a union or employees' association, by selected school characteristics: 2015–16

Resilient Educator: Your Guide to Education Lingo

Learning Journals: What Are the Different Pedagogical Approaches to Learning?

Rasmussen University: What Is Reggio Emilia? Your Guide to This Child-Driven Approach

Stanford: An Introduction to Design Thinking

Understood: Understanding IEPs

Resilient Educator: Project Based Learning: A Hands On Approach To Teaching

Bookshop.org: Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

National Association for Science, Medicine and Engineering: The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree

Resilient Educator: Why the “A” in STEAM Education is Just As Important As Every Other Letter

U.S. News: IB vs. AP: Discover the Differences

Peter G. Peterson Foundation: How Is K-12 Education Funded?

EdBuild: Nonwhite School Districts Get $23 Billion Less Than White Districts Despite Serving The Same Number Of Students

Pew Charitable Trusts: ‘Lost Decade’ Casts a Post-Recession Shadow on State Finances

OECD: Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators 2012

National Center for Education Statistics: Long-term trends in reading and mathematics achievement

The Heritage Foundation: The Battle Over Parents’ Rights in Education Is Just Getting Started

The Heritage Foundation: America’s School Choice Moment Can’t Be Missed at Midterm Elections

Bookshop: Race to the Bottom

Teaching American History: Letter to Nathaniel Banks

National Archives: Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

National Center For Education Statistics: Results from the NAEP 2022 Mathematics & Reading Assessments at Grades 4 & 8

OECD.org: Rankings

National Foundation for Educational Research: OECD Funding Models

Peter G. Peterson Foundation: How Is K-12 Education Funded?

National Education Association

Resilient Educator: Your Guide to Education Lingo

Pew Research Center: Religion in the Public Schools

Salon: Florida ranked No. 1 for "education freedom" — by right-wing group that wants to privatize it all

Heritage Foundation: Education Freedom Report Card

The New York Times: Profits and Questions at Online Charter Schools

NY Daily News: Fix this wasteful federal charter-school fund

The Nation’s Report Card: Student Performance Across Subjects

EdWeek: Education Statistics: Facts About American Schools

EdWeek: Lawmakers, Education Secretary Clash Over Charter School Rules

Teaching Certification: Education Spending by State – How does your state compare?

Book Love

Derek W. Black: Schoolhouse Burning: Public Education and the Assault on American Democracy

Samuel Eliot Morison, Henry Steele Commager and William E. Leuchtenburg: A Concise History of the American Republic: Volume 1

Howard Gardner: Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences

Nelson Lichtenstein: State of the Union: A Century of American Labor

Nancy McLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

UNFTR Episode Resources

Public Education (Part One): Scaffolding.

The End of Roe v. Wade: Extinguishing the Penumbra.

America Inc. Copyright, 2021.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Ep 82: The Black & Jewish Divide in America + Quickie 14: How New York F*cked the Country.]

Wed, 04 Jan 2023 07:26:04 +0000

In this very special Show Notes, Max and 99 are joined in-person by the one and only Manny Faces! They cover some Unf*cker feedback from the last two episodes, reflect on what was covered in 2022, and tease what’s to come in 2023.

Listen to The Black & Jewish Divide in America.

Listen to Quickie 14: How New York F*cked the Country.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:07:02

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:05:38

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:07:5

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:09:17

Reviews: 01:14:09

Outro: 01:14:51

Resources

UNFTR: The Economics of Racism: Bootstraps, Black Banks and Redlining.

Trust Me Podcast: Torah Bontrager – Growing Up Amish, Part 1: Corporal Punishment & Rumspringa

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Phone a Friend: John Kane of Let's Talk Native.

Fri, 30 Dec 2022 23:48:29 +0000

Welcome to a very special edition of Phone a Friend, where we reach out to experts, authors and intellectuals who know way more shit about certain subjects than I will ever know. Now this one is a real home game and should prove to be both informative and a lot of fun. He is a Mohawk broadcaster hiding out on Seneca territory in Western New York. John Kane has been the face and voice of resistance and advocacy for decades. He's the host of a podcast called Let's Talk Native, which we've covered before, and Resistance Radio on WBAI and WPFW in Washington.

We've collaborated with John a handful of times over the years. He's a man of great principle who calls truth to power not only in the United States, but to power structures within Native territories as well.

There are a few things we cover with John today, including some rather big news here in New York that directly involves him. Unf*ckers have heard some of his commentary before, but let me warn you that that was scripted. And unscripted John is a force of nature, so hang on.

Access the full transcript on Substack.

Resources

Let's Talk Native with John Kane

Resistance Radio with John Kane

Let's Talk Native Patreon

John Kane on Facebook and YouTube

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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How New York F*cked the Country: New York’s Unelected Leadership Void.

Fri, 23 Dec 2022 13:00:24 +0000

From failing to run opposition research on the most fraudulent candidate ever to colluding with Republicans on key judgeships, the NY Democratic Party is rife with mediocre careerists more interested in the status quo than winning elections. In this Quickie we offer three stories that demonstrate just how incompetent the NY Dems are and how they’re basically responsible for losing control of the House.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:18

1. Malfeasance: The Talented Mr. Santos: 00:03:09

2. Malpractice: Absolute Power: 00:08:25

3. Malodorous: Judging by the Judges: 00:14:07

Resources

CNN Politics: House of Representatives Results: GOP wins the majority

The New York Times: Who Is Rep.-Elect George Santos? His Résumé May Be Largely Fiction.

The New York Times: Democrats Lose Control of N.Y. Election Maps, as Top Court Rejects Appeal

Brennan Center: What Went Wrong with New York’s Redistricting

The Intercept: AOC: The New York State Democratic Party’s Corruption May Have Cost Democrats the House

City & State New York: The 3 nominees progressives won’t tolerate on New York’s highest court

New York Post: Nassau County GOP leader Joseph Cairo’s daughter nominated for NY supreme court

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The Black & Jewish Divide in America: The Fractured "Grand Alliance."

Sun, 18 Dec 2022 18:46:16 +0000

Fascism, Nazism and antisemitism are back in the headlines. Conservative media and the New Right are relaxing with popcorn and settling in to watch as tensions between the Black and Jewish communities increase once again. Today’s episode traces the legacy of conflict between Black and Jewish people in the United States from the so-called “Grand Alliance” of the Civil Rights era, the Black Power and Consciousness movements and the emergence of Zionism in the U.S. to the recent explosion in pop culture. Who stands to gain from this fracture should be painfully obvious, but that doesn’t make for good television.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:01

Chapter One: The ties that bind us together. 00:06:54

Chapter Two: The lies that pull us apart. 00:18:30

Chapter Three: Israel. 00:27:09

Chapter Four: Bringing It Home. 00:37:26

Post Show Musings: 00:43:39

Outro: 01:26:01

Resources

Vanity Fair: The Secret History of Gavin McInnes

UNFTR: The Economics of Racism: Bootstraps, Black Banks and Redlining.

Pew Research Center: Economics and well-being among U.S. Jews

Observer: The Music Industry’s Long History of Dividing Blacks and Jews

National Archive: The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

BBC: Leopold II: Belgium 'wakes up' to its bloody colonial past

The New York Times: What to Know About Irving’s Antisemitic Movie Post and the Fallout

Conspirituality Podcast: Ye, Balenciaga, & Twilight Zone Propaganda

Book Love

Terrence L. Johnson & Jacques Berlinerblau: Blacks and Jews in America: An Invitation to Dialogue

Jonathan Weisman: (((Semitism))) Being Jewish in America in the Age of Trump

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Show Notes [Episode 81: Public Education Part Three.]

Fri, 16 Dec 2022 17:30:30 +0000

In today's unusually quick Show Notes, Max and 99 review feedback from the final installment of the Education series and read out some 5 star reviews!

Listen to Public Education (Part Three): Criticize, Demonize, Then Privatize.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:03:06

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:19:39

Reviews: 00:22:56

Outro: 00:23:42

Resources

Dan G’s UNFTR Art

Unf*cker-Led Facebook Group

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Public Education (Part Three): Criticize, Demonize, Then Privatize.

Sat, 10 Dec 2022 05:01:00 +0000

This is it. The moment about seven of you have been waiting for. The dramatic conclusion to the three part series on public education that no one asked for. Oh, and it’s long. In sparing our beloved Unf*ckers a fourth part, we jammed 50 years of education policy into one hot mess of learning. To quote the estimable Manny Faces, “This iz EP last of smart edumaction.” In Parts One and Two we explored the history of education and the legal fight to ensure equality. Part Three reveals the master plan of the GOP’s libertarian strain to defund education, promote a religious doctrine and battle against the constitutional right to access public education.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:13

Chapter Seven: Phase Four. Privatization. 00:05:49

Chapter Eight: Vouchers are stupid and racist and they don’t work. 00:13:17

Chapter Nine: Arne Dunks on Public Education. 00:24:12

Chapter Ten: The Propaganda Machine in Full Swing. 00:39:53

Chapter Eleven: Bring it home, Max. 00:52:08

Post Show Musings: 01:06:25

Outro: 01:41:50

Resources

National Center For Education Statistics: Results from the NAEP 2022 Mathematics & Reading Assessments at Grades 4 & 8

OECD.org: Rankings

National Foundation for Educational Research: OECD Funding Models

Peter G. Peterson Foundation: How Is K-12 Education Funded?

National Education Association

Resilient Educator: Your Guide to Education Lingo

Pew Research Center: Religion in the Public Schools

Salon: Florida ranked No. 1 for "education freedom" — by right-wing group that wants to privatize it all

Heritage Foundation: Education Freedom Report Card

The New York Times: Profits and Questions at Online Charter Schools

NY Daily News: Fix this wasteful federal charter-school fund

The Nation’s Report Card: Student Performance Across Subjects

EdWeek: Education Statistics: Facts About American Schools

EdWeek: Lawmakers, Education Secretary Clash Over Charter School Rules

Teaching Certification: Education Spending by State – How does your state compare?

Book Love

Howard Gardner: Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences

Nelson Lichtenstein: State of the Union: A Century of American Labor

Derek W. Black: Schoolhouse Burning: Public Education and the Assault on American Democracy

Nancy McLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

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Show Notes [Episode 80: Public Education Part Two.]

Thu, 08 Dec 2022 21:58:53 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 review feedback from Education Part Two, talk about some language nuances and 99 is a wee bit cranky. Enjoy, Unf*ckers!

Listen to Public Education (Part Two): Expansion, Reconstruction & Desegregation.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:06:36

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:39:42

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:46:03

Outro: 01:02:08

Resources

Wolves of Glendale: Olivia

Psychology Today: The Illusory Theory of Multiple Intelligences

The Ezra Klein Show: The Hidden Costs of Cheap Meat

Animal Equality: Biden Administration Backs the Pig Industry’s Prop 12 Opposition

Maintenance Phase: The Food Pyramid

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Unf*cking Flashback: Happy Noam Chomsky Day: Pundits, Public Intellectuals & Charlatans.

Wed, 07 Dec 2022 05:01:00 +0000

Today is the great professor and renowned linguist Noam Chomsky's birthday. December 7th. A day that lives in infamy to this pod, because we love us some Uncle Noam. So in honor of this great public intellectual we wanted to reshare our Chomsky tribute episode. We've got show notes to follow tomorrow and part three of our education series dropping on Saturday, so enjoy this appetizer while we prepare the rest of the meal.

[2026 Edit] To learn how we feel today, please read our post-Epstein take on Chomsky.

Access the accompanying essay/transcript.

Resources

New York Times: QAnon Now as Popular in U.S. as Some Major Religions, Poll Suggests

The Atlantic: Noam Chomsky on Where Artificial Intelligence Went Wrong

The New Yorker: The Devil’s Accountant (Noam Chomsky’s criticism of America’s role in the world has increased his isolation—and his audience.)

Current Affairs: The Intellectual We Deserve

Book Love

Chomsky Books

Syntactic Structures

Turning the Tide: U.S. Intervention in Central America and the Struggle for Peace

The Chomsky Reader

Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media

Rethinking Camelot: JFK, the Vietnam War, and U.S. Political Culture

Media Control: The Spectacular Achievements of Propaganda

Profit over People: Neoliberalism and Global Order

The Umbrella of U.S. Power: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Contradictions of U.S. Policy

Gaza in Crisis: Reflections on Israel’s War Against the Palestinians

Requiem for the American Dream: The Ten Principles of Concentration of Wealth and Power

Reporter, by Seymour Hersh

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Public Education (Part Two): Expansion, Reconstruction & Desegregation.

Sat, 03 Dec 2022 05:01:00 +0000

Today we continue our three-part series by examining three of the four major eras of public education in the United States: Expansion, Reconstruction and Desegregation. This episode looks at the legal and constitutional framework that protects education in all 50 states and some of the fundamental flaws that have contributed to a gross inequity in the system. This sets the stage for the conclusion of the series, which focuses on the current era of Privatization.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:35

Chapter Four. Phase One: Expansion. The 16th Lot. 00:03:49

Chapter Five. Phase Two: Reconstruction. 00:09:43

Chapter Six. Phase Three. Desegregation. 00:19:40

Post Show Musings: 00:30:56

Outro: 00:46:39

Resources

Teaching American History: Letter to Nathaniel Banks

National Archives: Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Book Love

Derek W. Black: Schoolhouse Burning: Public Education and the Assault on American Democracy

Samuel Eliot Morison, Henry Steele Commager and William E. Leuchtenburg: A Concise History of the American Republic: Volume 1

UNFTR Episode Resources

Public Education (Part One): Scaffolding.

The End of Roe v. Wade: Extinguishing the Penumbra.

America Inc. Copyright, 2021.

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Show Notes [Episode 79: Public Education Part One.]

Thu, 01 Dec 2022 23:44:39 +0000

They’re baaaack! In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 review feedback from Public Education Part One and discuss what’s to come throughout education series.

Listen to Public Education (Part One): Scaffolding.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:10:58

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:00:03

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:05:09

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:11:07

Outro: 01:16:49

Resources

Have You Heard Podcast

Center For Progressive Reform: Protecting Workers by Prosecuting Wage Theft as a Crime

@MoPaintsChad Fan Art

Readable: Profanity Detector

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Public Education (Part One): Scaffolding.

Fri, 18 Nov 2022 20:31:09 +0000

Today is the first in a three-part series on public education in the United States. The focus is on compulsory K-12 education. We begin the series by educating ourselves on the business of education and stripping away the hysteria surrounding mask mandates, CRT, school prayer and kitty litter in bathrooms. Along the way we identify key stakeholders, look at outcomes and measurements, offer a primer on how schools are funded and examine the ongoing mass exodus from the profession of teaching. With a solid foundation in place, the episode ends with an overview of the more fundamental criticisms of public education to understand how and why public education is under attack in this nation.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:21

Chapter One: Framing the Inquiry. 00:05:43

Chapter Two: The Structure and Language of Education. 00:15:26

Chapter Three: The Opposition. 00:26:15

Post Show Musings: 00:38:05

Outro: 00:39:58

Resources

World Socialist Web Site: 2.6 million US educators and staff quit public K-12 and higher education jobs during pandemic

National Center for Education Statistics: Public School Enrollment

The Nation’s Report Card: Student Performance Across Subjects

Resilient Educator: Your Guide to Education Lingo

Learning Journals: What Are the Different Pedagogical Approaches to Learning?

Rasmussen University: What Is Reggio Emilia? Your Guide to This Child-Driven Approach

Stanford: An Introduction to Design Thinking

Understood: Understanding IEPs

Resilient Educator: Project Based Learning: A Hands On Approach To Teaching

Bookshop.org: Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

National Association for Science, Medicine and Engineering: The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree

Resilient Educator: Why the “A” in STEAM Education is Just As Important As Every Other Letter

U.S. News: IB vs. AP: Discover the Differences

Peter G. Peterson Foundation: How Is K-12 Education Funded?

Edbuild: Nonwhite School Districts Get $23 Billion Less Than White Districts Despite Serving The Same Number Of Students

Pew Charitable Trusts: ‘Lost Decade’ Casts a Post-Recession Shadow on State Finances

OECD: Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators 2012

National Center for Education Statistics: Long-term trends in reading and mathematics achievement

The Heritage Foundation: The Battle Over Parents’ Rights in Education Is Just Getting Started

The Heritage Foundation: America’s School Choice Moment Can’t Be Missed at Midterm Elections

Bookshop: Race to the Bottom

UNFTR: F*ck Milton Friedman.

Book Love

Derek W. Black: Schoolhouse Burning: Public Education and the Assault on American Democracy

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Show Notes [BONUS: Midterm Recap.]

Fri, 18 Nov 2022 05:38:52 +0000

In today’s Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss some midterm updates and work through some T***p 2024 feelings. Plus 99 gets all boomer on some Unf*ckers, lovingly.

Listen to BONUS: Midterm Recap.

Resources

Variety: Candace Cameron Bure Says Great American Family Will Not Feature Gay Couples, Focus on ‘Traditional Marriage’ Instead

Unf*cker Facebook Group

Jesse Jackson's David and Goliath speech

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Show Notes [Episode 78: “Tough on Crime” Republicans.]

Sat, 12 Nov 2022 05:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 unwind from the Midterms Recap, reflect back on the “Tough on Crime” Republicans episode, and read the smart fuckin' write-ins from the Unf*ckers.

Listen to “Tough on Crime” Republicans.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:00:41

Social: 00:23:16

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:28:35

Outro: 00:35:59

Resources

Binyamin Appelbaum: The Economists' Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society

NYT Opinion: Liberal Hypocrisy is Fueling American Inequality. Here’s How.

CONAN: Gary Gulman On How The States Got Their Abbreviations

PBS: Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson

Jacobin: As the Fed Raises Interest Rates, People Will Lose Jobs and Democrats Will Lose Elections

Outrage + Optimism: ESG: Facts Are Not Political

Outrage + Optimism: Australia Is Back

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BONUS: Midterm Recap

Wed, 09 Nov 2022 21:48:30 +0000

Max, Manny and 99 slice and dice the midterm election and highlight several key outcomes that portend good things for Progressives. Also, 99 stayed up the latest but it was to watch the Parent Trap. So there's that.

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“Tough on Crime”: Republicans pin midterm hopes on tired trope.

Sat, 05 Nov 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The midterms are upon us and the Republicans have pinned their hopes on a tried and true fear tactic: Crime. It’s a winning narrative. Always has been. The data paint another picture entirely, however. While in no way excusing criminal activity or minimizing its impact upon individuals, families and society, we need to have an honest discussion about fear mongering and scapegoating. So let’s take a bite out of crime.

The Clinton Years (Parts One, Two, and Three)

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:04

Chapter One: Dispelling Crime Mythology. 00:01:50

Chapter Two: When All Else Fails. 00:05:08

Chapter Three: Gaslighting. 00:15:35

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max. 00:21:33

Post Show Musings: 00:24:01

Outro: 00:36:13

Resources

Brennan Center For Justice: What Caused the Crime Decline?

Gotham Gazette: What Is Lee Zeldin’s Gubernatorial Campaign Platform?

Newsweek: New York City’s Most Dangerous Year of Crime Compared to 2022: Analysis

Wikipedia: Demographic history of New York City

News Beat: A Guide To Mass Incarceration In America

StopRecidivism.org: Why Are More States Than Ever Passing Laws For No Cash Bail And Pretrial Detention?

CDC: Homicide Mortality by State

UNFTR Episode Resources

New York’s Casual White Supremacy: Losing the Plot on Hochul & Buffalo Bills.

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Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [Strange Bedfellows 1: Arthur & Sand]

Thu, 03 Nov 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 catch up on some big news stories of the last few weeks like midterms, Twitter, antisemitism, and Lula. They also read some Unf*cker topic requests and review “PC” insult suggestions.

