Last Born In The Wilderness

[Intro: 7:44] In this episode, I speak with animist counselor and artist Dare Sohei.  In the very beginning of this discussion, I ask Dare what the animism in animist counseling is. As they state on their website and elaborate on further in this interview: "Animism, briefly, is the felt sense that all matter, all bodies are inhabited with spirit, including non-corporeal bodies such as ancestors, beliefs and ideas, that exert influence on our bodies, actions and cultures. All of our ancient ancestors were animists, even though that term is more modern." From there, Dare tells me how recognizing of our inherent relationships — whether they are secure or insecure attachments to our bodies, the land, ancestors, more-than-human life, and cultural somas (such as "white supremacy," and this thing we call "The United States of America") — can allow us to address the fundamental disconnection that is producing the crises we find ourselves in presently. This discussion gets a bit emotional for me towards the latter

[Intro: 8:46] In this episode, I speak with Dr. Ira Leifer, founder and CEO of Bubbleology Research International Inc, and researcher who specializes in bubble-related oceanographic processes, satellite remote sensing, and air pollution. Dr. Leifer explains how methane release, particularly from fossil fuel extraction and other industrial practices, has been a major contributor to rapid global temperature rise over the past decade and a half. He asserts that focusing so heavily on reducing CO2 emissions, while certainly the most consistent driver of anthropogenic climate change in the long term, has been something of a strategic mistake by climate activists and policymakers in nations across the planet. Not because it's not worth addressing, but because it ignores the most dramatic contributor to rapid climate disruption in the near term, methane. Also, of note and increasing relevance, is the increase of methane release in the Arctic region and its inevitable impact on the climate system. As Dahr Jamail

[Intro: 12:07] In this episode, I speak with prolific writer and historian Gary Lachman, author of numerous books on the evolution of consciousness, popular culture, and the history of the occult. Most recently, his works include ‘The Return of Holy Russia: Apocalyptic History, Mystical Awakening, and the Struggle for the Soul of the World’ and ‘Dark Star Rising: Magick and Power in the Age of Trump,’ both of which are the subject of this interview. In ‘Dark Star Rising,’ Gary Lachman delves into the occultic and esoteric influences that inform contemporary politics and power in the post-modern age, with a particular focus on the rise of Donald Trump in the United States and Vladimir Putin in post-Soviet Russia, as well as those who stand in the shadows of these figures, exerting their influence through subtle and not-so-subtle means. When the German philosopher Frederick Nietzsche proclaimed, in the 19th century, that “God is dead,” he was anticipating the approach of an “age of nihilism” that would define

[Intro: 7:20] In this episode, I speak with political activists and commentators Shemon and Arturo, authors of several articles published at Ill Will Editions, including ‘Theses on the George Floyd Rebellion,’ ‘The Rise of Black Counter-Insurgency,’ and ‘The Return of John Brown: White Race-Traitors in the 2020 Uprising.’ Since late May of this year, cities across the United States have been rocked by numerous riots and demonstrations in response to the highly publicized police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. What makes this national movement unique, particularly in comparison to the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, is not only the scope of these uprisings, but also the mass participation of the white proletariat. While still remaining a BIPOC-led movement, countless white people have engaged in militant anti-racism direct action in the streets, openly breaking with the social and institutional construct of whiteness that “continues to be the glue that holds bourgeois society together in the U.S.”

[Intro: 8:02] In this episode, I speak with writer, arborist, and professional horticulturist Max Paschall. We discuss his essay ‘The Lost Forest Gardens of Europe,’ published at the Shelterwood Forest Farm website. In addressing the ever-increasing, ongoing impacts anthropogenic climate change is having on food production and land management, for those of us that descend from European colonizers in North America, what can we learn from the past? What relationship did our ancestors have with the lands they were indigenous to, and how did they adapt to rapid climatological and ecological shifts throughout the millennia? In Max's fascinating and illuminating essay ‘The Lost Forest Gardens of Europe,’ the answers to these questions come more into focus.   “Whereas modern industrial agriculture is descended from a distinctly imperialist Roman plantation system based on slave labor, systems like coltura promiscua [mixed cultivation] are the direct descendants of the indigenous forest gardens of pre-agricultural

[Intro: 8:06] In this episode, I speak with Alexander Reid Ross, author of 'Against the Fascist Creep', and Shane Burley, author of 'Fascism Today: What It Is and How to End It.' We discuss several important topics, including the historic ongoing wave of protests and uprisings across the United States since May this year, as well as the disturbing uptick of incidences of far-right vigilantism since then. We also examine one of the flash points in these struggles — Portland, Oregon — where Shane and Alexander are based. With protests persisting over 100 days at this point, Portland has been a beacon of resistance to police brutality and repression, with anti-racist protestors contending with intermittent violent intimidation from far-right groups, as well the recent intrusions from federal officers from various divisions of the Department of Homeland Security, loyal to President Trump. I ask Shane to explain the conditions journalists covering the protests are working under, highlighting numerous examples o

