Best Of The Left - The Best Of Progressive And Liberal Talk

Air Date 4/03/2021 Today we take a look at the need for reform to our gun laws through the lens of the recent mass shootings. Support for various reform measures reaches as high as 90% approval in the US, making it one of the most stark examples of our broken, unresponsive, undemocratic government. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! CHECK OUT OUR BOOKSHOP! Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: How The Covid Pandemic Changed Mass Shootings And Gun Violence In America - NBC News NOW - Air Date 3-26-21 NBC News' Jacob Ward takes a look at the impact the coronavirus pandemic had on mass shootings and gun violence to see how those trends might change now that states begin to lift Covid-19 restrictions. Ch. 2: Now's Not The Time To

Air Date 3/31/2021 Today we take a look at the history of anti-Asian hate in America dating back to the very first racially discriminatory immigration law, the ramifications of our imperial exploits in the Philippines, the pattern of lynchings, the myth of the "model minority" and the role of White Supremacy to keep everyone in their roles and White people ignorant of it all. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript   MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! CHECK OUT OUR BOOKSHOP! Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft   SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: The Missing History of Asian America Part 1 - The United States of Anxiety - Air Date 3-22-21 Helen Zia, author of Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People and other books about the Asian American community. She tells the story of that e

Air Date 3/28/2021 Today we take a look at the progress being made on the effort to reform and defund the police in America as well as the reignited campaign to make society safe for women in the wake of the Sarah Everard murder in the UK. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! CHECK OUT OUR BOOKSHOP! Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Austin’s Plan To Defund The Police - In The Loop - Air Date 2-22-21 Another Grim Milestone & Austin’s Plan To Defund The Police Ch. 2: House Democrats pass sweeping elections bill and major legislation on overhauling police - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 3-4-21 House Democrats passed a landmark bill Wednesday that would expand voting rights and another key piece of legislation on police reform th

Air Date: 3-26-21 Sign up for a membership to hear the full show! Today, I am joined by Amanda, Erin and Deon to discuss: - Traumatizing Nick from CA's child - The unfounded universal expertise of engineers - The toxicity and profitability of nostalgia - How the threat of cannibalism disproves slippery slope arguments - Our national return to the normalcy of mass casualty events - Why lefties are getting guns too - The psychology of feeling like our country generally opposes gun reform - Our violent culture - The culture wars - Surviving the future Leave a message at 202-999-3991 Produced by: Jay! Tomlinson Thanks for listening! Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Check out the BotL iOS/Android App in the App Stores! Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Review the show on iTunes!

Air Date 3/23/2021 Today we take a look at the American Rescue Plan and discuss what it does, where it falls short and whether it could signal the end of an era.  Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! CHECK OUT OUR BOOKSHOP! EPISODE SPONSORS: Unf*cking the Republic Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Biden's 'American Rescue Plan' May Ultimately Be Seen as the End of the Reagan Era Part 1 - The Bradcast - Air Date 3-11-21 President Biden today signed his American Rescue Plan, the $1.9 trillion COVID rescue and relief package that history may someday regard as the long-overdue end of the four-decade old Reagan Era. Zero Republicans in the House or Senate voted for it. Ch. 2: In Rejection of Austerity, Democrats Push Forward Lan

Air Date 3/19/2021 Today we take a look at the decades-old problems with our immigration system, what changes are being made under the new administration, and some of the underlying causes for the massive disfunction we have in addressing the issue. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! CHECK OUT OUR BOOKSHOP! EPISODE SPONSORS: The New Yorker Magazine Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Biden Eyes Sweeping Immigration Reform Legislation - The Mehdi Hasan Show - Air Date 2-18-21 Deputy White House Communications Director Pili Tobar joins Mehdi Hasan to discuss the Biden administration's immigration reform agenda, and how the president plans to get the votes necessary to pass the most comprehensive immigration reform bill in yea

TAKE ACTION: Join Detention Watch Network's #FirstTen to #CommunitiesNotCages Week of Action - March 22nd-26th Follow @DetentionWatch Support anti-detention state legislation in Maryland, New Mexico, & Washington  EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE: ‘Like an Experimental Concentration Camp’: Whistleblower Complaint Alleges Mass Hysterectomies at ICE Detention Center (Law & Crime) “A SILENT PANDEMIC”: Nurse at ICE Facility Blows the Whistle on Coronavirus Dangers (The Intercept) COVID-19 Outbreak Reported at Otero County Prison Facility (US News & World Report) New Report Documents Systemic Abuse at a New Mexico Immigrant Detention Center (Innovation Law Lab) Thousands of immigrants suffer in solitary confinement in U.S. detention centers (NBC News) Op-Ed: Why abuse and neglect of immigrants proliferate in ICE detention (LA Times) A Cage is Still a Cage: President Biden Must End U.S. Detention of Children and Families (TIME) Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 