Listen to Strange Bedfellows: Chester A. Arthur and Julia Sand.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Current Events Roundup: 00:04:13

Emails: 00:59:15

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:30:33

Outro: 01:36:19

Resources

UNFTR Episode: The Problem with Conscious Capitalism Podcast

Outrage and Optimism Podcast

New York Times: Climate Pledges Are Falling Short, and a Chaotic Future Looks More Like Reality

Taylor Swift: Anti-Hero

Vox: The Taylor Swift/Scooter Braun controversy, explained

EconTalk Podcast

Beyond Zero Film

Ray C. Anderson: Confessions of a Radical Industrialist: Profits, People, Purpose--Doing Business by Respecting the Earth

Paul Traynor New Trier: Tip of the Spear

UNFTR Episode: Building the Climate Industrial Complex.

Candice Millard: Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President

Unf*cker-Run Facebook Group

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Unf*cking Flashback: Building the Climate Industrial Complex.

Sat, 29 Oct 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The world is more fucked than the United States. And we’re pretty fucked, so that’s saying a lot. Perhaps there’s a way to mitigate this mess by playing upon our worst instincts as a nation and the competitiveness that drives the world. Today we take an alternative view of our response to climate change through the lens of the most dispassionate and powerful observer in the world: The U.S. Military. It’s known for decades that the planet is fucked. And they’ve been preparing in plain sight.

Daron Davis: An unfortunate name but a profound podcast

Resources

IPCC- Summary for Policymakers

Institute for Policy Integrity- Gauging Economic Consensus on Climate Change

Center for Climate and Security- Chronology of Military and Intelligence Concerns About Climate Change

World Economic Forum- This is how climate change could impact the global economy

Swiss Re- World economy set to lose up to 18% GDP from climate change if no action taken

New York Times- 40 Million People Rely on the Colorado River. It’s Drying Up Fast.

The Black Vault- 1990 U.S. Naval Report

Sub Love

Adam Tooze- Chartbook

Spencer Ackerman- Forever Wars

Book Love

Michael T. Klare- All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change

Pod Love

Slate- What Next TBD

Global Optimism- Outrage and Optimism

Unf*cker Love

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is written and hosted by Rick and distributed by Morty.

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Strange Bedfellows: Chester A. Arthur and Julia Sand.

Sat, 22 Oct 2022 04:01:00 +0000

As Max grinds away at a more in-depth Unf*cking, we offer our dear listeners a new palate cleanser. Strange Bedfellows examines fascinating relationships and wonders how these duos might have altered the course of history. Our first installment tells the story of President Chester Arthur and a pen-pal named Julia Sand.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:31

A Nation Adrift: 00:02:33

Arthur Is Now President: 00:07:17

Letters: 00:07:40

Outro: 00:19:41

Resources

Samuel Eliot Morison, Henry Steele Commager andWilliam E. Leuchtenburg: A Concise History of the American Republic: Volume 1

David C. Whitney: The Graphic Story of the American Presidents

Library of Congress: The Correspondence of Julia I. Sand

Miller Center: Chester Arthur, December 6, 1881: First Annual Message

The New York Times: Overlooked No More: Julia Sand, Whose Letters Inspired a President

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Special thank yous to voice actors Kerry Flanagan and Matthew Hammond for lending their talents to this episode.

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Show Notes [Episode 77: What’s the deal with Peter Thiel?]

Thu, 20 Oct 2022 20:27:21 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss some Thiel feedback, review episode suggestions from Unf*ckers, and discuss what’s up next for UNFTR episodes. Tune in!

Listen to Episode 77: What’s the deal with Peter Thiel?

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:04:36

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:26:23

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:40:07

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:41:14

Outro: 00:45:32

Resources

UNFTR Episode: Immigration Nation.

Climate Action 2030

UNFTR Episode: Building the Climate Industrial Complex.

The New York Times: Peter Thiel Applies for Citizenship in Malta

Knudsen on Twitter: @WildEyedBob

Gary Chambers

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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What’s the deal with Peter Thiel? Sociopathic billionaire man-child wants to eat the world.

Sat, 15 Oct 2022 05:42:36 +0000

I’m not a doctor. But even I can certainly see that Peter Thiel is a sick, sick person. Bright, awkward and successful, Peter Thiel has risen to prominence in American society on the gamble that he can break it. A product of the Ivy League system who wants to take it down. A gay man who backs candidates that would degrade his civil rights. A hedge fund tech investor who thinks Silicon Valley hasn’t done anything innovative in 50 years. A Trump backer and advisor who walked away when he got what he wanted. Peter Thiel is known as a contrarian, but it may be simpler than that. He might just be a nihilistic asshole.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:35

Chapter One: So who the fuck is this guy? 00:04:02

Chapter Two: Where did all his money come from and can I have some? 00:13:07

Chapter Three: We’re all just pawns on Peter’s board 00:20:53

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max. 00:31:53

Post Show Musings: 00:37:51

Outro: 00:45:46

Resources

The Atlantic: Peter Thiel Hates a Copycat

ProPublica: Lord of the Roths: How Tech Mogul Peter Thiel Turned a Retirement Account for the Middle Class Into a $5 Billion Tax-Free Piggy Bank

Founders Fund: Portfolio

The Intercept: How Peter Thiel’s Palantir Helped The Nsa Spy On The Whole World

The Wall Street Journal: Tech Tycoon Peter Thiel Shies From Trump Re-Election Campaign

SEC: Palantir Technologies Inc.

Cato Unbound: The Education of a Libertarian

The Intercept: The New New Right Was Forged in Greed and White Backlash

Daily Beast: Blake Masters’ Views on Gay Marriage May Surprise His Political Master Peter Thiel

Book Love

Max Chafkin: The Contrarian: Peter Thiel and Silicon Valley’s Pursuit of Power

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Show Notes [Episode 76: The FCC (Part Two).]

Wed, 12 Oct 2022 14:53:52 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max is cranky about the Mets, we close out feedback from the FCC series and happy cry over real-world Unf*cker meet ups.

Listen to Episode 76: The FCC (Part Two). On the death of competition.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:25

Newbie Unf*cker Introduction: 00:06:12

Emails: 00:07:58

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:35:29

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:45:44

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:48:12

Outro: 00:51:25

Resources

The David McWilliams Podcast: UK experiments & Irish stability

Hazen Pingree Wikipedia

Paul Krugman: End This Depression Now!

DiversifyOurNarrative

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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The FCC (Part Two). On the death of competition.

Sat, 08 Oct 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In our first installment of the two-part FCC series we discussed the origins of the Federal Communications Commission, the reason it came into existence and the tension between its charge and the First Amendment. Our story resumes with a nod to the Chicago School, the one-two punch of the Reagan and Clinton administrations to deliver a death blow to media competition in the United States and the recent history of net neutrality. Let’s fucking go.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:56

Chapter One: The Coase Theorem. 00:03:08

Chapter Two: Reagan and Clinton. 00:10:28

Chapter Three: Title II and Net Neutrality. 00:25:25

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max. 00:37:22

Post Show Musings: 00:42:14

Book Love: 00:53:17

Outro: 00:54:02

Resources

FCC Website

Steven G. Medema: “Failure to Appear”: The Use of the Coase Theorem in Judicial Opinion

European Council On Foreign Relations: Network effects: Europe’s digital sovereignty in the Mediterranean

Brookings: Was the 1996 Telecommunications Act successful in promoting competition?

USTelecom: Research

FCC: National Broadband Map

Community Networks: Community Network Map

Berkman Klein Center: Community-Owned Fiber Networks: Value Leaders in America

Vice: A Community-Run ISP Is the Highest Rated Broadband Company in America

Tristin Esfandiari: The FCC Threatens Free Speech

Open Secrets: Ajit Pai Employment History

FCC: FCC Releases Restoring Internet Freedom Order

FCC: Biography of Former Chairman Ajit Pai

Public Knowledge: We Already Knew Broadband Should Be A Public Utility. The Pandemic Made It Obvious.

Congress.gov: S.4676 - Net Neutrality and Broadband Justice Act of 2022

Electronic Frontier Foundation: New Proposal Brings Us a Step Closer to Net Neutrality

Ed Markey: Communications Act Bill

Electronic Frontier Foundation: Today’s Net Neutrality Order is a Win, with a Few Blemishes

Electronic Frontier Foundation: Today—and Every Day—We Fight to Defend the Open Internet

Searchlight Capital: Investments

Free Speech Center at Middle Tennessee State University: 2 Live Crew

Book Love

Steven J. Simmons: The Fairness Doctrine and the Media

Brian J. Karem: Free the Press: The Death of American Journalism and How to Revive It

Ken Auletta: Backstory: Inside the Business of News

Bernard Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by The Gipper and distributed by Slick Willy.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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Show Notes [Quickie 13: One nation divided?]

Wed, 05 Oct 2022 16:16:47 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 share some show scheduling updates, discuss a potential recurring 99 segment and trade New York stories. Plus, they review a few Unf*cker emails regarding supply chain, healthcare and native issues.

Listen to Quickie 13: One nation divided? What bipartisanship says about America.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:25

Housekeeping: 00:03:40

Emails: 00:07:44

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:48:57

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:50:55

Reviews: 00:54:26

Outro: 01:02:44

Resources

Whyy: Detroit’s urban farms: engines of growth, omens of change

Halftown Must Go

WTF with Marc Maron: Episode 1370 - Abigail Disney

Free2Care’s Rx for Reforming America’s Predatory Healthcare System A Physician-Led Roadmap to Patient-Centered Medical Care

Even The Rich Podcast: Marilyn Monroe

Adrian Brody SNL

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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One nation divided? What bipartisanship says about America.

Sat, 01 Oct 2022 04:01:00 +0000

We’ve all heard of the great divide. The most dysfunctional Congress ever. The end of civility! There’s an impression that nothing passes Congress with bipartisan support anymore. That every piece of legislation has to pass along party lines, setting us up for bloodsport events each and every fucking election cycle. There’s a lot of truth to this. And yet, each year thousands of bills and resolutions are introduced and hundreds are eventually signed into law. We define ourselves along partisan lines, but perhaps we should look more closely at what bipartisan efforts say about America.

CNBC: 41% of Americans say it’s ‘going to take a miracle’ to be ready for retirement, report finds

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:10

Bill Primer: 00:05:22

Rule One: Protect the “free” market at all costs. 00:12:48

Coffee Break: 00:20:06

Rule Two: Protect the war machine. Even if we don’t have our own war. 00:21:36

Rule Three: Protect the war machine. In case you want to start a war. 00:29:02

Post Show Musings: 00:31:54

Outro: 00:36:30

Resources

GovTrack: S. 1404: Ghost Army Congressional Gold Medal Act

Ghost Army Legacy Project: The story of The Ghost Army in a nutshell

GovTrack: H.R. 1448: PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act

GovTrack: H.R. 8351: Formula Act

GovTrack: H.R. 2954: Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2021

Committee On Ways And Means, House Of Representatives Report: Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2021

CNBC: Some retirees get by on just Social Security. Experts disagree on how many

Congress.gov: 1st Session S. 1770

GovTrack: S. 3522: Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022

ISS PSC Report: African conflicts to watch in 2022

ISS: Inclusive national dialogue is a priority for Ethiopia

ISS: Will this week’s AU mission to CAR deliver a change in strategy?

ISS: The clock is ticking on South Sudan’s transition

ISS: South Sudan’s transitional government: realities, challenges and opportunities

GovTrack: S. 1605: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022

U.S. Department of Defense: The Department of Defense Releases the President’s Fiscal Year 2023 Defense Budget

Politico Magazine: Where in the World Is the U.S. Military?

UNFTR Episode Resources

Procedural F*ckery: Quirks of our “Democracy.”

The Beatification of Ronald Reagan.

Immigration Nation: A Crisis of Our Own Design.

Building the Climate Industrial Complex: Strange Bedfellows, Wildfires and Heat Waves.

Priorities: War, Wealth and Welfare.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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Show Notes [Ep 75: The FCC.]

Fri, 30 Sep 2022 05:25:56 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 talk about the FCC, bagpipes and parkways. And nothing else. (Okay, obviously a lie. But tune in to find out what else is discussed!)

Listen to Episode 75: The FCC.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Housekeeping: 00:30:00

Emails: 00:15:25

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:13:12

Substack Shout Outs: 01:19:20

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:25:33

Reviews: 01:28:07

Outro: 01:28:34

Resources

Kentucky Candidate Charles Booker

The Rewatchables: Boogie Nights

Last Podcast On The Left: Mormonism Series and Black Death Series

The Rewatchables: Miami Vice

Stephanie Kelton: The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People's Economy

Mises Institute: A Review of Stephanie Kelton’s The Deficit Myth

The New York Times: California to Ban the Sale of New Gasoline Cars

Peter Shapiro: The Music Never Stops: What Putting on 10,000 Shows Has Taught Me about Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Magic

Danny Meyer: Setting the Table

News Beat Podcast: MMIWG2S: Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls & Two-Spirit People

The War on Cars Podcast

WebMD: Under 2% of Eligible Have Gotten Newest Booster Shot

NPR: CDC recommends new booster shots to fight omicron

UNFTR Sticker Request

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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The FCC: On the death of the fairness doctrine.

Sat, 24 Sep 2022 04:01:00 +0000

This week we finally heed the call to Unf*ck the Federal Communications Commission (FCC.) We don’t get all the way there (it’s been around since 1934) but we manage to tackle the fairness doctrine, which was intended to provide balance and equal time in broadcasting and was repealed in 1987. Many credit this Reagan-era move as the beginning of the end of civility, leading to the divide in the nation today. But, of course, the story behind the doctrine is far more nuanced. We review a history of the FCC, its limitations and whether or not the fairness doctrine ever really had a place in America given the natural tension with the First Amendment.

Congressional Quarterly: Broadcasting Deregulation

Chapters

Intro: 00:03:53

Chapter One: What is the FCC and why should we give a shit? 00:04:51

Chapter Two: To be fair, it was never really a doctrine. 00:13:35

Chapter Three: Fairness in the eye of the withholder. 00:24:57

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max. 00:33:27

Post Show Musings: 00:39:36

Book Love: 00:40:22

Outro: 00:49:35

Resources

FCC Website

UNFTR Episode Resources

Manufacturing Dissent: How We Let an Aussie Destroy the U.S.

The Economics of Racism: Bootstraps, Black Banks and Redlining.

Book Love

Steven J. Simmons: The Fairness Doctrine and the Media

Brian J. Karem: Free the Press: The Death of American Journalism and How to Revive It

Ken Auletta: Backstory: Inside the Business of News

Bernard Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is written by free speech and distributed by shut the fuck up.

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Show Notes [Ep 74: BlackRock.]

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 19:54:30 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 talk about the future of the enablers “series,” how people like Larry Fink of BlackRock fit into the overall UNFTR ecosystem and how that relates to ESGs + the billionaire class. Plus, there’s some irrelevant movie talk, and reminders to support the Fall Raisers: Friends, Funds and Hell.

Listen to Episode 74: BlackRock: The Devil's Banker. Do as I say, not as I do.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Housekeeping: 00:02:00

Emails: 00:07:43

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:35:45

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:36:15

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:45:32

Outro: 01:02:12

Resources

Unf*cker Artist Submission Form

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Christopher Leonard: Kochland: The Secret History of Koch Industries and Corporate Power in America to Collections

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right to Collections

UNFTR Episodes: Libertarians Are Exhausting (Part 1 and Part 2)

Tom McGovern on TikTok, Youtube, Instagram and Twitter

News Beat Podcast: The Fossil Fuel Industry's Big Lie

UNFTR Episode: The Problem with Conscious Capitalism: ESG, SRI and FMF.

Bloomberg: Patagonia Billionaire Who Gave Up Company Skirts $700 Million Tax Hit

Ben Sheehan on Instagram and Twitter

Ben Sheehan: OMG WTF Does the Constitution Actually Say?: A Non-Boring Guide to How Our Democracy Is Supposed to Work

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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BlackRock: The Devil's Banker. Do as I say, not as I do.

Sat, 17 Sep 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Larry Fink is one of the most influential people on the planet. His firm BlackRock mints money. Billions of dollars a year. Their risk management platform handles more than $10 trillion a year. He helped guide the country out of the financial crisis in 2009 and positioned his company to grow unfettered by the very regulatory authorities he advised at the time. He’s by all accounts funny, affable, competitive and compassionate. BlackRock is at the center of a storm in conservative media for pushing companies too hard toward sustainability. That he’s too “woke.” Liberals think he’s behind the housing crisis. Conspiracy theorists believe he’s in the pocket of the Chinese government. The real story of BlackRock is bigger, more mundane and just as terrifying.

Insider: Here are 9 fascinating facts to know about BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager

Chapters

BlackRock Disclaimer: 00:00:05

Intro: 00:02:24

Chapter One: Bank or no bank? You decide. 00:05:31

Chapter Two: Birth of a giant. 00:13:12

Chapter Three: Just how big is BlackRock? 00:24:20

Chapter Four: The ESG Hullabaloo. 00:31:46

Chapter Five: Bring it home, Max. 00:40:11

Post Show Musings: 00:50:48

Outro: 01:09:20

Resources

Vanity Fair: Larry Fink’s $12 Trillion Shadow

BlackRock: 2021 Annual Report

Policy Tensor: Seeing Like BlackRock

Bloomberg: Biden Ties to BlackRock Deepen With Latest Treasury Hire

Wall Street Journal: One Firm Getting What It Wants in Washington: BlackRock

OpenSecrets: BlackRock Inc

Office of Financial Research: Asset Management and Financial Stability, September 2013

Bloomberg: In Fink We Trust: BlackRock Is Now ‘Fourth Branch of Government’

BlackRock: Sustainable investing at BlackRock

Banking On Climate Change: The Worst Banks Since the Paris Agreement

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism: BlackRock Tells Oil Regulator: Ignore Our CEO’s Climate Pledges

Florida State Board of Administration: August 23, 2022 Meeting

Politico: Wall Street opens its checkbook for Ron DeSantis

Sierra Club: Maine becomes the first state to pass law to divest from fossil fuels

Morgan Stanley Institute For Sustainable Investing: Sustainable Reality

BlackRock: BlackRock and housing: Setting the record straight

The Atlantic: BlackRock Is Not Ruining the U.S. Housing Market

Securities and Exchange Commission: Sallie Mae Proxy Statement

Pensions & Investments: Nestle moves pension assets to BlackRock as it reorganizes internal management unit

CNN Business: Nestle SA

Investopedia: The Top 5 British Petroleum (BP) Shareholders

CNN Business: Walmart Inc

Fintel: BlackRock Inc. ownership in MCD / Mcdonald's Corp

Bloomberg Markets and Finance: BlackRock CEO Larry Fink on Inflation, ESG Investing

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Problem with Conscious Capitalism.

Book Love

David Carey and John E. Morris: King of Capital: The Remarkable Rise, Fall, and Rise Again of Steve Schwarzman and Blackstone

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Show Notes [Ep 73: Hospitals and Healthcare.]

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 15:12:03 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss the conclusion of the three part Healthcare series, share plans to support two progressive candidates in the upcoming election, and get hyped for the Fall Raisers: Friend, Fund, and Hell.

Listen to Episode 73: Hospitals and Healthcare: From Sanatoriums for the Indigent to Citadels of the Elite.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Housekeeping: 00:07:54

Emails: 00:18:57

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:41:06

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:41:19

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:42:14

Reviews: 00:49:25

Outro: 00:49:52

Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

ContraPoints Youtube

F.D Signifier Youtube

Some More News Youtube

News Beat Podcast: The Fossil Fuel Industry's Big Lie

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hospitals and Healthcare: From Sanatoriums for the Indigent to Citadels of the Elite.

Sun, 11 Sep 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The third and final installment of our American Healthcare series examines the evolution of the American hospital system. There are more than 6,000 hospitals in the United States and several distinctions among them. After a quick recap of the first two episodes, we look primarily at the peculiar designation of nonprofit hospitals, their relationship to practitioners and their role in driving costs in the system. We conclude the series with a few hot takes from medical professionals, some basic proposals to improve coverage and care and ask what it would take to move toward Medicare for All.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:59

Chapter One: What’s a Hospital? 00:13:59

Chapter Two: For-Profit and Nonprofit Hospitals. Two sides of the same damn coin. 00:17:56

Chapter Three: Turning Doctors into Business People. 00:31:07

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max. 00:36:09

Post Show Musings: 00:50:39

Book Love: 01:10:43

Outro: 01:11:11

Resources

OECD.stat: Health Care Resources: Hospitals

EOS Surfaces: Types of Hospitals in the US

AAPC: What Are Relative Value Units (RVUs)?

American Hospital Association: Fast Facts on U.S. Hospitals, 2022

Becker’s Hospital Review: 82 Physician-Owned Hospitals to Know

AMA Journal of Ethics: Physician-Owned Hospitals and Self-Referral

NPR’s Planet Money: How Non-Profit Hospitals Are Driving Up The Cost Of Health Care

LWW Journals: The Growing Executive-Physician Wage Gap in Major US Nonprofit Hospitals and Burden of Nonclinical Workers on the US Healthcare System

Weatherby Healthcare: Physician salary report 2022: Physician income rising again

The New York Times: Why Are Nonprofit Hospitals So Highly Profitable?

Hub’s List: A data-based biweekly newsletter of medical fun facts

The New England Journal of Medicine: Practicing Medicine in the New Business Climate

The New England Journal of Medicine: Is Quality Improvement Improving Quality? A View from the Doctor's Office

CNN: 2 charts that show just how old this Congress actually is

The Commonwealth Fund: International Health Care System Profiles- France

Germany Visa: Health Insurance in Germany- The German Healthcare System

Congress.gov: H.R.1 For the People Act

NASHP: Can We Please Stop Fixating on Hospital Chargemasters?

KHN: Nixon’s Plan For Health Reform, In His Own Words

CBO: Estimated Budgetary Effects of Title I, Committee on Finance, of H.R. 5376, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

The Lever: Where Did The Public Option Go?

UNFTR Episode Resources

U.S. Healthcare.

This Healthcare is Killing Us.

Paul Starr: The Social Transformation of American Medicine: The Rise of a Sovereign Profession and the Making of a Vast Industry

Book Love

Steven Brill: America's Bitter Pill: Money, Politics, Backroom Deals, and the Fight to Fix Our Broken Healthcare System

Nelson Lichtenstein: State of the Union: A Century of American Labor

Mark Vonnegut: The Heart of Caring: A Life in Pediatrics

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Show Notes [Ep 72: This Healthcare is Killing Us.]

Sat, 10 Sep 2022 18:14:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 continue to discuss the healthcare industry—this time with insight from some of the international Unf*ckers. Plus, 99 has the sniffles and sounds like Squidward. And, as always, (somehow) there’s singing. Enjoy!

Listen to Episode 72: This Healthcare is Killing Us: The perpetual cycle of money madness.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:06:35

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:18:01

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:18:01

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:50:47

Reviews: 01:23:13

Outro: 01:24:27

Resources

UNFTR Artist Submission

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Media Roots Podcast: Alex Jones Part 1 and Part 2

IndoctriNation Podcast

Amanda Montell: Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism

UNFTR Episode: Global Order of Money

UNFTR Episode: Global Order of Power

UNFTR Episode: America Inc.

Knudsen in the news

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Unf*cking Flashback: Labor Unions: From Pullman to Kellogg’s. Labor’s long, hard road.

Mon, 05 Sep 2022 16:42:19 +0000

We're re-releasing our Labor Union episode in honor of Labor Day. For Unf*ckers outside of the United States, this is the day government set aside as a token of appreciation to the labor movement for eight hour days, weekends, anti-child labor laws, protection from discrimination and more. (In reality, it was a consolation prize after Grover Cleveland jailed Eugene Debs and sent federal troops to beat the shit out of Pullman railcar workers on strike.) We celebrate this glorious day by giving members of the PMC a holiday to shop at stores run by the working poor.

From Pullman and Carnegie to Kellogg's and the PRO Act, this week we unf*ck the labor movement in the United States. No single episode can possibly do labor justice but we give it our best shot. The episode includes a blow-by-blow analysis of a recent interview with the CEO of Kellogg's to translate Wall Street speak for “how to fuck workers and influence inflation.” And we rip off a few Milton references to exercise our #FMF muscle.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:42

Segment 1: 00:02:11

Segment 2: 00:04:25

Segment 3: 00:12:18

Segment 4: 00:17:46

Segment 5: 00:21:29

Segment 6: 00:28:00

Segment 7: 00:30:20

Segment 8: 00:41:22

Show Notes: 00:52:15

Book Love: 00:57:17

Pod Love: 00:58:02

Emails + Shoutouts: 00:58:45

Outro: 01:10:42

Resources

American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)

The New York Times: Starbucks workers at a Buffalo store unionize in a big symbolic win for labor

Kellogg Company: Investor Relations

The Nation: Striking Kellogg’s Workers Need the PRO Act

U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics: Work Stoppages

OECD: Trade Union Dataset

U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics: Union Members — 2020

Economic History Association: Labor Unions in the United States

History of Recessions in U.S.

Unionization rates by industry in the United States, 1880-2000

More Perfect Union: Kellogg's Factory Working Conditions

Media Matters: Joe Rogan Wrapped: A year of COVID-19 misinformation, right-wing myths, and anti-trans rhetoric

Book Love

Philip Dray: There Is Power in a Union: The Epic Story of Labor in America

Nelson Lichtenstein: State of the Union: A Century of American Labor

Kurt Andersen: Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America

Joseph Stiglitz: People, Power and Profits

Robert Shiller: Narrative Economics

Pod Love

Economic Update with Professor Richard Wolff: S11 E47

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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This Healthcare is Killing Us: The perpetual cycle of money madness.

Sat, 03 Sep 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The first installment of our healthcare series encapsulated the magnitude of the industry that accounts for 20% of our nation’s GDP and how efforts to pursue universal healthcare were scuttled over the years. Today’s episode examines the role of private insurance in our system and details how Obamacare came to life with little discussion around a public option or the possibility of Medicare for All.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:58

Chapter One: Understanding the scope of healthcare. 00:03:12

Chapter Two: The Insurance Class System: 00:16:29

Chapter Three: Making the Sausage: 00:26:32

Post Show Musings: 00:46:27

Outro: 00:51:50

Resources

The New York Times: U.S. Life Expectancy Falls Again in ‘Historic’ Setback

Health System Tracker: How does health spending in the U.S. compare to other countries?

The Atlantic: Did a Conservative Think Tank Really Invent the Individual Mandate?

The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation: The Burden of Medical Debt: Results from the Kaiser Family Foundation/New York Times

UnitedHealth Group: Annual Report

Humana: 2021 Annual Report

Anthem, Inc: Annual Report

National Association of Insurance Commissioners: U.S. Health Insurance Industry Analysis Report

Book Love

Paul Starr: The Social Transformation of American Medicine: The Rise of a Sovereign Profession and the Making of a Vast Industry

Steven Brill: America's Bitter Pill: Money, Politics, Backroom Deals, and the Fight to Fix Our Broken Healthcare System

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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Show Notes [Topical Cream 6: Biden’s Big Student Debt Announcement.]

Thu, 01 Sep 2022 13:56:32 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 continue talking about the student debt announcement and its impact, address more feedback from the healthcare episode, plus feedback from the last show notes re: Big Pharma, natural medicine and vaccines.

Listen to Topical Cream 6: Biden’s Big Student Debt Announcement.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:09:22

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:37:40

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:45:19

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:50:47

Outro: 01:51:16

Resources

UNFTR Merch Store

Trust Me Podcast: Virginia Heffernan: Edge, Jeffrey Epstein, & the Intellectual Dark Web

Conspirituality Podcast

Maintenance Phase Podcast

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

UNFTR Episodes: Libertarians Are Exhausting Part One and Part Two.

UNFTR Episodes: Corporate (Ir)Responsibility Part One and Part Two.

UNFTR Episodes: F*ck Milton Friedman.

ProPublica: How a Secretive Billionaire Handed His Fortune to the Architect of the Right-Wing Takeover of the Courts

The Intercept: Joe Biden’s Role In Creating The Student Debt Crisis Stretches Back To The 1970s

SocialMarketing.org: Generations X,Y, Z and the Others

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Phone a Friend: Lily Geismer, author of Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality.

Tue, 30 Aug 2022 05:35:15 +0000

Lily Geismer wrote an incredible book called Left Behind. Unf*ckers who listened to our three part series on the Clinton years are familiar with it and know how important it was to framing this series. We had some follow up thoughts and questions for this esteemed author and are thrilled she obliged. Max and Lily have a wide ranging conversation about her book and the long tail effect of Clinton’s brand of neoliberalism in the second installment of Phone a Friend.

Resources

UNFTR Episode: The Clinton Years (Parts One, Two, and Three)

Lily Geismer: Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality

Lily Geismer: Don’t Blame Us: Suburban Liberals and the Transformation of the Democratic Party

Nathan J. Robinson: Superpredator: Bill Clinton’s Use and Abuse of Black America

UNFTR Episode: The Economics of Racism: Bootstraps, Black Banks and Redlining

Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

Mehrsa Baradaran: The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap

Richard Rothstein: The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America

Gary Gerstle: The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order: America and the World in the Free Market Era

Lily on Twitter

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is written by Max and hosted by 99.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Biden’s Big Student Debt Announcement: PITOTWIU for the Indebted Masses.

Sun, 28 Aug 2022 07:28:28 +0000

It’s here! It’s finally here! Today we review our predictions for student debt relief and square them with Biden’s proposed plan. There’s a lot to like about the announcement, several unanswered questions and some gaping holes in the plan going forward. Max breaks down the politics, the details and biggest misses of the Biden student debt relief plan and why it’s in danger of being PITOTWIU.

Resources

The Balance: How Much Trump's Tax Cuts Cost the Government

World Population Review: Average Family Income 2022

PBS NewsHour: President Biden announces decision on student debt forgiveness

Committee For a Responsible Federal Budget: New Student Debt Changes Will Cost Half a Trillion Dollars

Penn Wharton Budget Model: The Biden Student Loan Forgiveness Plan: Budgetary Costs and Distributional Impact

Josh Mitchell: The Debt Trap: How Student Loans Became a National Catastrophe

UNFTR Episode Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Corporate (Ir)Responsibility (Part I) and (Part II).

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Show Notes [Ep 71: U.S. Healthcare.]

Fri, 26 Aug 2022 07:57:49 +0000

In today’s Show Notes Max and 99 talk for 30 hours…Okay, exaggeration. But they talk for a long while, because there’s a lot of U.S. healthcare feedback to run through, as the Unf*ckers are so smart and dedicated (as usual). All hail Nettie.

Listen to U.S. Healthcare.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

UNFTR Healthcare Update: 00:03:13

Emails: 00:08:13

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:57:12

Twitter Shout Outs: 02:02:30

Instagram Shout Outs: 02:05:05

Substack: 02:06:57

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 02:10:34

Reviews: 02:14:42

Resources

Nettie's Fund

Ron DeSantis Standing

Maintenance Phase Podcast

-Weight Watchers

-Super Size Me

-Jordan Peterson Part 1 and Part 2

Unf*cker-run Facebook Group

Majority Report with John Abramson

Nathan J. Robinson: The Intellectual We Deserve

An Arm and a Leg Podcast

Elisabeth Rosenthal: An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back

UNFTR Artists

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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All Hail Nettie.

Fri, 26 Aug 2022 05:01:22 +0000

A note for one of our original Unf*ckers. Sending our love, light, and thank yous to Nettie for being the patron saint of this show, and making us all better.

If you're able, please consider donating to Nettie's fund: www.facebook.com/donate/1765854323761747/2174011309435518.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

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U.S. Healthcare: America’s Hypocritical Oath.

Sat, 20 Aug 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Today we’re doing some level setting on healthcare in the U.S.—a long requested topic. We navigate this unf*cking based on direct queries from the Unf*ckers, creating a baseline that helps establish a foundation for related features down the road and an understanding of the moving parts and shared language for the challenges we face. Stay tuned, as next week we’re going to delve deep into the Affordable Care Act.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:28

Chapter One: 00:02:40

Chapter Two: 00:09:31

Chapter Three: 00:18:32

Chapter Four: 00:32:54

Post Show Musings: 00:38:54

Book Love: 00:46:12

Pod Love: 00:48:03

Outro: 01:12:14

Resources

The New York Times: Big Changes Are Coming for Health Care Costs

Health System Tracker: National Health Spending Explorer

GovTrack: H.R. 5376: Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

CMS.gov: NHE Fact Sheet

Milton Friedman: How to Cure Health Care

Medtronic: Annual Report

Abbott Laboratories: Annual Report

Stryker: 2021 Comprehensive Report

HCA Healthcare, Inc: Annual Report

Fierce Healthcare: Kaiser Permanente reports $8.1B net profit in 2021 despite shrinking operating income

UHS: Annual Report

UnitedHealth Group: Annual Report

Humana: 2021 Annual Report

Anthem, Inc: Annual Report

Pfizer: Annual Report

Merck & Co: Annual Report

AbbVie Inc: Annual Report

CNBC: The wealthiest 10% of Americans own a record 89% of all U.S. stocks

Book Love

Paul Starr: The Social Transformation of American Medicine: The Rise of a Sovereign Profession and the Making of a Vast Industry

Steven Brill: America's Bitter Pill: Money, Politics, Backroom Deals, and the Fight to Fix Our Broken Healthcare System

Pod Love

Congressional Dish: CD255: Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs)

Sawbones

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Join the Unf*cker-run Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/2051537518349565

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Show Notes [Ep 69: Max Unfiltered + More.]

Thu, 18 Aug 2022 04:47:58 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 shoot the shit and catch up on what the world’s been up to since they took a lil vacation.

Listen to Max Unfiltered.

Listen to A Chat with Tom McGovern.

Listen to UNFTR x Best of the Left.

Listen to The Clinton Years (Parts One, Two, and Three).

Listen to UNFTR X News Beat.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:18:00

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:25:54

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:28:03

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:35:30

Reviews: 01:46:52

Outro: 01:48:58

Resources

UNFTR Merch Store

Uncertain Hour Podcast: Season One

Mother Country Radicals Podcast

Ike McCorkle (Colorado)

Chesa Boudin on News Beat

Tom McGovern: Someone Ate My Corn

Behind The Bastards: The Second American Civil War You Never Learned About

UNFTR on Youtube

The Captain’s Band (Hold Fast)

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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UNFTR X News Beat: Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls & Two-Spirit People

Sun, 14 Aug 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Countless Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit people go missing or are murdered across Canada and the United States in an ongoing genocide receiving inadequate attention from media, governments, and law enforcement. Who’s taking and killing them, and why isn’t more being done? News Beat podcast—Manny’s other love—speaks with Native women on both sides of the border who break down the causes and perpetrators of these atrocities and seek justice for the many mothers, daughters, sisters, aunties, and nieces, missing or slain. South Carolina (by way of New York) hip-hop sorceress LiKWUiD performs original verse to illuminate their mission, and the crisis.

Access the accompanying episode here.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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The Clinton Years (Parts One, Two, and Three)

Wed, 10 Aug 2022 04:01:00 +0000

This episode is a re-release of sorts. Due to the amount of positive feedback we received on our Clinton Years series, we decided to put the series together into one seamless episode to make it easier to share.

Access the essays for Parts One, Two, and Three.

Chapters

Special Intro: 00:00:06

Prologue: 00:02:53

Chapter One: 00:07:36

Chapter Two: 00:32:26

Chapter Three: 00:40:31

Chapter Four: 00:52:42

Chapter Five: 01:16:21

Chapter Six: 01:26:39

Chapter Seven: 01:34:38

Chapter Eight: 01:43:36

Chapter Nine: 01:55:13

Chapter Ten: 02:01:03

Access the resources for Parts One, Two, and Three.

Book Love

Lily Geismer: Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality

Nathan J. Robinson: Superpredator: Bill Clinton’s Use and Abuse of Black America

Bernard Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order

Binyamin Appelbaum: The Economists’ Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society

Matt Taibbi: Griftopia: A Story of Bankers, Politicians, and the Most Audacious Power Grab in American History

Howard Zinn: A People’s History of the United States

Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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UNFTR x Best of the Left: America, A Beginner's Guide

Sat, 06 Aug 2022 16:16:50 +0000

If not for Best of the Left, we are not. The person who put UNFTR on the map has graciously allowed us to drop his very special 1,500th anniversary show on our feed. The episode is titled “America, A Beginner’s Guide” and it’s an earful. A masterpiece written, crafted and produced by our friend and mentor Jay Tomlinson, one of the pioneers of political podcasting.

Access the transcript here.

Resources

Episode page

The Jingles - Media Manipulation Tactic Explainer Songs

Sally McConnell-Ginet: Words Matter

Lulu Miller: Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life

Best of the Left on social: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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BONUS: A Chat with Tom McGovern

Thu, 04 Aug 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The man behind the curtain. The fifth Beatle. The ace up our sleeve. Max interviews UNFTR’s ultimate secret weapon, Tom McGovern. Tom is the genius behind the show’s myriad theme songs, signature parodies like Oh, Canada and Independent Platform Man and the musical touches sprinkled throughout our episodes. We convinced Tom to come out of the recording booth long enough for us to praise him. Then he saw his shadow and went back into the booth. Max and Tom have a wide ranging discussion about musical influences, acting and where the fuck all the baby pigeons are.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Max, Unfiltered: Finishing the hat.

Sat, 30 Jul 2022 04:01:00 +0000

We bid Unf*ckers adieu for a couple of weeks with some quick ruminations about from whence we came and where we’re headed. In this brief reflection, Max and crew address the cacophony of issues swirling about in our heads as we head toward the midterms. There are countless battles to be fought and won in service of the planet. But for now, Max puts down the brushes and canvas and saves the hat for another day.

Resources

The Knowledge Project Ep. #83: Brian Koppelman: What Really Matters

Julia Cameron: The Artist's Way

UNFTR Episode Resources

When We Leave: Afghanistan Tomorrow and Forever.

Building the Climate Industrial Complex: Strange Bedfellows, Wildfires and Heat Waves.

Playing Chicken with China: How Propaganda Rationalizes Conflict.

Fox in the Outhouse: Invasion, Immigration & Inflation.

New York’s Casual White Supremacy: Losing the Plot on Hochul & Buffalo Bills.

Elon Gated: Billionaires and Their Toys.

The End of Roe v. Wade: Extinguishing the Penumbra.

Where is the Religious Left? Dissecting the American Theocracy.

The School Shooting Script: Our Immunocompromised Body Politic.

Obsession Over Recession Depression: Feeding the Economic HypeBeast.

Amazon (Part 1): The Unfulfillment Company.

The Clinton Years (Part One): Don't stop thinking about tomorrow.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Show Notes [Ep 68: The Clinton Years (Part Three)]

Thu, 28 Jul 2022 21:34:40 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss the finale of The Clinton Years and review Unf*cker feedback, share some book love and we hear from Manny Faces about his other project, News Beat.

Listen to The Clinton Years (Part One).

Listen to The Clinton Years (Part Two).