Air Date 7/30/2019 Today we take a look at the ongoing debate about socialism between socialists and non-socialists alike, including discussion of tactical strategies on where to set our goals and how to get from here to there Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  MEMBERSHIP (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: John Nichols on Bernie and Socialism - Start Making Sense - Air Date 6-19-19 Bernie Sanders gave an important speech on socialism last week, and our John Nichols spoke with him about it -- beforehand. Ch. 2: Astra Taylor on Socialism, Democracy and Liberalism - Jacobin Radio The Dig with Daniel Denvir - Air Date 7-5-19 Socialism has grown a lot because of demonization. The Left has a war to lose - left policies are the direction of progress and the world is leaning that way - but without proper education and fighting it will take a lot longer. Ch. 3: Democratic Socialists and President Bernie with Meagan Day - This Is Hell with Chu

Air Date 3/12/2021 Today we take a look at the multiple tactics being implemented in an attempt to undermine the entire concept of democracy because adhering to the will of the majority and allowing for unfettered protests is currently working to the distinct disadvantage of the Republican Party. Most people see the right to vote and to protest as foundational to a functioning democracy, others see them as impediments to their divine right to rule. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript   MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! CHECK OUT OUR BOOKSHOP!   EPISODE SPONSORS: UnF*cking the Republic Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft   SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Guest Sarah Repucci of Freedom House on 'democracy under siege' Part 1 - The Bradcast w Brad Friedman - Air Date 3-8-21 Sarah Repucci expl

Air Date 3/9/2021 Today we take a look at the current goings on around the world regarding our foreign policy under the new but not-so-new-feeling leadership of Joe Biden. We check in on Iran, Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and a couple of assorted arms sales to authoritarian leaders who support our foreign policy.  Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! EPISODE SPONSORS: BOMBAS.COM/BEST Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Biden Administration Should Strike a Deal with Iran - World Class - Air Date 2-18-21 Abbas Milani — an expert on U.S.-Iran relations — discusses the Iranian economy, the future of Iran’s leadership, and what a potential nuclear deal could mean for the U.S. Ch. 2: Biden "Illegally" Bombs Iranian-Backe

Air Date 3/6/2021 Today we take a look at the origins of race and the building of a caste system in the US based largely on the lessons from Isabel Wilkerson, author of "Caste: The Origins of our Discontent" Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! EPISODE SPONSORS:  "UNF*CKING THE REPUBLIC" BOOKSHOP: BESTOFTHELEFT.COM/CASTE  BLINKIST: BESTOFTHELEFT.COM/BLINKIST Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: John Biewen: The lie that invented racism - TED - Air Date 11-1-20 To understand and eradicate racist thinking, start at the beginning. That's what journalist and documentarian John Biewen did, leading to a trove of surprising and thought-provoking information on the "origins" of race. Ch. 2: Made in America (Seeing White, Part 3) - Sce

Air Date 6/21/2019 Today we take a look at the ways that Native Peoples are represented in white society and pop culture, how some are working to take back their own narratives and some insight into the profound effects, both positive and negative, of how peoples are represented. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Opinion polls about offense and the Redskins football team - CounterSpin (@FAIRmediawatch) - Air Date 5-27-16 The Washington Post conducts a flawed survey resulting in a misleading conclusion that most native peoples don't consider Redskins to be an offensive term Ch. 2: The toxic mix of racist representation and misogynistic disregard for women - Let's Talk Native... with John Kane - Air Date 2-14-19 Racist representation of native peoples in sports and culture supports the anti-native sentiment that drives the MMIWG epidemic Ch. 3: A Native perspective for museums - Native America Calling - Air Date 4-9-19 Native peoples have h

Air Date 2/27/2021 Today we take a look at the climate-fueled disaster in Texas from almost every angle; from the strictly scientific to the purely political and all of the disaster capitalism in between. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! EPISODE SPONSOR: UnF*cking The Republic Podcast Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Why on Earth are Winters Getting Worse if the Planet is Getting Warmer - Weathered - Air Date 2-1-21 Weathered is a show hosted by meteorologist Maiya May and produced by Balance Media that helps explain the most common natural disasters, what causes them, how they’re changing, and what we can do to prepare. Ch. 2: Power Outages Becomes Propaganda Nexus - The David Pakman Show - Air Date 2-17-21 Many Repub