Listen to The Clinton Years (Part Three).

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:00

Emails: 00:04:13

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:02:48

Manny's Corner: 01:06:24

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:11:49

Substack Shout Outs: 01:16:36

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:17:17

Outro: 01:29:08

Resources

Unf*cker Facebook Group

Oliver Stone's Untold History Of The United States

Laurence Leamer: The Kennedy Men: 1901-1963

Howard Zinn: A People's History of the United States

Nancy MacLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

Krin Gabbard: Jammin' at the Margins: Jazz and the American Cinema to Collections

Ruth Wilson Gilmore: Golden Gulag: Prisons, Surplus, Crisis, and Opposition in Globalizing California

Marie Gottschalk: Caught: The Prison State and the Lockdown of American Politics

News Beat Episodes:

Racism Kills: Segregation's Role in the Buffalo Massacre

Fusion Centers: Your Shadowy Neighborhood Spy Hubs

Grifter's Paradise: Capitalism's Destruction of Afghanistan

From Slave Patrols to Ahmaud Arbery

Racist AI: Facial Recognition & Wrongful Arrests

#SayHerName: Confronting 400 Years Of State Violence Against Black Women

Why We Riot: Institutionalized Inequality, Racism & Oppression

UNFTR Episode Resources

Amazon (Part 2)

Where is the Religious Left?

The Military Film Complex.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

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The Clinton Years (Part Three): The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing.

Sat, 23 Jul 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Part One of “The Clinton Years” examined Bill Clinton’s legacy through the lens of their foundation work and stubborn insistence on the private sector’s ability to cure everything from poverty to climate change. Part Two went back to the beginning to uncover the roots of Clinton’s neoliberal philosophy that would guide his decades in public service. In this final episode of the series, the rubber meets the road as we review the policies, laws and moments that have come to define the decade of the ‘90s and how Clinton’s legacy has negatively reverberated over time, contributed to the conservative makeover of the Democratic Party and planted the seeds for the culture wars of today.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:04

Prologue: 00:02:06

Chapter Five: The first Black president. 00:06:00

Chapter Six: Housing. The American nightmare. 00:16:37

Chapter Seven: Clinton’s criminal injustice system. 00:24:35

Chapter Eight: It’s the economy, asshole. 00:33:34

Chapter Nine: Border wars. 00:45:11

Chapter Ten: Closing the book on Clinton. 00:51:01

Post Show Musings: 00:57:13

Book Love: 01:03:35

Outro: 01:04:51

Resources

The Atlantic: It Was No Compliment to Call Bill Clinton ‘The First Black President’

Cornell Law School: Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis: Has Wealth Inequality in America Changed over Time? Here Are Key Statistics

Book Love

Lily Geismer: Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality

Nathan J. Robinson: Superpredator: Bill Clinton’s Use and Abuse of Black America

Bernard Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order

Binyamin Appelbaum: The Economists’ Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society

Matt Taibbi: Griftopia: A Story of Bankers, Politicians, and the Most Audacious Power Grab in American History

Howard Zinn: A People’s History of the United States

Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Clinton Years (Part One).

The Clinton Years (Part Two).

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Show Notes [Ep 67: The Clinton Years (Part Two)]

Thu, 21 Jul 2022 12:58:56 +0000

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss listener feedback from Part Two of The Clinton Years, the powerful Jesse Jackson tie-in (including the incredible audio treatment courtesy of Manny Faces), and Max hinted at how this three-part series was going to culminate.

Listen to The Clinton Years (Part One).
Listen to The Clinton Years (Part Two).

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:00

Emails: 00:10:23

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:20:09

IG Shout Outs: 01:24:22

Substack Shout Outs: 01:25:05

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:26:02

Reviews: 01:31:43

Outro: 01:31:11

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, "Unf*cking the Republic."

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Clinton Years (Part Two): Yesterday's gone.

Sat, 16 Jul 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In Part One of “The Clinton Years” we started our journey in the present day by examining the structure and programs of The Clinton Foundation. Many of Clinton’s earliest ideas in public service remain very much a part of the Clinton ethos and belief system to this day. Early evidence of the reliance on public/private partnerships and adherence to free market ideology can be found in Clinton’s formative years when the Democratic Party was reeling from Ronald Reagan’s takeover of the American political system. Part Two of “The Clinton Years” examines the roots of the Clinton philosophy and approach to government.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:42

Chapter Two: Winner, winner, chicken dinner. 00:05:43

Chapter Three: Micro-finance as a macro policy. 00:13:47

Chapter Four: Between sunshine and rain…A Rainbow Coalition. 00:25:58

Post Show Musings: 00:45:03

Book Love: 00:45:37

Outro: 00:57:35

Resources

The Baltimore Sun: Modest success marks Clinton era Arkansas remains poor, but has made gains in Democrat’s tenure

U.S. News: Best States- Arkansas

U.S. News: Best States- Massachusetts

The New York Times: The President's Past

Book Love

Lily Geismer: Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality

Nathan J. Robinson: Superpredator: Bill Clinton’s Use and Abuse of Black America

Bernard Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Clinton Years (Part One).

The Economics of Racism.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Show Notes [Ep 66: The Clinton Years (Part One)]

Thu, 14 Jul 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes Maxisode, 99 and Max discuss recent political changes across the globe, the state of conservative education outlets and what to expect from the upcoming Clinton episodes.

Listen to The Clinton Years (Part One).

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:02:03

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:52:19

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:59:33

Reviews: 01:07:41

Outro: 01:09:10

Resources

William MacAskill: Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Help Others, Do Work That Matters, and Make Smarter Choices about Giving Back to Collections

Live For Live Music: Jam Bands And Hip-Hop Have More In Common Than You Think

Forthright Radio: Jamie Susskind The Digital Republic: On Freedom & Democracy in the 21st Century

In God We Lust Podcast

Gangster Capitalism Podcast

Hold Fast

Gavin Newson Insulin

Jen S. In the News

Mass Incarceration: The War On Drugs.

UNFTR Episode Resources

Libertarians Are Exhausting (Part 2).

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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The Clinton Years (Part One): Don't stop thinking about tomorrow.

Sat, 09 Jul 2022 04:01:00 +0000

When we think of prosperous eras in modern U.S. history, conservatives often point to the Reagan administration as a crucial turning point. To the corporate class, there’s a good deal of truth to this, but mostly to the extent that the seeds of neoliberalism planted in the 70s were watered during this period. The full blossom would come under President William Jefferson Clinton. Today, establishment democrats recall the Clinton years with the same fondness conservatives treat the Reagan era with. Forget the sex scandals, questionable real estate investments and swirling conspiracies about body counts. The real scandal of the Clinton 90s was the death of progressivism. Part One of “The Clinton Years” examines the legacy of Bill Clinton through the lens of the Clinton Foundation and how it continues to embody the neoliberal ideals of the New Democrats.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:12

Chapter One: 00:07:10

Part One Closing Thoughts: 00:23:56

Post Show Musings: 00:27:39

Skit Flashback: 00:45:32

Resources

Philanthropy News Digest: Future of Clinton Foundation Uncertain

The New Yorker: How to Save the Clinton Foundation

Clinton Foundation Annual Report 2020

Clinton Global Initiative Focus Areas

Clinton Foundation Impact Statement

The Washington Post: Foundation faceoff: The Trump Foundation vs. the Clinton Foundation

Book Love

Lily Geismer: Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Ep 65: Fuck U, PragerU.]

Fri, 08 Jul 2022 02:54:48 +0000

In today's Show Notes Maxisode, 99 has terrible audio (sorry!), we finally put the condiment war to rest and enjoy our usually smattering of Unf*cker write-ins on an assortment of topics like health care, the DNC and of course, PragerU.

Listen to Fuck U, PragerU.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:12:41

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:13:27

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:17:35

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:28:56

Outro: 01:37:50

Resources

Emily Ladau: Demystifying Disability: What to Know, What to Say, and How to Be an Ally

Paul Starr: The Social Transformation of American Medicine: The Rise of a Sovereign Profession and the Making of a Vast Industry

Michael Crichton: Five Patients

In Sickness and in Wealth: American Hospitals in the Twentieth Century

ACOG Guide to Language and Abortion

The Independent: Bill Nye: ‘Voting is more important than recycling in fight against climate crisis’

Quartz: Ketchup isn’t the king of American condiments. Mayonnaise is

Charity Navigator: Prager University Foundation

TED: The way we think about charity is dead wrong

UNFTR Episode Resources

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Fuck U, PragerU: The Internet’s Fake Toxic University

Sat, 02 Jul 2022 04:01:00 +0000

For years, the propagandists with the greatest visibility in the United States were on television; the ones who contributed most to the “manufacture of consent.” Think Fox News. And we’ve covered many of the dark, hidden figures looming in the background churning out the ideas that make it into the mainstream and out of Tucker Carlson’s mouth. Uncle Milton, James Buchanan, Lewis Powell, The Koch Brothers, Robert Mercer, Peter Thiel and the myriad think tanks like Mercatus, Cato and Heritage. Today we cover another contributor to the perverted right wing ecosystem: Prager University and its folksy, baritone, asshole patriarch, Dennis Prager.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:51

Chapter One: The sort of Jews but not actual Jews behind the hateful, spiteful, very awful no good university that isn’t a real university: 00:05:20

Chapter Two: Dennis the menace to society: 00:15:14

Coffee Break: 00:25:14

Chapter Three: So much fucking money: 00:26:16

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max: 00:36:45

Post Show Musings: 00:41:50

Outro: 00:56:24

Resources

PodVoices.Help

Bloomberg: Billionaire Fracking Brothers Hammered by Permian Holdings

Mint: Texas fracking billionaires drew Covid-19 aid while investing in rivals

Financial Post: Wilks brothers-backed ProFrac valued at over $2 bln in Nasdaq debut

Sludge: Who Funds PragerU’s Anti-Muslim Content?

Buzzfeed: How PragerU Is Winning The Right-Wing Culture War Without Donald Trump

Bridge Initiative Team: Factsheet: PragerU

PragerU: Form 990 | Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax 2021

Francesca Tripodi: Searching for Alternative Facts: Analyzing Scriptural Inference in Conservative News Practices

Southern Poverty Law Center: Hungary Paid Dennis Prager $30,000 for an Hour of Appearances at Far-Right ‘Education’ Conference

The New York Times: Right-Wing Views for Generation Z, Five Minutes at a Time

The Guardian: Guess what the three Democrats blocking lower medication prices have in common?

Congress.gov: H.R.3 — 117th Congress (2021-2022)

Congress.gov: Representative Frank Pallone, Jr.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Ep 64: $5 Gasoline + Unf*cking Flashback: Peak Oil.]

Wed, 29 Jun 2022 16:07:17 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode we talk about the backwards SCOTUS decision and how we even got to this point, and chat about the $5 Gasoline episode as well as some older ones (The Assange Problem, Capitasociafascilibdemarxism, etc.).

Listen to $5 Gasoline.

Listen to Unf*cking Flashback: Peak Oil.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

SCOTUS Chat: 00:03:00

Emails: 00:19:10

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:51:59

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:55:54

Substack Shout Outs: 01:09:27

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:14:01

Reviews: 01:28:32

MustardGate: 01:31:10

Outro: 01:42:48

Resources

Emily Lambert: The Futures: The Rise of the Speculator and the Origins of the World's Biggest Markets

Bernard E. Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order

UNFTR: Capitasociafascilibdemarxism.

District Sentinel Radio

Nick Turse: Kill Anything That Moves: The Real American War in Vietnam

UNFTR: The Assange Problem.

Tim Pat Coogan: On the Blanket: The Inside Story of the IRA Prisoners' "Dirty" Protest

Kieran Allen: 32 Counties: The Failure of Partition and the Case for a United Ireland

The David McWilliams Podcast: The transformation of Ireland and what comes next

Hot Ones: Daniel Radcliffe

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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$5 Gasoline: The Real Culprit Revealed.

Sat, 25 Jun 2022 04:01:00 +0000

I know, I know. Didn’t we just do this episode? Kinda, sorta. But not to this extent. In our Peak Oil episode we reviewed the history of oil as a commodity, currency and weapon on the world stage. This episode picks up where we left off to drill deeper (pun intended) into the story of crude and how it shows up as $5 gasoline at the pumps. We debunk several myths surrounding high gasoline prices and unequivocally point the finger at who’s to blame.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:16

Part 1: 00:01:14

Part 2: 00:04:24

Part 3: 00:09:07

Part 4: 00:13:50

Part 5: 00:18:48

Post Show Musings: 00:26:11

Outro: 00:40:24

Resources

Investopedia: Understanding the Correlation Between Oil and Currency

Econbrowser: Gasoline price calculator

EnergyWorld.com: How much for gas? Around the world, pain is felt at the pump

EnergyWorld.com: Opinion: White House tries to blame US refiners for its own overheating error

U.S Energy Information Administration: World liquid fuels production and consumption balance

Statista: Daily demand for crude oil worldwide from 2006 to 2020, with a forecast until 2026*

Marathon Petroleum Corporation: Marathon Petroleum Corp. Reports First-Quarter 2022 Results

MacroMicro.me: US Dollar Index vs. Oil Price

CNBC: China oil demand must remain weak or we will have tough summer, IEA’s Birol says

The New York Times: Biden Pushes Congress for Three-Month Gas Tax Holiday

UNFTR Episode Resources

Peak Oil: It's a Crude, Crude World.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Unf*cking Flashback: Peak Oil.

Fri, 24 Jun 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Hey Unf*ckers, it’s Max. Just wanted to weigh in very quickly. This is an episode that we’ve dropped already, it’s called Peak Oil.

We dropped it a few months back to try and explain why oil prices were so high. It is a very deep dive into the history of oil prices, commodities markets, and all of the factors that go into the price of oil and the exchanges that they’re traded on.

So we go through the history of the Mercantile Exchange, adding oil as a commodity on the exchange in the early ’70s, the disruptions due to the Iranian oil embargo and the OPEC embargo in the ’70s, how that influenced the volatility and the pricing markets, all of the different actors and exchanges that grew along the way to begin to manipulate prices through to where we are today, to where there’s only a handful of players that really determine the market price of oil.

Now, the reason that we’re re-dropping this particular one is because tomorrow we’re dropping a half Topical Cream, half full Unf*cking on the price of gasoline today. So what’s different is we discussed the history of oil pricing as a commodity and how it relates to gas prices and prices at the pump in this episode. But the one that we’re dropping tomorrow really drills more deeply into the inputs behind gas prices right now. When we say it’s $5 at the pump, how did it get there? What does that actually mean?

So I feel like this first episode does a really good job explaining the market in general and how oil basically moves from the ground to wind up as something that’s traded on commodity exchanges. But the one that we’re going to drop tomorrow—again, half Topical Cream, half full Unf*cking—is really an explainer behind what drives the prices when you take that pump out of your hands at the gas station and you put it in your car. We’re going to explain why those fucking stickers that you see at the pump of Joe Biden being like “I did this,” couldn’t be further from the fucking truth.

So we’re going to dispel a whole bunch of myths tomorrow. We’re going to pack you with enough information and resources to destroy all of the myths that you hear in the pundit class and in the mainstream media. And I know this is a really obnoxious thing to say, but I promise you everything that you’re hearing in the mainstream media and in that punditry class is wrong. They’re all getting it wrong, and we’ll explain why.

So enjoy this re-release of Peak Oil and look out for the episode tomorrow titled $5 Gasoline.

Chapters

A Note From Max: 00:00:00

Intro: 00:04:24

Prologue: 00:07:28

Chapter 1: 00:10:21

Chapter 2: 00:13:53

Oil Rundown: 00:19:46

Skit: 00:27:32

Chapter 3: 00:31:20

Chapter 4: 00:44:16

Chapter 5: 00:53:51

Show Notes: 01:00:15

Book Love: 01:03:08

Pod Love: 01:08:54

Emails + Shout Outs: 01:24:07

Outro: 01:32:25

Resources

World Population Review: Richest African Countries 2022

Trading Economics: Corruption Rank by Country | Africa

Worldometer: Equatorial Guinea Oil

Democracy Now!: African Dictatorships and Double Standards

U.S. Energy Information Administration: International Energy Outlook 2021

Book Love

Peter Maass: Crude World- Required reading for anyone interested in the dark underbelly of the oil and gas trade.

Leif Wenar: Blood Oil- Not my favorite. A little overreaching in the historical and socio-political connections it tries to make but contains some solid anecdotal insights to support a broader thesis of corruption.

Morgan Downey: Oil 101- A fundamental book to understand the product itself and the markets that move it.

Dan Dicker: Oil’s Endless Bid- Pedestrian but informative account of what it’s like to be a commodities trader and what went wrong with the business.

Leah McGrath Goodman: The Asylum: The Renegades Who Hijacked the World’s Oil Market- If you’re really into this topic, this is the book for you. I came to it late as it came out in 2011 but it’s an excellent, deep narrative dive into a world that very few people know or understand.

Bernard Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets- We’ve talked about Harcourt a lot. The first few sections of the book are very inaccessible but provide an invaluable history of the impact of Enlightenment thinking on the new class of free market promoters.

Emily Lambert: The Futures- Possibly one of my favorite business books of all time. A great read told in fun and engaging anecdotes that helps anyone access and understand the bizarre world of the markets.

Pod Love

American Scandal: Enron

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Climate Industrial Complex.

The Global Order of Money.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

--
If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [Ep 63: Amazon (Part 2) + Phone a Friend.]

Wed, 22 Jun 2022 15:39:39 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode we review Phone a Friend feedback, welcoming some Prestige Heads into the Unf*cking family, argue about the new Matilda movie and Max loses the ketchup v mustard debate.

Listen to Amazon (Part 2).

Listen to Phone a Friend.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:03:37

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:30:13

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:34:39

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:41:51

Reviews: 00:49:08

Outro: 00:50:40

Resources

The Guardian: 'It was a great run': rebel grocer Pirate Joe's closes after lengthy legal battle

Congressional Dish Podcast

JSexton3: Bourbon Talk

Drilled: This Is Not the First Time Climate Has Been Part of the "Culture War"

The Intercept: Elephant In The Zoom: Meltdowns Have Brought Progressive Advocacy Groups to a Standstill at a Critical Moment in World History

Jake Hanrahan: Megacorp

Christy Harrison: Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being, and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Phone a Friend: Daniel Bessner + Derek Davison of the American Prestige Podcast.

Mon, 20 Jun 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Our inaugural edition of Phone a Friend, where we interview luminaries in different fields, features Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison from the American Prestige podcast. The pair answer some easy questions on lighthearted topics like Israel/Palestine, the war in Ukraine, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and whether the United States even has a foreign policy anymore.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:43

Israel/Palestine: 00:07:25

U.S. Relations with China: 00:16:51

Russia/Ukraine: 00:28:07

U.S. Foreign Policy: 00:39:16

Lightning Round: 00:44:37

Outro: 00:48:23

Resources

American Prestige Podcast

Daniel Bessner

Daniel Bessner: Democracy in Exile

Derek Davison

Foreign Exchanges Substack

A History of Modern Palestine w/ Rashid Khalidi

Quincy Institute: Ending Primacy to End U.S. Wars

Margaret MacMillan: The War That Ended Peace: The Road to 1914

Paul Thomas Chamberlin: The Cold War's Killing Fields: Rethinking the Long Peace

Lindsey A. O'Rourke: Covert Regime Change: America's Secret Cold War

The Atlantic: The One Key Word Biden Needs to Invoke on Ukraine

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Introducing: Phone a Friend.

Sun, 19 Jun 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Here's a sneak peak at the inaugural drop of Phone a Friend, a new Unf*cking series where we interview people smarter than Max. (The possibilities are endless.) This episode features Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison from the incredible foreign policy podcast American Prestige.

Resources

Daniel Bessner

Derek Davison

American Prestige Podcast

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Amazon (Part 2): The Unfulfillment Company.

Sat, 18 Jun 2022 04:19:29 +0000

In Part 1 of Amazon, the Unfulfillment Company, we reviewed Amazon’s rise from online bookseller to third largest company on the planet and well on its way to number one. The extreme focus on the customer is the centerpiece of founder Jeff Bezos’s philosophy and while it has increased consumerism and driven down prices on several categories of goods and services, it’s had big ripple effects in the wider economy and the labor market. Today’s episode picks up where we left off to examine the company’s earnings and acquisitions more closely and addresses how the company is one step ahead of efforts to break it up. We finish with some examples of victories and what must happen to contain Amazon’s influence before it becomes sentient and destroys us all. Or something like that.

Chapters

Part 1 Recap: 00:00:05

Intro: 00:02:17

Chapter Four: Big, Bigger, Biggest: 00:07:26

Chapter Five: It’s a matter of antitrust: 00:18:01

Chapter Six: Tiny Victories: 00:30:53

Epilogue: Bring it home, Max: 00:35:33

Post Show Musings: 00:42:49

Know Your Bills: 00:43:16

Outro: 00:57:57

Resources

Business Insider: Jeff Bezos famously embraces failure. Here are the biggest flops Amazon has overcome under his watch.

The New York Times: Amazon reports slowing sales growth and indicates slowdown may continue.

Marketplace Pulse: Amazon Net Sales 1996-2022

World Population Review: GDP Ranked by Country 2022

Forex Sentiment Board: 10 Largest Companies with Highest Revenue in 2022

Insider Intelligence: Amazon annual revenue breakdown by segment in 2022

The Register: Cloud a three-player market dominated by AWS, Google, Microsoft

CNBC: Amazon has a $31 billion a year advertising business

E Marketer: Amazon has a larger advertising business than YouTube - Insider Intelligence Trends, Forecasts & Statistics

Forbes: Amazon Buys MGM For $8.5 Billion: Deal Could Be Unwound In The Future

Next Big Brand: Here Is The List Of Top 10 Firms Acquired By Amazon

TechCrunch: Amazon to acquire autonomous driving startup Zoox

CB Insights: Visualizing Tech Giants' Billion-Dollar Acquisitions

PYMNTS.com: Amazon's All-Time High US eCommerce Share: 56.7%

Reveal News: Private Report Shows How Amazon Drastically Undercounts Its Carbon Footprint

Congress.gov: 117th Congress (2021-2022): Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2021

Book Love

Alec MacGillis: Fulfillment: Winning and Losing in One-Click America

Pod Love

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [FMF Day Bonus + Ep 62: Amazon (Part 1)]

Wed, 15 Jun 2022 17:04:51 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode we continue to celebrate #FMF Day by reading Unf*cker’s scathing comments towards ‘ol Milty, continue to shit on Amazon (and even get some Elon digs in) and Manny regales us with some Newark/Atlanta stories.

Listen to BONUS: Happy F*ck Milton Friedman Day.

Listen to Amazon (Part 1).

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:02:32

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:28:03

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:34:37

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:36:25

Substack Shout Outs: 00:41:12

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:41:51

Reviews: 00:46:15

Outro: 00:48:43

Resources

Heather McGhee: The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together to Collections

UNFTR: The Economics of Racism.

UNFTR: Student Debt.

Mehrsa Baradaran: The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap

Richard Rothstein: The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America

Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

Red Wine & Blue Website

Red Wine & Blue FB Groups

Best of the Left #1495 No One Supports the Economic Interests of Rural America

News Beat: Why We Riot

Chloe Maxmin + Canyon Woodward: Dirt Road Revival: How to Rebuild Rural Politics and Why Our Future Depends on It

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Amazon (Part 1): The Unfulfillment Company.

Sun, 12 Jun 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The first of a two part series on Amazon. In many ways, Amazon is the logical extension of America’s perverted version of neoliberal capitalism. The self-described libertarian founder Jeff Bezos created a company with nearly 100% brand recognition that has permeated our daily lives in obvious ways and some not so obvious ways. In Part 1 we examine Amazon’s relationship with its hometown of Seattle, its obsessive focus on the customer to the exclusion of all else and how it built its power base in Washington D.C.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Chapter One: Seattle Not-so Super Sonic: 00:07:33

Chapter Two: Customer Centric: 00:17:32

Chapter Three: Gaming the System: 00:25:44

Coffee Break 00:19:22

Post Show Musings: 00:33:23

Pod Love: 00:56:21

Book Love: 00:57:02

Outro: 00:57:19

Resources

Alec MacGillis: The Cynic: The Political Education of Mitch McConnell

Danny Meyer: Setting the Table

The Seattle Times: Seattle ended decade with faster growth than suburbs, reversing a 100-year trend

The New York Times: The Amazon That Customers Don't See

The Intercept: Amazon Gets Tax Breaks While Its Employees Rely On Food Stamps, New Data Shows

The Guardian: Top Amazon boss privately advised US government on web portal worth billions to tech firm

The Hill: Monopoly critics decry ‘Amazon amendment’

Book Love

Alec MacGillis: Fulfillment: Winning and Losing in One-Click America

Pod Love

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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BONUS: Happy F*ck Milton Friedman Day- Family Reunion Episode Celebrating Uncle Fartnoggin.

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 04:25:35 +0000

Manny Faces joins Max and 99 in studio for the first time ever. The three celebrate the dastardly legacy of Milton Friedman, reflect on the growth and evolution of the podcast and each reveal something new about themselves. It's a quick and breezy hang. Won't you join in? #FMF

Listen to the original F*ck Milton Friedman episode.

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Show Notes [Quickie 12: Congressional Summer School.]

Wed, 08 Jun 2022 16:20:13 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode Max rides solo and struggles to understand how emails or social media work.

Okay, it wasn't that bad. Max teases some new features that are coming later this summer, gets pumped up for Fuck Milton Friedman day, and has some fun chats with (to?) the listeners about the last few episodes.

Listen to Congressional Summer School.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:09:21

Social Shout Outs: 00:45:46

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:54:49

Outro: 00:55:25

Resources

Best of the Left: #1492 The Great Replacements (Conspiracy vs Reality)

Chloe Maxmin + Canyon Woodward: Dirt Road Revival: How to Rebuild Rural Politics and Why Our Future Depends on It

Stephen Marche: The Next Civil War: Dispatches from the American Future

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Congressional Summer School: Shabooya Roll Call.

Sat, 04 Jun 2022 07:31:21 +0000

In today’s Quickie we’re going to look at three different bills or groupings of bills that represent the array of legislation that exists. Something old, something big and something new. At the end I’ll run through several bills that should be on everyone’s radar and we’ll link some helpful ways to advocate in show notes and on Substack. In terms of structure, I’ll provide a summary of the bill, tell you who’s behind it and who’s not, where it stands, what it does, what it theoretically costs and what’s at stake.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:06

The 117th Congress: 00:04:39

Quickie One: A Two-Fer for First Nations 00:10:14

Quickie Two: The bare fucking minimum. 00:14:20

Coffee Break 00:19:22

Quickie Three: Reefer Madness 00:20:29

Post Show Musings: 00:33:31

Outro: 00:48:53

Resources

GovTrack: Statistics and Historical Comparison

Congress.gov: H.R.1688 - Native American Child Protection Act

Indian Country Today: House passes Gallego and Young bill to protect Native American children

Congress.gov: H.R.5444 - Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act

Congress.gov: H.R.4 - John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2021

Congress.gov: H.R.3617 - Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act

ACLU: Vote Yes on H.R. 3617, Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (More) Act

Congress.gov: H.R.1996 - SAFE Banking Act of 2021

UNFTR Episode Resources

Unf*cking Congress: And the Fucking Fuckers Who Fucked Us.

Boarding Schools From Hell.

The Itsfuckedforsure Bill.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Topical Cream 5 + Ep 61: Obsession Over Recession Depression]

Thu, 02 Jun 2022 14:19:11 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode we chat a lot about making change, how to cope with our current political system, and then end up fried from the 900 degree heat in the studio.

Listen to Topical Cream 5: The School Shooting Script

Listen to Obsession Over Recession Depression.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:02:19

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:23:52

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:24:54

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:31:43

Substack Shout Outs: 01:33:18

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:37:29

Reviews: 01:41:09

Outro: 01:43:09

Resources

Libertarians Are Exhausting [Part I]

Libertarians Are Exhausting [Part II]

Cuba (Not So) Libre: "Vas Bien, Fidel."

Best of the Left #1491 Mismanaging Capitalism Can Lead to Fascism (Inflation and the Working Class)

Red Wine & Blue Website

@progressive.waifus Instagram

Behind the Bastards Part One: Kissinger

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Obsession Over Recession Depression: Feeding the Economic HypeBeast.

Sat, 28 May 2022 07:56:03 +0000

We just came through the eighth “technical” recession over the past 50 years and many predict that another is around the corner. Depending upon who you believe we might already be in one, we are about to drop off a cliff or it’s only smooth sailing ahead. Today we talk about how to measure a recession, the different character of prior downturns and why it doesn’t really fucking matter to most of us.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:51

Prologue: 00:01:48

Chapter One: Recessions Defined: 00:05:08

Chapter Two: Recessions of the Modern Era: 00:09:20

Coffee Break: 00:22:33

Chapter Three: Thwart. Mitigate. Or Fuck it. 00:23:43

Chapter Four: Yo Max, we gonna be okay or what? 00:36:01

Post Show Musings: 00:46:20

Outro: 01:03:13

Resources

National Bureau of Economic Research: Business Cycle Dating

The Balance: How Does the Fed Funds Rate Work, and What Is Its Impact?

CBS: Mortgage rates jump above 4% — prompting borrowers to return to a staple of the housing bubble

Macrotrends: Federal Funds Rate - 62 Year Historical Chart

The Conference Board: US Leading Indicators

St. Louis Fed: Personal Saving Rate

Federal Reserve: Distribution of Household Wealth in the U.S. since 1989

Pod Love

The Economist Asks: How will the war in Ukraine change the world economy?

The David McWilliams Podcast: Living with inflation, the story of Turkey

UNFTR Episode Resources

Capitalism.

Corporate (Ir)Responsibility (Part I).

Corporate (Ir)Responsibility (Part II).

Immigration Nation.

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The School Shooting Script: Our Immunocompromised Body Politic.

Fri, 27 May 2022 04:01:00 +0000

It’s the same old script. Mass shooting occurs. Thoughts and prayers fly. Declarations are made. Fingers point. There’s something more insidious at play in this nation than just easy access to weapons and ammunition. Our propensity toward gun violence is indicative of a deeper illness. Like many difficult issues, it’s never just one thing but a confluence of deadly issues that plague our country. To fight for the “soul of the nation,” one has to first ask whether we ever had one to begin with.

Resources

BBC News: America's gun culture - in seven charts

EducationWeek: School Shootings This Year: How Many and Where

EducationWeek: School Shootings Over Time: Incidents, Injuries, and Deaths

EducationWeek: School Shootings in 2021: How Many and Where

EducationWeek: School Shootings in 2020: How Many and Where

EducationWeek: School Shootings in 2019: How Many and Where

EducationWeek: School Shootings in 2018: How Many and Where

CNN: How US gun culture stacks up with the world

The Violence Project: Explore the shooters, their backgrounds, guns and motivations.

World Population Review: Standard of Living by Country | Quality of Life by Country 2022

Forever Wars: What America Does Abroad Is What America Does at Home

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Topical Cream 4 + Ep 60: Student Debt.]

Thu, 26 May 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode we chat about the free market/student debt, hear from John Kane about Deb Haaland’s residential school report, and share a bunch of incredible insights from the most intelligent group of people: our Unf*ckers.

Listen to Topical Cream 4: Boarding Schools From Hell.

Listen to Student Debt: Hey Boomer, STFU.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:46

Emails: 00:04:10

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:47:13

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:58:20

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:23:40

Substack Shout Outs: 01:25:01

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:27:05

Reviews: 01:29:03

Outro: 01:29:16

Resources

Let’s Talk Native…With John Kane

Wisconsin United To Amend (WIUTA)

Noam Chomsky Interview

Joel Wainwright and Geoff Mann: Climate Leviathan: A Political Theory Of Our Planetary Future

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Student Debt: Hey Boomer, STFU.

Sat, 21 May 2022 04:49:33 +0000

Various sources report that the Biden Administration is set to release its plan to deal with student indebtedness. Cancellation? Forgiveness? Refinance? Today’s episode covers the spirited debate surrounding student loan forgiveness and the structural issues that plague the American system of higher education. We cover the history of student loans and how perverse incentives, corporate greed and colleges with endless appetites for growth created a juggernaut of debt and bureaucracy no amount of forgiveness can fix. And, we build a case for policy measures that can restore some balance in the system.

Chapters

Prologue: 00:01:25

Intro: 00:03:08

Chapter One: So…How bad is it? 00:04:07

Chapter Two: The Best of Intentions: 00:13:02

Chapter Three: Take it away, Sallie Mae: 00:20:36

Coffee Break: 00:29:49

Chapter Four: The Tuition Death Spiral: 00:30:31

Chapter Five: To forgive or not to forgive? 00:35:25

Post Show Musings: 00:47:05

Outro: 01:09:07

Resources

The Atlantic: Who Really Benefits From Student-Loan Forgiveness?

Education Data Initiative: Student Loan Debt by Race

Sallie Mae: Annual Report

Sallie Mae: Proxy Satement

The New York Times: Student Debt Is Crushing. Canceling It for Everyone Is Still a Bad Idea.

Brookings: Student loan forgiveness is regressive whether measured by income, education, or wealth

Jacobin: On Student Debt Forgiveness, Joe Biden Is Pushing Stringent Means-Testing Yet Again

Federal Student Aid: Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

Book Love

Josh Mitchell: The Debt Trap: How Student Loans Became a National Catastrophe

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Show Notes [Ep 59: Convention of States.]

Thu, 19 May 2022 04:36:03 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode Max and 99 sort out some beef (tofu? #PlantF*cker), chat about our coffee partners on the Poospatuck Reservation, and somehow touch on every hot button issue under the sun.

Listen to Convention of States.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:05:06

Facebook Shout Outs: 01:10:47

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:117:50

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:16:59

Reviews: 01:19:17

Outro: 01:19:40

Resources

The David McWilliams Podcast: Scandinavian Models

Opening Arguments Podcast: Constitutional Conventions & the “Proud Boys”

News Beat Podcast: The Truth About Puerto Rico: A U.S. Colony

The New York Times: How Tucker Carlson Stoked White Fear to Conquer Cable

Salon: Kathryn Joyce

Philip S. Gorski + Samuel L. Perry: The Flag and the Cross: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy

Deconstructed Podcast: The Lab-Leak Theory Is Looking Stornger by the Day. Here’s What We Know.

UNFTR Episode Resources

Priorities: War, Wealth and Welfare.

Dear Rebekkkah Mercer: A Love Letter To the Alt-Right's Sugar Mama.

Fuck Milton Friedman: The Chicago School of Economics.

The Economics of Racism: Bootstraps, Black Banks and Redlining.

The Washington Consensus: Consensus is not consent.

The Itsfuckedforsure Bill: And the Ghosts of Spending Bills Past.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Debt, Diplomacy and Destruction.

Fox in the Outhouse: Invasion, Immigration & Inflation.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Boarding Schools from Hell: Indian Residential Schools in America

Wed, 18 May 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Imagine for a moment a breaking news story that more than 500 bodies of white children were found buried in unmarked graves at some of the most prestigious boarding schools in New England…That we discovered a federal plot to steal children, place them in forced labor camps within these schools and lie about their whereabouts when they died. And that the practice was in existence as recently as the 1960s. It would be fucking chaos. And rightly so. This exact scenario unfolded last week with the release of a Department of Interior report about the history of so-called “Indian Residential Schools” in the United States. No outcry. No outrage. No breaking news alerts. Just another day in the United States of Hypocrisy.

Resources

Lakota Times: Civilization Act

United States Department of the Interior: Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative Investigative Report

Indian Country Today: Report on federal Indian boarding schools due April 1

Congress.gov: H.R.5444 - Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act

Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition: Resolutions and Petitions

Resistbot: Yes on H.R.5444 & S.2907

UNFTR Episode Resources

Culture Cancel: The American Holocaust.

Oh, Canada: Digging through America’s attic.

New York’s Casual White Supremacy: Losing the Plot on Hochul & Buffalo Bills.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Convention of States: The Right Wing Takeover Has Only Just Begun.

Sat, 14 May 2022 04:01:00 +0000

For decades, right wing actors have been steadily tearing apart critical protections of our democracy and stacking the deck in their favor. Civil rights and liberties that were hard fought and then eventually assumed have slowly disappeared. Voting rights. Privacy. Worker projections. Economic mobility. And soon, as we now know, people’s rights to their own bodies. Nothing happens overnight and the process has been slow, steady and painful because the right wing in America is deliberate, organized and patient. Today we examine yet another long-term, right wing attempt to hijack the political system called a Convention of States. Libertarian conservatives have been playing a long chess game while Democrats and liberals have been playing checkers.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:51

Chapter One: So what the fuck is this thing? 00:02:59

Chapter Two: What’s the end game here? 00:10:24

Chapter Three: Um, is this what the framers intended? 00:15:59

Chapter Four: We might need more states. 00:23:21

Chapter Five: Bring it home, Max. 00:32:50

Outro: 00:56:01

Resources

Convention of States Action

Common Cause: The Dangerous Path- Big Money’s Plan to Shred the Constitution

SourceWatch: Convention of States Action

Planned Parenthood: Griswold v. Connecticut

The Guardian: In 2013 the supreme court gutted voting rights – how has it changed the US?

UNFTR Episode Resources

Stupid White Guy Olympics.

Libertarians Are Exhausting (Part I).

Libertarians Are Exhausting (Part II).

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Show Notes [Topical Cream 3 + Ep 58: Where is the Religious Left?]

Thu, 12 May 2022 05:06:59 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode we review Topical Cream + Religious Left feedback, work through some more Russia/Ukraine issues and Max tangents about the stock market for a bit (a while).

Listen to Topical Cream: The End of Roe v. Wade

Listen to Where is the Religious Left?

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:19

Emails: 00:07:04

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:49:55

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:57:12

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:00:34

Substack Shout Outs: 01:02:44

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:05:16

Reviews: 01:11:21

Outro: 01:12:10

Resources

Straight White American Jesus Podcast

Red Letter Christians

Liberation Theology

Professor André Gagné

@Sunnshiiny

Dr. Jetelina’s Newsletter

Willamette Week: Carrick Flynn Says He’s No Instrument of Crypto Cash

UNFTR: Corporate (Ir)Responsibility (Part I) + Corporate (Ir)Responsibility (Part II).

UNFTR: The Problem with Conscious Capitalism.

Kristin Kobes Du Mez: Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation

A Little Bit Culty: Samantha Freedom on Leaving The Alt-Right

Behind The Bastards: John Wayne: A Dude Who Sucked

Straight White American Jesus’ Patreon

Mean Girls: Kevin G’s Rap

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Where is the Religious Left? Dissecting the American Theocracy.

Sat, 07 May 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Since the Civil War, white Christians in this country have swung wildly between advancing a social doctrine of equality and promoting outright racism, nationalism and hatred of the poor. Since the Eisenhower years, however, Christians of all stripes have decidedly split along similar fault lines to our politics. While secularists and the so-called religious left represent the majority of Americans, the fervent white Christian nationalist wing of the country seems to be fully in control of the national agenda. We invited Brad Onishi from the Straight White American Jesus podcast to help us unpack the divide between the religious right and left in the United States.