Air Date 6/28/2019 Today we take a look at the ways that extreme inequality and many of the worst instincts and repercussions of capitalism are being upheld and perpetuated by our culture of philanthropy. It turns out that what we see as the rich giving back is really more of a purchase on their part, a purchase of our acceptance of inequality and the right of the wealthy to rule. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content: Support our show! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Gilded Rage - Future Perfect - Air Date 5-21-19 To put our new age of extreme inequality in perspective, we look back at Andrew Carnegie, who gave America a huge number of libraries so they’d forgive him for his brutal steel mills. We ask: Is the same thing happening in 2019? Ch. 2: Anand Giridharadas: Winners take all Part 1 - Jacobin Radio - Air Date 9-27-18 Anand Giridharadas, author of Winners Take All, on the win-win business- and plutocrat-friendly philanthropy of t

Air Date 2/20/2021 Today we take a look at the fight to create and maintain workable and humane economic and social floors, beneath which people are not allowed to fall. The fetishization of market forces embraced by decades of neoliberals and weaponized by authoritarians have left millions desperate for basic standards. To draw the connection, we look at the protests by Indian farmers against proposed deregulation and the fight for $15 in the US. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! EPISODE SPONSORS: NEWYORKER.COM/BEST Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Your four talking points for $15-an-Hour minimum wage - Working Life Podcast - Air Date 2-17-21 Right before our eyes, in these very days and at this time of crisis, you ca

Air Date 2/16/2021 Today we take a look at the competing histories fighting for dominance in the minds of Americans; the mythologized and romanticized history as represented by the "patriotic" framing of history from the 1776 Commission report and the much more fact-based approach that doesn't skirt the issue of race from the 1619 Project. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: The 400 Year Legacy with Nikole Hannah-Jones and Ibram X. Kendi - Why Is This Happening with Chris Hayes - Air Date 12-6-19 Nikole Hannah-Jones, the architect behind "The 1619 Project," and Ibram X. Kendi, author of “How To Be an Antiracist,” joined Chris Hayes to examine the 400 year legacy of slavery in America. Ch.

Air Date 2/13/2021 Today we take a look at the fallout from the January 6th insurrection, the case for impeachment and/or punishment for every single person involved and discussions for why this process is so important to the stability of the country. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! EPISODE SPONSOR: Unf*cking the Republic Podcast Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: AOC shares harrowing personal story from January 6th attack - The BradCast - Air Date 2-2-21 AOC relates her experience in the capitol and explains why the enablers of the insurrection total lack of remorse is a problem. Ch. 2: We Can't Just "Move On": AOC & Rashida Tlaib Demand Accountability for Deadly Capitol Attack - Democracy Now! - Air Date 2-5-21 We

Air Date 2/10/2021 Today we take a look at the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in the US and around the world. Between White and Black in the US, Israeli and Palestinian in Israel and the Global North and Global South broadly, the legacies of colonialism and racism predictably play themselves out. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! EPISODE SPONSORS: BOMBAS.COM/BEST | C-Span Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Elisabeth Rosenthal on Troubled Vaccine Rollout - CounterSpin - Air Date 1-15-21 Many could and did predict that the distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine would be marred by the Trump administration being the Trump administration, and the hollowing out of public health infrastructure. Ch. 2: The Perils of Pandemic Doomsayi

Air Date 2/5/2021 Today we take a look at the role that social media plays in the radicalization of discontented communities and engage in the debate over content moderation and de-platforming of individuals. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript MEMBERSHIP, Gift Memberships and Donations! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) MERCHANDISE! REFER-O-MATIC! Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! Want to advertise/sponsor the show? Details -> advertisecast.com/BestoftheLeft SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Why everyone hates Big Tech, with The Verge's Nilay Patel - The Weeds - Air Date 7-19-19 Verge editor-in-chief and Vergecast host Nilay Patel joins Matt in this special crossover episode to explain what Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which allows platforms to circumnavigate liability for user content, really means. Ch. 2: Let’s Break Up Facebook, Google, Amazon - Newsbroke - Air Date 1-30-21 Trump has been removed from the nation’s c

Air Date 11/12/2019 Today we take a look at some of the ways that conservative policies, willed into existence almost exclusively by white people, measurably hurt people and shorten life expectancies, including those who most fervently support the self-destructive policies. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  MEMBERSHIP! (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: How Racial Resentment Is Killing White Working Class Americans | Opinions | NowThis - Air Date 5-4-19 ‘People are voting for these policies that are shortening their own life spans.’ — Author of 'Dying of Whiteness' Jonathan Metzl argues that the politics of racial resentment is killing Americans in the heartland. Ch. 2: Slavery and the Lack of Universal Healthcare - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 8-20-19 Jeneen Interlandi, New York Times editorial board member and staff writer for the New York Times Magazine, talks about the intersection of race and lack of universal healthcare in