Chapters

A note about our episode collaborator: 00:00:08

Intro: 00:01:04

Chapter One. Framing the Inquiry: Capitalism as Religion: 00:06:16

Brad One: 00:15:34

Chapter Two: Thou Shalt Not Feed the Poor: 00:20:56

Chapter Three: White, Right and Organized as Fuck: 00:30:12

Brad Two: 00:37:17

Chapter Four: Splintering Alliances: 00:39:21

Brad Three: 00:41:25

Chapter Five: Bring it home, Brad and Max. But mostly Brad: 00:46:19

Brad Four: 00:46:44

Brad Five: 00:49:50

Post Show Musings: 00:57:33

Outro: 01:09:13

Resources

PBS: God in the White House

PRRI: The American Religious Landscape in 2020

Pew Research Center: Republicans account for a small but steady share of U.S. Muslims

Pew Research Center: U.S. Jews’ political views

Pew Research Center: Party affiliation among Hindus

Pew Research Center: Party affiliation among Buddhists

Pew Research Center: Party affiliation among atheists

The New Republic: Whither the Religious Left?

UNFTR Episode Resources

Capitalism.

The Prosperity Doctrine.

Book Love

Terrence L. Johnson + Jacques Berlinerblau: Blacks and Jews in America: An Invitation to Dialogue

Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power to Collections

Benjamin M. Friedman: Religion and Capitalism

Kevin Kruse: One Nation Under God: How Corporate America Invented Christian America

Howard Zinn: A People’s History of the United States

Pod Love

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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The End of Roe v. Wade: Extinguishing the Penumbra.

Thu, 05 May 2022 04:03:02 +0000

They’ve done it. Well, they’re about to. As much as we all knew this was coming it’s still stunning. Today’s Topical Cream presses the obvious point that we live under the tyranny of the minority. The racist, white nationalist, right-wing, Christian fucking minority that elected two illegitimate Presidents who appointed the sitting majority of the Supreme fucking Court. Max and 99 trade off thoughts on the SCOTUS leak, the awful minority and the feckless democrats elected to “protect” our interests. All of that in just one Cream.

Resources

Supreme Court Clips: Supreme Court Clips: Roe v. Wade - Sarah Weddington's argument

Politico: Supreme Court has voted to overturn abortion rights, draft opinion shows

Pew Research Center: About six-in-ten Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases

Guttmacher Institute: Roe v. Wade in Peril: Our Latest Resources

Axios: Collins says Kavanaugh and Gorsuch possibly broke promise on Roe v. Wade

The 19th News: Jessica Cisneros takes on the last anti-abortion U.S. House Democrat

Gallup: Approval of U.S. Supreme Court Down to 40%, a New Low

UNFTR Episode Resources

Procedural Fuckery.

Midterms, Primaries and Get Out the Vote.

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Show Notes [Episode 57: Dem Bums.]

Wed, 04 May 2022 05:39:01 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, we review some Dem Bums episode feedback (as well as some leftover Military Film Complex feedback), discuss how the Democratic Party sucks ~writ large~ and Max ages himself by talking about something called B. J. and the Bear.

Stupid White Guy Olympics.

Chapters

A Quick Note: 00:0:21

Intro: 00:01:06

Emails: 00:10:24

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:38:41

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:42:42

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:51:44

Substack Shout Outs: 00:52:10

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:53:08

Reviews: 00:58:48

Outro: 01:01:26

Resources

Harvey Singh: Why Is American Healthcare So Expensive: Solving the Puzzle of American Healthcare Costs to Build a Low-Cost System

Bob G. Shupe: Behind the Healthcare Cost Curtain: there is an answer

MD David G. Brown: Why Healthcare Costs So Much

Grave of the Fireflies

H Bruce Franklin: M.I.A. or Mythmaking in America

John M. Barry: Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America

UNFTR Episode Resources

From Bull Moose to Jackass.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Dem Bums: 50 Shades of Blue.

Sat, 30 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

You can’t do the big things if you can’t do the little things. A friend of mine used to say this all the time. And it reminds me of the Democratic Party - a party that can’t seem to move the needle on the big, meaningful stuff because they’re always fighting about procedural issues that prevent the nation from moving forward. Has the right wing lost its fucking mind in this country? Sure. But they’re not the reason democrats are so dysfunctional. The Democratic Party is riddled with self-inflicted wounds, some of which we expose in today’s episode including a profile of one of the party’s worst actors: Josh Gottheimer.

Chapters

Intro: 00:02:17

Chapter One: Meet Josh: 00:06:40

Chapter Two: No Labels: 00:15:28

Chapter Three: Caucus, meet money. Money, meet caucus: 00:20:34

Chapter Four: Bring it home, Max: 00:26:30

Post Show Musings: 00:31:52

Outro: 00:34:39

Resources

Visual Capitalist: All of the World’s Wealth in One Visualization

United Nations Development Programme: Latest Human Development Index Ranking

Open Secrets: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Open Secrets: Election objectors are among the GOP’s highest fundraisers ahead of Jan. 6 anniversary

GovTrack: Rep. Josh Gottheimer

Jacobin: By Backing a Huge Tax Giveaway to the Rich, Democrats Are Giving the GOP a Perfect Midterm Gift

The Orange County Register: Porter-backed bill seeks to restore SALT deductions capped under 2017 tax act

Politico: Josh Gottheimer is taunting the ‘far left.’ He’s still unlikely to face a serious primary.

The New York Times: Private Equity Funds, Sensing Profit in Tumult, Are Propping Up Oil

Commercial Observer: How Blackstone Became the Biggest Private Landlord — And What That Means

Open Secretes: Contributors to Josh Gottheimer 2021 - 2022

LancasterOnline: Problem Solvers Caucus parent group was behind $277K in super-PAC spending for U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker and $3 million for others

HuffPost: 'No Labels' Needs A Warning Label

The Intercept: No Labels Offered Conservative Democrats Hundreds of Thousands to Spurn Nancy Pelosi Fundraiser

No Labels Youtube: An Antidote to the Extremes

The Washington Post: Trump accepts No Labels prize, as O’Malley calls him ‘racist,’ ‘fascist’

The Intercept: Who’s the mystery man behind the latest Pelosi putsch? It’s Mark Penn.

Blue Doc PAC

New Democrat Coalition

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights: Vote “No” on The FIRST STEP Act

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights: Support Positive Solutions to Keep Children Safe in Schools, Oppose Criminalization of Our Youth

U.S. Congressman Earl Blumenauer

Willamette Week: Cryptocurrency-Backed Democratic Congressional Candidate Carrick Flynn Leads Race, Opposing Campaign Poll Found

Protect Our Future PAC Report of Receipts and Disbursements

Politico: This super PAC is spending almost $1 million in a contentious Democratic primary. They don’t want you to know who is funding them.

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Itsfuckedforsure Bill: And the Ghosts of Spending Bills Past.

Midterms, Primaries and Get Out the Vote: Send the Blue Dogs to the Pound.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Elon Gated: Billionaires and Their Toys.

Thu, 28 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The second installment of topical cream peers into the petty world of the billionaire class and the purchase of Twitter by racist enabler and inventor of nothing Elon Musk.

Resources

Good Jobs First: Los Angeles Times Stirs Debate: Elon Musk’s Use of Subsidies at Tesla, SpaceX, and SolarCity

The New York Times: Judge reduces $137 million penalty against Tesla over factory racism.

Time: How Elon Musk Built His Fortune—And Became the Richest Private Citizen in the World

The Wrap: Elon Musk Dragged Hard After Saying He’s a ‘Socialist’ – and Marx Was a Capitalist

The New York Times: Elon Musk details his plan to pay for a $46.5 billion takeover of Twitter.

Insider: Elon Musk ruthlessly cleaned house of any Tesla workers who disagreed or got in his way, a new book says

Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality: 20 Facts About U.S. Inequality that Everyone Should Know

Economic Policy Institute: CEO pay has skyrocketed 1,322% since 1978

Public Citizen: Citizens United 10 Years Later: 25 Ultrarich People Have Spent $1.4 Billion on Elections

UNFTR Episode Resources

Fuck Milton Friedman: The Chicago School of Economics.

Manufacturing Dissent: How We Let an Aussie Destroy the U.S.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Show Notes [Episode 56: The Military Film Complex.]

Wed, 27 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, we review some Military Film Complex episode feedback, discuss progressive candidate suggestions from Unf*ckers, and talk about the genius of Tom McGovern!

The Indestructible Podcast

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:03:36

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:34:22

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:40:39

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:04:38

Outro: 01:15:29

Resources

Kristin Kobes Du Mez: Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation

Eduardo Galeano: Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent

VenezuelAnalysis.com

La Verdadera Historia de México Podcast

Presidente AMLO. Conferencias matutina Podcast

Todo Psicodélico with Alex de León Podcast

La Voz de los Hongos Podcast

Sonidos de la Nación Zapoteca Podcast

Música Ambiental Psicodélico Podcast

Ídolo: The Ballad of Chalino Sánchez Podcast

Tony Shaw: Hollywood's Cold War

Wil Haygood: Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World

Paul S. Hirsch: Pulp Empire: The Secret History of Comic Book Imperialism

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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The Military Film Complex: Destroying the Myth of Liberal Hollywood.

Sat, 23 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Trendsetter or follower? Hollywood has made over 5,000 war films in the past 100 years. Today’s episode probes whether Hollywood has been complicit in building a culture of warmongering and nationalism, whether inadvertently or by design. With a little help from our friend Krin - who has authored three books on Hollywood - and a handful of other resources, we look back over a few different eras in Hollywood and try to figure out whether the industry is holding up a mirror or influencing our feelings toward war. One thing the episode destroys is the myth that Hollywood is the cultural mouthpiece for the left.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:49

Chapter One: Hollywood Doesn’t Fit Neatly in Any Box: 00:04:25

Chapter Two: A Deep History of Influence: 00:10:04

Chapter Three: Hollywood Goes to War: 00:19:05

Chapter Four: Influencer or Mirror: 00:28:06

Chapter Five: The Persistent Liberal Hollywood Myth: 00:38:54

Post Show Musings: 00:54:52

Outro: 01:16:58

Resources

The Atlantic: What's Wrong With 'The Hurt Locker'

NPR: Remembering Hollywood's Hays Code, 40 Years On

IMDb: War (Sorted by US Box Office Descending)

The Guardian: Conflict of interest: why Hollywood failed to honestly address the ‘war on terror’

Military.com: Why John Wayne Was Labeled a ‘Draft Dodger’ During World War II

Book Love

Jack G. Shaheen: Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People

Ernest Giglio: Here's Looking at You: Hollywood, Film and Politics, Fourth Edition

Michael Ryan and Douglas Kellner: Camera Politica: The Politics of Contemporary Hollywood Film

Krin’s Books:

Psychiatry and the Cinema

Black Magic: White Hollywood and African American Culture

Jammin' at the Margins: Jazz and the American Cinema

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Drill Man, Drill: Biden's Broken Promise.

Thu, 21 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Welcome to Topical Cream, a new, periodic UNFTR segment with an appropriately cringeworthy title for fuckery in the news. Our aim with these segments is to tackle more timely and newsworthy events that either relate to previous Unf*cking narratives or to set up future episodes. Our inaugural Cream finds us back in the world of crude oil and commodities with the recent capitulation on the part of the Biden administration to the oil and gas industry.

Resources

OilPrice.com: Oil Price Charts

CNBC: U.S. to release 1 million barrels of oil per day from reserves to help cut gas prices

The New York Times: Biden Plans to Open More Public Land to Drilling

Poynter: President Biden claimed that there are 9,000 unused oil drilling permits. That’s mostly true.

EIA: Short-Term Energy Outlook

UNFTR: Peak Oil.

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Show Notes [Quickie 11: Midterms, Primaries and Get Out the Vote.]

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 04:11:04 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, we continue our conversation about the midterm/primary candidates (with special insight from Manny Faces), talk unf*cking cannabis and hear some McFleshman’s beer feedback!

Nathan Rabin: You Don't Know Me But You Don't Like Me: Phish, Insane Clown Posse, and My Misadventures with Two of Music's Most Maligned Tribes

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:03:20

Twitter Shout Outs: 01:03:48

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:06:26

Reviews: 01:09:48

Outro: 01:13:21

Resources

Analyze Phish Podcast

Thomas J. Sugrue: The Origins of the Urban Crisis: Race and Inequality in Postwar Detroit

Jodie Adams Kirshner: Broke: Hardship and Resilience in a City of Broken Promises

@EitanTheGoalie: Jewish Or Antisemitic TikTok Series

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Midterms, Primaries and Get Out the Vote: Send the Blue Dogs to the Pound.

Sat, 16 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Dems are already in the fetal position crying over races they have yet to lose and blaming progressives for losing them. Fuck that. Today we look at three upcoming races (two Senate, one House) that demonstrate how much the landscape has changed for progressives and the importance of primaries. The Democratic establishment is lining up against very capable progressive candidates in key races in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Texas. Two of these races are messy, but hold great promise for the balance of power in the Senate. The third is one that we invite everyone to support because it’s a no-fucking-brainer.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:28

Prologue: 00:01:23

Battleground- Wisconsin: 00:09:44

Battleground- Pennsylvania: 00:21:30

Battleground- Texas: 00:28:06

Closing Thoughts: 00:31:45

Post Show Musings: 00:35:21

Outro: 00:50:35

Resources

Ballotpedia: United States Senate election in Wisconsin, 2022

Ballotpedia: Alex Lasry

Rolling Stone: Can Justice Democrats Pull Off a Progressive Coup in Congress?

NPR: The top 10 Senate seats that are most likely to flip to the other party

Politico: D.C. Dems get out of frontrunner Fetterman's way in Pennsylvania

The New York Times: John Fetterman, Senate Candidate, Revisits Gun Incident Involving Black Jogger

Ballotpedia: Jessica Cisneros

Jessica Cisneros’ Facebook

Jessica Cisneros’ Website

The New Republic: Georgia Is the Midterm Ground Zero for America’s Political Future

UNFTR Episode Resources

From Bullmoose to Jackass.

Labor Unions.

New York’s Casual White Supremacy.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Show Notes [Ep 55: New York's Casual White Supremacy.]

Wed, 13 Apr 2022 15:19:45 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, we hear a bit more from John Kane of Let's Talk Native, have a lengthy conversation about how to deal with Trump-supporting parents, and read Bobby McD's new inscription for the Statue of Liberty.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:03:33

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:51:16

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:57:46

Instagram Shout Outs: 01:01:02

Substack Shout Outs: 01:01:52

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:03:39

Lady Liberty's New Inscription: 01:05:35

Outro: 01:07:41

Resources

Steve Keen: Debunking Economics: The Naked Emperor Dethroned?

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

Yanis Varoufakis: Talking to My Daughter About the Economy

Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz: Not a Nation of Immigrants: Settler Colonialism, White Supremacy, and a History of Erasure and Exclusion

A Little Bit Culty Podcast: The Breakup: Samantha Freedom on Leaving The Alt-Right

IndoctriNation Podcast: Qanon Casualties w/ Jitarth Jadeja

UNFTR: How to Talk About the Trump Years

UNFTR: Quickie: Invasion, Immigration & Inflation

Flight of The Conchords: She's So Hot Boom

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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New York’s Casual White Supremacy: Losing the Plot on Hochul & Buffalo Bills.

Sat, 09 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

A run-of-the-mill, one-day news story about a billionaire holding a city hostage over a sports team and a new stadium buried the lede on the dark underbelly of Native American relations with the U.S. government. New York State agreed to finance a significant chunk of the $1.4 billion stadium for the Buffalo Bills, an NFL team owned by a billionaire worth 5.5x that amount. A deal done almost entirely behind closed doors. Beyond the myriad conflicts of interest within the governor’s office is the more insidious story, ignored almost entirely by the media, of where the state “found” the money to pay for it.

Chapters

Prologue: 00:01:36

Chapter One: Billionaire Rules: 00:04:53

Chapter Two: Hidden from View: 00:10:55

Chapter Three: The Tangled Web of F*ckery: 00:16:46

Post Show Musings: 00:34:26

A Manny Interlude: 00:46:03

Post Show Musings Show Notes?: 00:47:21

Unf*cking Down Under Feedback: 00:48:24

Outro: 01:07:55

Support First Nation’s Causes

There are a number of charitable organizations that support First Nation’s causes (see a few below). However, we're firm believers in local support and making connections with First Nation’s peoples. If possible, endeavor to get in touch with the community center at the nearest tribal territory and inquire as to the best way to provide direct support to maximize impact.

Stand With Standing Rock

Let's Talk Native... with John Kane Patreon

First Nations University of Canada

Resources

The New York Times: Buffalo Bills Strike Deal for Taxpayer-Funded $1.4 Billion Stadium

The Guardian: Buffalo Bills will receive $850m from New York taxpayers to build new stadium

U.S. News: Bills' New Stadium Deal Carries $850M Taxpayer Tab, Gov Says

The Atlantic: Sports Stadiums Are a Bad Deal for Cities

Sports Illustrated: Austin Bills? NFL owners are running out of stadium grift ideas

Bloomberg: Terry Pegula - Bloomberg Billionaires Index

Forbes: #32 Buffalo Bills

New York Upstate: Seneca Indian Nation's $100 million-a-year casino payments to state on hold again

Buffalo News: The Editorial Board: Fed up with delays and broken promises, Hochul forces Senecas to pay their debt

Delaware North: Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack

Seneca Gaming Truth: Nation-State Gaming Compact Between The Seneca Nation Of Indians And The State Of New York

CDC Gaming Reports: Churchill Downs announces deal for Peninsula Pacific assets

Market Screener: Delaware North Companies Gaming & Entertainment, Inc. Announces Joint Venture with Churchill Downs Inc.

Pod Love

Let’s Talk Native with John Kane

UNFTR Episode Resources

March 2021 Quickie: Cuomo, Tanden & Manchin.

Culture Cancel.

An interview with Unkechaug Chief Harry Wallace and Native Coffee Trader’s Amy Wallace.

Oh, Canada.

Unf*cking Down Under.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes [Ep 54: Unf*cking Down Under.]

Wed, 06 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, Max abandons 99 and delirium takes hold as she struggles to do show notes by herself.

Dr. James E. Hansen Newsletter

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:01:13

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:10:48

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:10:59

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:13:53

Substack Shout Outs: 00:16:24

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:38:00

Reviews: 00:41:29

Outro: 00:20:41

Resources

UNFTR Quickie: The World in Numbers

TED Radio Hour: James Hansen: What Makes A Scientist Take A Stand?

Why Is This Happening? Podcast: Breaking down the future of energy with Jonah Goldman

Michael Parenti: Blackshirts and Reds: Rational Fascism and the Overthrow of Communism

Leigh Phillips + Michal Rozworski: The People's Republic of Walmart: How the World's Biggest Corporations Are Laying the Foundation for Socialism

Deconstructing American Conservatism Podcast

Shane Warne Documentary

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Unf*cking Down Under: And the Long Arm of the Chicago School.

Sat, 02 Apr 2022 04:01:00 +0000

The time has come to honor our Down Under F*ckers who have been supporting UNFTR since we launched. As we’ve done in prior shows about other countries, we attempt to explain the Australian political system, provide an overview of key issues and draw parallels between our experiences. Basically, a rough translation of Aussie politics for American listeners that only scratches the surface of this incredible nation. There’s an election coming up and several hot button issues facing the Australian people so it’s a good time to level set on what’s up down under. Note to our beloved Down Under F*ckers: This will be hilariously rudimentary to you but hopefully amusing enough to keep your attention. Now, piss off.

Chapters

Aussie Disclaimer: 00:00:05

Intro: 00:01:15

Chapter One: 00:05:48

Chapter Two: 00:10:13

Chapter Three: 00:16:09

Chapter Four: 00:21:20

Chapter Five: 00:35:08

Post Show Musings: 00:46:23

Outro: 00:59:50

Resources

Australian Government Style Manual: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

CIA: The World Factbook

Parliament of Australia: Hon Anthony Albanese MP

Parliament of Australia: Hon Scott Morrison MP

The Parliamentary Education Office: Prime Minister

Australia.com: Guide To Christmas Island

Australia.com: Guide To Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Australia.com: Guide To Norfolk Island

Hydrocarbons Technology: Gorgon LNG Project

The Guardian: Australian leader Tony Abbott ousted by Malcolm Turnbull after party vote

Law Council of Australia: Indigenous Legal Issues

Centre For 21st Century Humanities: Colonial Frontier Massacres, Australia, 1788 to 1930

Common Ground: Massacres

The Guardian: The Killing Times

SBS News: Great Barrier Reef avoids UNESCO 'in danger' listing after Australian lobbying effort

The Guardian: PM personally approved $443m fund for tiny Barrier Reef foundation

The Guardian: ‘A mockery’: Great Barrier Reef Foundation raises just $21m of $357m target

The Sydney Morning Herald: Barnaby Joyce suggests God is the solution to climate change in Christmas video

ABC News: Barnaby Joyce says he sent 'an awful lot' of special drought envoy reports to PM

The Guardian: ‘Orwellian’: Coalition accused of planning to open green bank to fossil fuel investments

Book Love

Dominic Kelly: Political Troglodytes and Economic Lunatics: The Hard Right in Australia

L.F. Crisp: The Parliamentary Government of the Commonwealth of Australia

Pod Love

Weekly Planet Podcast

The Guardian Podcasts

The Australian Podcasts

Progressive Podcast

The JUICE Media Podcast

UNFTR Episode Resources

Capitasociafascilibdemarxism.

Manufacturing Dissent.

Oh, Canada.

Procedural F*ckery.

Playing Chicken with China.

Libertarians Are Exhausting Part 1.

Libertarians Are Exhausting Part 2.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Show Notes [Ep 53: Immigration Nation.]

Wed, 30 Mar 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, we shit on Clinton, discuss the disparity of letting some immigrants into the country and unveil a dark secret from Max's past.

UNFTR: An interview with Unkechaug Chief Harry Wallace and Native Coffee Trader’s Amy Wallace.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Previous Episode Update: 00:02:48

UNFTR Coffee Chat: 00:08:30

Emails: 00:11:51

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:27:50

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:31:13

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:36:16

Substack Shout Outs: 00:36:28

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:38:00

Reviews: 00:41:29

Outro: 00:42:12

Resources

Bobby McD on Instagram and Facebook

Yuval Noah Harari: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Politico: The New Identity Politics of Eric Adams

How Did This Get Made Podcast: Jack Frost

Jonathan M. Katz: Gangsters of Capitalism: Smedley Butler, the Marines, and the Making and Breaking of America's Empire

American Scandal: The Clinton-Lewinsky Affair

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Immigration Nation: A Crisis of Our Own Design.

Sat, 26 Mar 2022 04:29:27 +0000

As Ukrainians flee the war in their home country, some have found their way to the U.S. southern border where they are immediately escorted into the country. Because they're seeking refuge from a dangerous conflict and seeking asylum in the land of the free. And they're getting in. Quickly. Through Mexico. Meanwhile... you can probably guess where this is headed. Anyhoo, today's episode looks at immigration policy in the United States and fingers (ew) the real bad guy in our story that crafted today's anti-immigrant narrative and passed three meaningful pieces of legislation that made it a crime to be a non-native born American.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:13

Chapter One: 00:05:52

Chapter Two: 00:11:11

Chapter Three: 00:16:43

Chapter Four: 00:23:25

Chapter Five: 00:29:20

Post Show Musings: 00:34:18

Outro: 00:46:28

Resources

BBC News: How many Ukrainians have fled their homes and where have they gone?

The Intercept: As Immigration Plummeted, Conservatives Falsely Accused Biden of Fueling a Crisis

OECD Statistics: Net Migration

National Immigration Law Center: Overview of Immigrant Eligibility for Federal Programs

Marketplace: Undocumented immigrants quietly pay billions into Social Security and receive no benefits

Congress.gov: H.R.3355 - Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994

Legal Information Institute: Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act

The Atlantic: Bill Clinton Owes My Father an Apology

Pew Research Center: Most Cuban American voters identify as Republican in 2020

Pew Research Center: The Hispanic Vote in Presidential Elections,
1980-2012

International Policy Digest: U.S. Agriculture is in Crisis

The New York Times: Fleeing War in Ukraine, They’re Met With Employers Offering Paychecks

Schoolhouse Rock: The Great American Melting Pot

Book Love

Howard Zinn: A People's History of the United States

UNFTR Episode Resources

The American Propaganda Machine.

The Washington Consensus.

Libertarians Are Exhausting Part 1.

Libertarians Are Exhausting Part 2.

Fox in the Outhouse: Invasion, Immigration & Inflation.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Show Notes [Quickie 10: The World in Numbers.]

Wed, 23 Mar 2022 04:43:43 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, Max revisits Thomas Piketty's theory of universal inheritance, we continue talks of NATO + Russia, and 99 yells about Phish some more.

Time for Socialism: Dispatches from a World on Fire, 2016-2021

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Previous Episode Thoughts: 00:01:36

Emails: 00:08:03

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:30:59

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:32:45

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:35:59

Coffees and Members: 00:40:15

Housekeeping: 00:45:31

Outro: 00:47:00

Resources

Knudsen's UNFTR Facebook Group

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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The World in Numbers: 99 / 3.5 / 1.5.

Sat, 19 Mar 2022 04:01:00 +0000

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine changed the global political calculus almost overnight. While catastrophic and horrific in nature, this shift has provided unforeseen opportunities that were unthinkable just a few months ago. The question is how best to mobilize in this darkness to affect positive change moving forward. We examine the work of Thomas Piketty and Erica Chenoweth to help wrap our minds around what’s possible, no matter how audacious.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:07

Chapter One: 00:03:13

Chapter Two: 00:13:32

Chapter Three: 00:20:21

Closing Thoughts: 00:28:13

Post-Show Musings: 00:31:30

Outro: 00:46:17

Resources

IRS: The Estate Tax: Ninety Years and Counting

IPCC: Climate Change 2022

Al Jazeera: Could energy independence from Russia spur a shift to renewables?

New York Times: Can Germany Break Up With Russian Gas?

Jacobin: Nationalize All the Oil Companies

Adam Tooze: China under pressure

Book Love

Thomas Piketty: Time for Socialism: Dispatches from a World on Fire, 2016-2021

UNFTR Episode Resources

White on White Crime in Eastern Europe.

Playing Chicken with China.

Building the Climate Industrial Complex.

The Beatification of Ronald Reagan.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Show Notes [Ep 52: White on White Crime in Eastern Europe.]

Tue, 15 Mar 2022 04:01:00 +0000

In today's Show Notes minisode, Max reads a cutting room floor draft, we share some Unf*cker feedback, and discuss Russia and Ukraine a bit further.

Sway: Why Facebook Whistle-Blower Frances Haugen Thinks She’ll Outlast Mark Zuckerberg

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:21

Cutting Room Floor: 00:00:55

Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 00:07:38

Facebook Shout Outs: 00:24:52

Twitter Shout Outs: 00:26:27

Instagram Shout Outs: 00:31:44

Emails: 00:38:48

Reviews: 00:57:00

Housekeeping: 00:57:55

Outro: 00:59:41

Resources

American Scandal: LA Steals Its Water

The Intercept: Toxic Nostalgia, From Putin to Trump to the Trucker Convoys

Unf*cker Recommendations

Macro n Cheese Podcast

The Dig Podcast

Claire Evans: Broad Band

Bobby McD on Instagram and Facebook

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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White on White Crime in Eastern Europe: NATO, Onions & But-What-About.

Sat, 12 Mar 2022 05:01:00 +0000

A psychopath in Russia just committed a war crime by invading Ukraine. Now he’s a mass murderer as well. Today’s episode examines whether the United States has standing in this fight, the role of NATO since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the bullshit narrative surrounding rising oil and gas prices that literally no one is getting right. We also destroy some current popular right wing talking points about Biden, fossil fuel and energy independence. And Max shares one of his favorite stories about onions and explains how it might be the key to saving us all. (Just go with it.)

Chapters

Intro 00:00:51

Chapter One 00:05:42

Chapter Two: 00:15:38

Chapter Three: 00:22:26

Chapter Four: 00:28:53

Chapter Five: 00:38:50

Post-Show Musings: 00:44:16

Resources + Book Love: 00:45:06

Pod Love: 00:47:25

Outro: 00:48:15

Resources

The New Yorker: Getting Real: George F. Kennen’s Cold War

Brookings: The U.S. Decision to Enlarge NATO: How, When, Why, and What Next?

Al Jazeera: Nord Stream 2: Why Russia’s pipeline to Europe divides the West

Al Jazeera: Russia makes US an offer on last major arms control treaty

Chartbook #93: Russia's $720m per day gas windfall - the lopsided economic war

Macrotrends: Crude Oil Prices - 70 Year Historical Chart

The Intercept: Toxic Nostalgia, From Putin to Trump to the Trucker Convoys

Watson Institute: Human Cost Of Post-9/11 Wars

Vietnam Embassy: Cruel fact: How many Vietnamese people died in the Vietnam war?

Council on Foreign Relations: Global Conflict Tracker

Book Love

George F. Kennan: American Diplomacy

Emily Lambert: The Futures: The Rise of the Speculator and the Origins of the World's Biggest Markets

Pod Love

Best of the Left: #1474 Invasion of Ukraine: Some Context

UNFTR Episode Resources

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

BONUS: A Book Love Mashup.

Sat, 05 Mar 2022 05:01:00 +0000

On this bonus UNFTR, 99 revisits Book Love segments past in hopes to inspire your reading lists. We’ll be back with full-fledged Unf*ckings very soon!

Resources

UNFTR Book List on Bookshop.org

Unf*cker Book Recommendations

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

BONUS: A Manny + 99 Takeover.

Sat, 26 Feb 2022 05:01:00 +0000

Today we have a special episode for you—a Manny & 99 takeover. While Max is away the minions will play! We run through some listener feedback and share some behind the scenes details of our recording process. Enjoy!

Unf*cker Resources
Swing Left
Indivisible

Manny + 99's Podcast Recommendations
News Beat
Hip-Hop Can Save America
Louder Than A Riot
Code Switch
Stuff You Should Know
Last Podcast on the Left
American Scandal
How Did This Get Made
Comedy Bang Bang
U Talkin’ U2 2 Me (Plus REM + Talking Heads)
Song Exploder

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Show Notes [Ep 51: Corporate America’s Banner Year.]

Wed, 23 Feb 2022 05:01:00 +0000

The showwwwww noteessss. In this experiment, we break out show notes into their own unf*cking minisode so we can spend more time answering y'all Unf*ckers.

Listen to the main episode accompaniment here.

Resources from Unf*ckers

Bobby McD on Instagram and Facebook

Jacobin: Can We Criticize Foucault?

Josh Mitchell: The Debt Trap: How Student Loans Became a National Catastrophe

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Corporate America’s Banner Year: Please understand that they hate you.

Sat, 19 Feb 2022 05:01:00 +0000

Because inflation is on everyone’s minds and the media can’t seem to get this right, we dive even deeper into the inflation narrative to dispel both propaganda and myth. Surprise, surprise, the real story of inflation is wrapped up in corporate America’s rather impressive year. We’ll talk about how increasing rents, pain at the pump and higher consumer prices went back into the pockets of large corporations and Wall Street and explain why it only happened in America.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:25

Prologue: 00:01:23

Chapter 1: 00:07:21

Chapter 2: 00:15:30

Chapter 3: 00:19:20

Chapter 4: 00:27:37

Closing Thoughts: 00:39:52

Show Notes: 00:41:48

Book Love: 00:52:44

Outro: 00:53:43

UNFTR Beer Partnership

McFleshman's Brewing Co.

Become a UNFTR Insane Level Member

Resources

Reuters: Japan's inflation hovers around 2-year high, BOJ flags price pressure

Pew Research: As national eviction ban expires, a look at who rents and who owns in the U.S.

ProPublica: When Private Equity Becomes Your Landlord

Rent.com: A monthly look at average rent price trends across the United States.

EIA: Short-Term Energy Outlook

Barron's: How Oil Could Hit $150. It’s Not Just About Russia.

Statista: Daily demand for crude oil worldwide from 2006 to 2020, with a forecast until 2026

CGT: Top 100 Consumer Goods Companies of 2021

Tyson: Annual SEC Report ‘21

Nestlé: Nestlé reports nine-month sales for 2021, raises full-year organic sales growth guidance

Procter & Gamble: Annual SEC Report ‘21

Book Love

Binyamin Appelbaum: The Economists' Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society

Thomas Piketty: Capital in the Twenty-First Century

Stephanie Kelton: The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People's Economy

Pod Love

Pitchfork Economics: Debunking deficit myths (with Stephanie Kelton)

UNFTR Episode Resources

Fox in the Outhouse: Invasion, Immigration & Inflation.

Labor Unions.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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"UNLESS." Building Back to What?

Sat, 12 Feb 2022 05:10:00 +0000

We’re hitting the pause button in honor of our 50th full episode. Quite the milestone and we wanted to celebrate together. And in true UNFTR fashion, we celebrate by running through 2021 from a congressional perspective. What did we actually accomplish and why? How? We top it off with some ways for Unf*ckers to get involved and make change in their communities so that come end of ’22 we can (hopefully) tell a different story.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:38

Chapter 1: 00:01:47

Chapter 2: 00:08:46

Chapter 3: 00:15:54

Chapter 4: 00:23:10

Chapter 5: 00:28:16

Show Notes: 00:31:17

Coffee Updates: 00:33:49

Max's Musings: 00:38:23

Emails + Shout Outs: 00:41:33

Outro: 01:09:00

Bonus FIFA Breakdown: 01:12:19

Resources

The New York Times: Frustrated Democrats Call for ‘Reset’ Ahead of Midterm Elections

Congressional Progressive Caucus: Congressional Progressive Caucus Calls for Senate Passage of Build Back Better by State of the Union

The Washington Post: Evaluating the success of the Great Society

Miller Center: Franklin D. Roosevelt: Domestic Affairs

Public Leadership Institute: Model Bills

The Intercept: Anti-Trans Bills Are Moving Through State Legislatures With Remarkable Speed

Tom McGovern on Instagram

Pod Love

Best of the Left: Episode 1468, Winning battles against the forces of neoliberalism around the world

The David McWilliams Podcast: Breaking down the metaverse & why we we need to disconnect

Canadaland: Commons

UNFTR Episode Resources

Libertarians Are Exhausting.

Holiday Quickie.

The Itsfuckedforsure Bill.

U.S. Progressivism from 1912 to 2021.

Californication.

Manufacturing Dissent (Rupert Murdoch).

The Beatification Of Ronald Reagan.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Peak Oil: It's a Crude, Crude World.

Sat, 05 Feb 2022 05:01:00 +0000

Oil is everywhere. It’s all around us. It’s in everything and it makes the world go around. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects that renewable energy will comprise 27% of the world’s energy production by 2050, all things being equal. Pretty great, right? Not really. Based upon population and economic growth trends, the EIA also predicts that the use of liquid fuels will continue to increase over the same period. So as much as we think we might be getting ahead, we’re really not. But there’s another side of oil that most people rarely think about and that’s its value as a currency. Yes, a currency. We tie in good ol’ Milton Friedman again to discuss how trading this ubiquitous fuel went from commodity to casino, making it more difficult to break this habit than one might imagine.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:31

Prologue: 00:04:35

Chapter 1: 00:05:19

Chapter 2: 00:13:53

Oil Rundown: 00:19:54

Skit: 00:24:39

Chapter 3: 00:28:27

Chapter 4: 00:41:23

Chapter 5: 00:50:58

Show Notes: 00:57:22

Book Love: 00:57:44

Pod Love: 00:59:46

Emails + Shout Outs: 01:18:14

Outro: 01:29:32

Resources

World Population Review: Richest African Countries 2022

Trading Economics: Corruption Rank by Country | Africa

Worldometer: Equatorial Guinea Oil

Democracy Now!: African Dictatorships and Double Standards

U.S. Energy Information Administration: International Energy Outlook 2021

Book Love

Peter Maass: Crude World- Required reading for anyone interested in the dark underbelly of the oil and gas trade.

Morgan Downey: Oil 101- A fundamental book to understand the product itself and the markets that move it.

Dan Dicker: Oil’s Endless Bid- Pedestrian but informative account of what it’s like to be a commodities trader and what went wrong with the business.

Pod Love

American Scandal: Enron

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Climate Industrial Complex.

The Global Order of Money.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Fox in the Outhouse: Invasion, Immigration & Inflation.

Sat, 29 Jan 2022 05:01:00 +0000

This week’s alliterative Quickie is brought to you by the letter “i.” In typical Quickie fashion we delve into three distinct but related topics: Invasion, Inflation & Immigration, as seen through the lens of Fox News. We’ll tie in some prior themes and set the table for a couple of future episodes in this barn burner of a Quickie featuring the worst people on television. For those listening and not just reading, after a heartfelt message toward the end of the episode Max has a rather ugly and uncharacteristic meltdown in show notes over Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. 99 and Manny pick up the pieces to bring it home and send Max for a nap. All this and more on another rousing edition of Outagamie’s number one podcast, Unf*cking the Republic.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:47

Segment 1: 00:01:45

Segment 2: 00:07:20

Segment 3: 00:18:12

Segment 4: 00:27:29

Show Notes: 00:31:56

Emails + Shout Outs: 00:32:51

Outro: 01:01:19

Resources

ThoughtCo: History and Principles of the United Nations

The Intercept: As Immigration Plummeted, Conservatives Falsely Accused Biden of Fueling a Crisis

New York Times: U.S. Economy Grew 1.7% in 4th Quarter, Capping a Strong Year

Pew Research Center: Amid the pandemic, a rising share of older U.S. adults are now retired

Trading Economics: United States Labor Force Participation Rate

Matt Stoller: Corporate Profits Drive 60% of Inflation Increases

UNFTR Episode Resources

Libertarians are Exhausting (Part One).

Labor Unions.

Libertarians are Exhausting (Part Two).

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Libertarians Are Exhausting: Inside the 50-year American coup d'état. [Part 2]

Sat, 22 Jan 2022 05:01:00 +0000

In part two of “Libertarians are Exhausting” we’re still talking about freedom and liberty. Economic freedom, personal liberty and the next important concept we need to unpack: The Rule of Law. Plus we'll take a look at the masters of the libertarian universe (aka the brains, money, economists and lawyers) behind the nouveau American style fiscal-anarcho-capitalist-minarchist-neoliberal-objectivist cauldron of bullshit we know as modern day libertarianism.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:07

Prologue: 00:03:02

Part One Recap: 00:04:44

Segment 1: 00:05:58

Segment 2: 00:12:05

Segment 3: 00:15:43

Segment 4: 00:22:01

Segment 5: 00:25:47

Segment 6: 00:29:40

Segment 7: 00:36:20

Show Notes: 00:45:45

Book Love: 00:47:04

Pod Love: 00:47:20

Emails + Shout Outs: 00:48:24

Outro: 01:06:57

Resources

The New Republic: How David Koch’s 1980 Fantasy Became America’s Current Reality

Forbes: This Secretive Billionaire Is One Of America’s Biggest Conservative Donors

SourceWatch: American Legislative Exchange Council

Brookings: ALEC’s Influence over Lawmaking in State Legislatures

Libertarian Party: Platform

Book Love

David Boaz: The Libertarian Mind: A Manifesto for Freedom

Nancy MacLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

H. L. Mencken: Notes on Democracy

Thomas Paine: Rights of Man

Bernard E. Harcourt: The Illusion of Free Markets: Punishment and the Myth of Natural Order

Kurt Andersen: Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America: A Recent History

Pod Love

News Beat: MLK's Last Month: Memphis

Economic Update with Rick Wolff

Best of the Left

The David Pakman Show

UNFTR Episode Resources

The American Propaganda Machine.

Ayn Rand Was a Dick.

Dear Rebekkkah Mercer.

Manufacturing Dissent.

Libertarians are Exhausting (Part One).

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Libertarians Are Exhausting: But they might be onto something(s). [Part 1]

Sat, 15 Jan 2022 05:01:00 +0000

Libertarians can be exhausting. Because libertarianism has so many attractive features and strong statements about “freedom” and “liberty” they have a lot of perceived political high ground when arguing with them. The problem with libertarianism - as it is with Marxism, capitalism and so many other philosophies - is that it’s entirely theoretical. Trying to construct an actual framework around the concepts they hold dear is like arguing over how Santa Claus fits down the chimney. That said, there’s a lot to like about some of the principles of libertarianism and its acolytes are growing in numbers every day. So let’s have at it. In part one of this two-part series we’ll unpack the origins of the philosophy, its dark beginnings and define several strains of the discipline.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:38

Prologue: 00:02:45

Segment 1: 00:04:41

Segment 2: 00:13:37

Segment 3: 00:23:53

Segment 4: 00:30:27

Show Notes: 00:40:36

Book Love: 00:41:17

Pod Love: 00:41:34

Emails + Shoutouts: 00:45:13

Outro: 01:06:46

Resources

Libertarian Party: Platform

National Archives: Brown v. Board of Education

ThoughtCo: The Declaration of Independence

ThoughtCo: America's Most Influential Founding Fathers

ThoughtCo: Laissez-faire Versus Government Intervention

ThoughtCo: What Is Free Trade?

ThoughtCo: Economics

ThoughtCo: Atlas Shrugged Quotes

ThoughtCo: History and Principles of the United Nations

Too Good To Go

Book Love

David Boaz: The Libertarian Mind: A Manifesto for Freedom

Nancy MacLean: Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America

Jane Mayer: Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

H. L. Mencken: Notes on Democracy

Thomas Paine: Rights of Man

Pod Love

Corporate (Ir)Responsibility (Part I): Financial Fuckery and Tax Evasion.

Pitchfork Economics: How the Radical Right Weaponized Ideology (with Nancy MacLean)

UNFTR Episode Resources

The Prosperity Doctrine.

Ayn Rand Was a Dick.

Corporate (Ir)Responsibility (Part II): Deregulation and Catastrophe.

Building the Climate Industrial Complex.

Procedural F*ckery.

U.S. Progressivism from 1912 to 2021.

Capitasociafascilibdemarxism.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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A (Mostly) Vegan World: Plantf*ckers Can Save Us All.

Sat, 08 Jan 2022 05:01:00 +0000

As many of you know, we’ve had this on the pod-docket for months. It’s finally time to unf*ck our food system and talk about veganism. We decided not to pursue this topic from a moral or ethical perspective, but that doesn’t mean this isn’t a story about justice. 40% of the world’s working population is in some way employed in the food and agriculture sector. A third of all food is wasted. 50% of the earth’s land has been cleared for livestock and farming. Overfishing and chemical runoff is destroying marine life. In our pursuit to feed the world, we’re killing the planet and ourselves in the process. Today’s episode examines the cycle of madness that is the industrial agriculture and food supply chain. So while there are no tips on how to “go vegan,” the conclusion (spoiler) is that we all better figure out how.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:39

Prologue: 00:03:08

Segment 1: 00:05:22

Segment 2: 00:13:26

Segment 3: 00:18:29

Segment 4: 00:31:48

Segment 5: 00:37:06

Segment 6: 00:45:30

Show Notes: 00:52:24

Resources: 00:52:45

Book Love: 00:53:17

Pod Love: 00:53:49

Emails + Shoutouts: 01:03:20

Outro: 01:13:30

Resources

On the Principle of Population by Thomas Malthus

UN: Food Systems Summit

UN: Food Systems Statement of Action

EPA: Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data

Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences: Plant-Based Diet Research

Rodale Institute: Farming Systems Trial

FAIRR: Protein Producer Index

The EAT: Lancet Commission on Food, Planet, Health

Book Love

Nicoletta Batini: The Economics of Sustainable Food: Smart Policies for Health and the Planet

Mark Bittman: Animal, Vegetable, Junk: A History of Food, from Sustainable to Suicidal

Pod Love

Eat the Rich: Episodes 104 and 105 on the United Fruit Company

Outrage & Optimism: Setting the Table for a Food Revolution

Our Hen House

Total Liberation Podcast

Doc Love

Vegan Influencers

@Vegan_Abolitionniste

@JewishVeg

@BlackForager

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Holiday Quickie: How the Manch stole Christmas.

Sat, 25 Dec 2021 03:00:00 +0000

Our little Unf*cking team wishes the Unf*cking community a safe and healthy holiday season. We'll be back on January 8th with a new drop but here's a Holiday Quickie to tide you over. In this Quickie we examine three positive things that have occurred since Biden took office. (We had to look pretty hard for these, but wanted to end on a positive note.) Then we offer thanks and praise to Joe Manchin for taking a giant shit on the poor. What a guy. Happy, Merry and all that crap. See you in the New Year!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:07

Skit: 00:01:27

Segment 1: 00:04:36

Segment 2: 00:10:59

Segment 3: 00:13:16

Segment 4: 00:16:27

Show Notes: 00:26:28

Emails + Shoutouts: 00:32:21

Outro: 1:02:20

Resources

The Intercept: The Mysterious Case Of Joe Biden And The Future Of Drone Wars

FiveThirtyEight: How Biden Is Reshaping The Courts

The New York Times: Extreme Poverty Has Been Sharply Cut. What Has Changed?

Common Dreams: Displaying 'Inhuman Disdain' for Working Families, Manchin Said Child Tax Credit Would Be Used for Drugs

Time: The House Just Passed Biden’s Build Back Better Bill. Here’s What’s In It

Brookings: What does the Build Back Better Framework mean for BIPOC communities?

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Labor Unions: From Pullman to Kellogg’s. Labor’s long, hard road.

Sat, 18 Dec 2021 05:20:00 +0000

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:42

Segment 1: 00:02:11

Segment 2: 00:04:25

Segment 3: 00:12:18

Segment 4: 00:17:46

Segment 5: 00:21:29

Segment 6: 00:28:00

Segment 7: 00:30:20

Segment 8: 00:41:22

Show Notes: 00:52:15

Book Love: 00:57:17

Pod Love: 00:58:02

Emails + Shoutouts: 00:58:45

Outro: 01:10:42

Resources

American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)

The New York Times: Starbucks workers at a Buffalo store unionize in a big symbolic win for labor

Kellogg Company: Investor Relations

The Nation: Striking Kellogg’s Workers Need the PRO Act

U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics: Work Stoppages

OECD: Trade Union Dataset

U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics: Union Members — 2020

Economic History Association: Labor Unions in the United States

History of Recessions in U.S.

Unionization rates by industry in the United States, 1880-2000

More Perfect Union: Kellogg's Factory Working Conditions

Media Matters: Joe Rogan Wrapped: A year of COVID-19 misinformation, right-wing myths, and anti-trans rhetoric

Book Love

Philip Dray: There Is Power in a Union: The Epic Story of Labor in America

Nelson Lichtenstein: State of the Union: A Century of American Labor

Kurt Andersen: Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America

Joseph Stiglitz: People, Power and Profits

Robert Shiller: Narrative Economics

Pod Love

Economic Update with Professor Richard Wolff: S11 E47

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Playing Chicken with China: How Propaganda Rationalizes Conflict.

Sat, 11 Dec 2021 05:01:00 +0000

There were 15 references to China in the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act. The recent bill passed by the House, which is more than what President Biden requested (because that makes fucking sense) contains 89 references to China. It’s official. We have our new existential bogeyman threat. Battle stations, everyone. We’re going to war with China. Someday. Or are we? Why would we? What the actual fuck is our problem? Today’s episode pulls back the cover on our latest propaganda campaign designed to scare the shit out of us and normalize aggression toward our largest trading partner on the planet.

Chapters

00:00:40 Intro

00:01:55 Chapter 1

00:05:15 Chapter 2

00:13:47 Chapter 3

00:19:25 Chapter 4

00:28:37 Chapter 5

00:37:31 Show Notes

00:39:41 Emails + Shoutouts

00:49:45 Outro

Resources

Richard Nixon Presidential Library: Nixon in China: Film

Militarist Monitor: Gatestone Institute

AlJazeera: Biden administration approves $650m weapon sale to Saudi Arabia

Brookings: Rising to the Challenge: Navigating Competition, Avoiding Crisis, and Advancing US Interests in Relations With China

Democracy Now!: Historian Alfred McCoy Predicts the U.S. Empire is Collapsing as China’s Power Grows

60 Minutes Australia: Prepare for Armageddon: China's warning to the world

Democracy At Work: The Competition Between China and the U.S. - Global Capitalism with Richard Wolff

Democracy Now!: Noam Chomsky: Trump's attacks on China are a continuation of "Yellow Peril" fear-mongering

Unf*cker Recommendations

Vivek Ramaswamy: Woke, Inc.: Inside Corporate America's Social Justice Scam

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Happy Noam Chomsky Day: Pundits, Public Intellectuals & Charlatans.

Sat, 04 Dec 2021 05:01:00 +0000

Today we celebrate the life of Noam Chomsky who turns 93 this week and discuss the nature of punditry, the role of true intellectuals in today’s society and the cult of pseudo intellectual charlatans.

[2026 Edit] To learn how we feel today, please read our post-Epstein take on Chomsky.

Chapters

00:01:32 Intro

00:04:52 Segment 1

00:17:22 Segment 2

00:27:02 Segment 3

00:33:28 Show Notes

00:34:48 Book Love

00:35:34 Emails + Shoutouts

00:53:44 Outro

GoFundMe

Keep Kanatsiohareke Warm this Winter

Resources

New York Times: QAnon Now as Popular in U.S. as Some Major Religions, Poll Suggests

The Atlantic: Noam Chomsky on Where Artificial Intelligence Went Wrong

The New Yorker: The Devil’s Accountant (Noam Chomsky’s criticism of America’s role in the world has increased his isolation—and his audience.)

Current Affairs: The Intellectual We Deserve

Book Love

Chomsky Books

Syntactic Structures

Turning the Tide: U.S. Intervention in Central America and the Struggle for Peace

The Chomsky Reader

Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media

Rethinking Camelot: JFK, the Vietnam War, and U.S. Political Culture

Media Control: The Spectacular Achievements of Propaganda

Profit over People: Neoliberalism and Global Order

The Umbrella of U.S. Power: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Contradictions of U.S. Policy

Gaza in Crisis: Reflections on Israel’s War Against the Palestinians

Requiem for the American Dream: The Ten Principles of Concentration of Wealth and Power

Reporter, by Seymour Hersh

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Pirates of the Caribbean: Debt, Diplomacy and Destruction.

Fri, 26 Nov 2021 21:45:00 +0000

It’s chilly here in New York so we’ve got the Caribbean on the brain. Actually, we’re just building on our money and power episodes and tying in lessons from our shows on Milton Friedman, Cuba and climate change. Because we can’t just sit on a beach sipping a frozen drink with an umbrella. But that’s why you love us. The United States didn’t invent colonialism in the Caribbean, we just perfected it. From wild tales of vigilante slave owning gold diggers and gunboat diplomacy to economic gangsterism and coerced trade agreements, the Caribbean has been the proving ground for neoliberalism.

Chapters

00:00:11 Intro

00:03:49 Segment 1

00:13:06 Segment 2

00:19:18 Segment 3

00:23:18 Segment 4

00:37:03 Show Notes

00:39:57 Book Love

00:40:59 Emails + Shoutouts

00:57:45 Outro

GoFundMe

Keep Kanatsiohareke Warm this Winter

Resources

New Yorker: The Long Legacy of Occupation in Haiti

Origins: A Pact with the Devil? The United States and the Fate of Modern Haiti

The Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico

US News Beat: The Truth About Puerto Rico

Library of Congress: Teller and Platt Amendments - The World of 1898: The Spanish-American War (Hispanic Division)

Inter-American Development Bank: Climate Change in the Caribbean Small Island States

Book Love

Alan McPherson: A Short History of U.S. Interventions in Latin America and the Caribbean

Raphael Dalleo: American Imperialism’s Undead: The Occupation of Haiti and the Rise of Caribbean Anticolonialism

Samantha S. S. Chaitram: American Foreign Policy in the English-speaking Caribbean

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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The Itsfuckedforsure Bill: And the Ghosts of Spending Bills Past.

Sat, 20 Nov 2021 05:01:00 +0000

President Biden signed H.R. 3684 into law with leaders in Washington breaking their arms to pat themselves on the back. Never mind that the infrastructure bill is either 20% or 40% of what the American Society of Civil Engineers believes is necessary (depending upon your interpretation of the allocated funds), or that it doesn’t begin to address climate change, or that it’s stuffed with old school pork and contains none of the human elements promised to us. It’s a bill that got signed in Washington and that’s apparently all that matters. Find out why it’s great for corporations, guarantees the Republicans take back the White House in ‘24 and why we’re mad at Elon Musk and his hair plugs.

Chapters

00:02:22 Intro

00:05:18 Segment 1

00:21:52 Segment 2

00:37:33 Show Notes

00:38:29 Book Love

00:39:06 Emails + Shoutouts

00:50:58 Outro

Resources

U.S. Department Of Transportation: Public Roads- Summer 1996

Investopedia: Understanding the Infrastructure Bills

ASCE Infrastructure Report Card: Making the Grade

ASCE Infrastructure Report Card: A Comprehensive Assessment Of America’s Infrastructure

New York Times: Biden signs infrastructure bill, promoting benefits for Americans.

New York Times: What’s in the $1 Trillion Infrastructure Bill

U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works: H. R. 3684

Brookings: Eight Years Later- What the Recovery Act Taught Us about Investing in Transportation

Britannica: Tennessee Valley Authority

U.S. Department Of Transportation Federal Highway Administration: Interstate Highway System - The Myths

Book Love

Michael Grunwald: The New New Deal: The Hidden Story of Change in the Obama Era

Stephanie Kelton: The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People's Economy

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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The Global Order of Power: Money, Position & Might.

Sat, 13 Nov 2021 05:01:00 +0000

Last week we reviewed the global order of money. Today we examine money’s sister, power. It’s an American-centric journey spanning 75 years, from the Cold War through the War on Terror. We start with a deep dive into the five years following the Second World War and highlight the men who crafted the policies that would determine the fate of the world. We dissect how these policies changed over the years to suit a narrative that ensured the continued growth of the military industrial complex and show how this outdated and ossified thinking might ultimately bring U.S. domination to an end.

Chapters

00:00:40 Intro

00:04:21 Segment 1

00:15:53 Skit

00:18:02 Segment 2

00:48:23 Show Notes

00:48:58 Book Love

00:50:28 Emails + Shoutouts

01:08:00 Outro

Resources

The New Yorker: The Florentine

SourceWatch: Pax Americana

Brookings: Decision to Intervene: How the War in Bosnia Ended

Book Love

Stephen Kinzer: The Brothers: John Foster Dulles, Allen Dulles, and Their Secret World War

Niccolò Machiavelli: The Prince

Carl Von Clausewitz: On War

Nicholas Thompson: The Hawk and the Dove: Paul Nitze, George Kennan, and the History of the Cold War

Howard Zinn: Howard Zinn on War

Curt Cardwell: Nsc 68 and the Political Economy of the Early Cold War

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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The Global Order of Money: How exactly does it make the world go ‘round?

Sat, 06 Nov 2021 04:01:00 +0000

We’ve hit on some big economic themes from capitalism and socialism to deregulation, privatization and Modern Monetary Theory. And we’re typically focused on results and outcomes of policies related to these theories. Today we’re taking a step back to examine the nature of capital and examining the nature of currency, trade and debt. Money is great, but who prints it? Who decides how much to print and what it’s worth? Who creates the rules of engagement for international trade? Big picture stuff only today, Unf*ckers but we do raise some even bigger questions at the end of the show. With that, let’s unf*ck The Global Order of Money.

Chapters

00:00:18 Intro

00:05:51 Segment 1

00:13:51 Skit

00:17:53 Segment 2

00:53:33 Show Notes

00:55:18 Book Love

00:56:45 Emails + Shoutouts

01:11:21 Outro

Resources

International Monetary Fund: Where the IMF Gets Its Money

The Guardian: Working at the World Bank, I can see how it is failing humanity on the climate crisis

Reuters: U.S. committed to WTO and wants it to succeed, trade rep Tai says

Book Love

The War That Ended Peace: The Road to 1914, by Margaret MacMillan

The World for Sale: Money, Power, and the Traders Who Barter the Earth's Resources, by Javier Blas and Jack Farchy

Zombie Capitalism: Global Crisis and the Relevance of Marx, by Chris Harman

Writings of Eugene V Debs: A Collection of Essays by America's Most Famous Socialist by

The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity by David Graeber and David Wengrow

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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“Independent” Men with Massive Platforms: Jon Stewart, Dave Chappelle & Joe Rogan.

Sat, 30 Oct 2021 04:47:00 +0000

In this week’s installment of how to lose friends and disappoint people, we’re talking about the independent platform media culture, mostly of the male persuasion. So, yes. Much of this will drip with irony as I, a white male with a small platform, attempt to mansplain how to think about other men with platforms. Our three main subjects today have been in the news for various reasons. Dave Chappelle, Jon Stewart and Joe Rogan. These three have a combined audience reach that rivals any major network, which should challenge our assumptions of what defines the “mainstream media” these days. In this Quickie we dissect the changing media landscape, the nature of punditry and who has the power and responsibility in the relationship between platform and audience.

Resources

Deadline: ‘World News Tonight With David Muir’ Tops Season In Total Viewers And Key Demos; All Network Evening Newscasts See Ratings Drop

Entertainment Weekly: The Problem With Jon Stewart breaks Apple TV+ records — get a peek at episode 2

USA Today: Making the grade?: In these school districts, students are less likely to succeed

World Population Review: Murder Rate By State 2021

Moyers: What Does Paul Ryan Really Mean by the Phrase “Inner City”? Google Ngram Offers a Clue

News Beat: A Guide To Mass Incarceration In America

Pod Love

News Beat: Slavery & Genocide: How Indigenous People Remember Christopher Columbus ft. John Kane

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Subscribe to Unf*cking The Republic on Substack at unftr.substack.com to get the essays these episode are framed around sent to your inbox every week.

Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

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Podcast art description: Image of the US Constitution ripped in the middle revealing white text on a blue background that says, ‘Unf*cking the Republic.’

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Capitasociafascilibdemarxism: Exploring ISMs in the Modern Age.

Sat, 23 Oct 2021 04:01:00 +0000

Resources

Truthdig: Sheldon Wolin and Inverted Totalitarianism

Book Love

Joseph A. Schumpeter: Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels: The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx: The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte

Karl Marx: Das Kapital

Adam Smith: The Wealth of Nations

Pod Love