[Intro: 10:35 | Outro: 1:27:30] In this episode, I speak with writer, translator, and activist John Washington. We discuss his book ‘The Dispossessed: A Story of Asylum at the US-Mexican Border and Beyond,’ published by Verso Books. At the center of ‘The Dispossessed’ is the story of Arnovis, a Salvadorian man seeking asylum in the United States. As John weaves together the harrowing story of this man as he attempts  to cross numerous borders and countless obstacles on his journey northward, John expands his narrative to include the deeper history and purpose of asylum, the modern bureaucratic framework potential asylees must contend with, and the details and consequences of the uniquely cruel immigration policies enacted by numerous presidential administrations (and most recently, the Trump Administration and their family separation policy). As much as “asylum seekers are expected to unveil themselves, to recount their histories, and to exhibit their wounds," the same cannot be said of those that are in a

[Intro: 7:30] In this episode, Kollibri terre Sonnenblume and I speak with Dr. Riane Eisler — social systems scientist, cultural historian, and attorney. She is the author of numerous books, including most famously ‘The Chalice and The Blade: Our History, Our Future,’ and most recently ‘Nurturing Our Humanity: How Domination and Partnership Shape Our Brains, Lives, and Future,’ co-authored with anthropologist Douglas Fry. Kollibri is the host of the Voices For Nature & Peace podcast, and this interview will be released on both of our respective programs. Partnership and domination — paradigms that stand at either end of what humanity has been capable of producing in societies and cultures throughout human history. Dr. Eisler's decades of groundbreaking research into the roots of each of these paradigms has lifted the veil of what human beings are truly capable of — expanding our view of what "human nature" really is — by drawing on numerous sources of research from anthropology, archeology, psychology, and

[Intro: 8:18] In this episode, I speak with writer and editor Vicky Osterweil, author of ‘In Defense of Looting: A Riotous History of Uncivil Action’ published through Bold Type Books. In her book ‘In Defense of Looting,’ Vicky discusses the history of looting — the mass act of publicly and directly seizing goods — and the vital role this act of wealth distribution has played (and continues to play) in movements toward addressing injustices of and abolishing the state, white supremacy, and capitalism. "From slave revolts to labor strikes to the modern-day movements for climate change, Black lives, and police abolition, Osterweil makes a convincing case for rioting and looting as weapons that bludgeon the status quo while uplifting the poor and marginalized." In our discussion, I ask her to dispense with, point by point, the various arguments that are made against looting and rioting. These arguments include that looters: - “are outside agitators" - “are destroying their own neighborhoods"  - "are not prot

[Intro: 11:24] In this episode, I speak with Derek Beres, Matthew Remski, and Julian Walker, hosts of the Conspirituality podcast. In continuing my exploration into QAnon and the widespread proliferation of and cult-like adherence to conspiracy theory thinking in the United States, I felt it was time to have this discussion with the hosts of this timely, well crafted, and increasingly needed podcast project. Conspirituality uncovers the intricate dynamics at play in the merging of the Health and Wellness community and its online influencers with this far right conspiracy theory — including the cult dynamics at play in its popularity and spread, the role social media plays in disseminating these ideas, and what the popularity of these ideas means for political action and discourse in our time of rising authoritarianism and right wing populism. “As the alt-right and New Age horseshoe toward each other in a blur of disinformation, well-intentioned discourse and honest debate are being smothered. Charismatic i

[Intro: 11:36] In this episode I speak with Margaret Killjoy — anarchist author, musician, and crafter. In the wake of the nationwide Black Lives Matter protests and uprisings since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, "anarchists" have been in the news. Whether it's President Trump calling for the arrest of "radical-left anarchists" and "Antifa," or Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden stating that “arsonists and anarchists should be prosecuted,” there is a long history of anarchists being scapegoated by the political elite in times of civil unrest. I ask Margaret to provide some historical context to these statements by Trump and Biden, pointing to the Russian Revolution in 1917 and the Haymarket Affair of 1886 in the United States, and the role anarchists played in each of these respective events. From there, we move into discussing a recent essay published on her website ‘Art and the Void,’ in which she explores creativity and artistic exploration, using the

[Intro: 9:45] In this episode, I speak with eco-radical philosopher, writer, and poet Julian Langer.  We begin this discussion by addressing Julian's recent essay ‘The Whole is Less than the Sum of its Parts,’ in which he redefines what we commonly understand "collectivism" and "individualism" to be: "If collectivism is correct, and the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, then it doesn’t matter if 10% of a coral reef is bleached, or 20%, or 90%, because you have this transcendental greater than, which remains. Likewise, the death of 1 polar bear doesn’t matter, because individuals are inconsequential, and neither does the extinction of 1 species, because you still have this larger whole of earth that matters more, and likewise it doesn’t matter if 200 individual species comprised of statistically irrelevant individuals die due to ecocide, because the transcendental whole remains." (https://bit.ly/3h0ySNR) Also, we address themes addressed in some of his other writings, including his thoughts on so

[Intro: 9:22] In this interview, I speak with political commentator Jared Yates Sexton, author of the upcoming book ‘American Rule: How A Nation Conquered The World But Failed Its People.’ As I remark on in this discussion, I first became aware of Jared and his work from his analysis of the QAnon conspiracy theory. I ask him to expound on the tenets of this alarmingly popular and increasingly pervasive belief system (which we characterize as having the attributes of a pseudo-religious cult), its roots on the anonymous online forum 4chan, as well as the impacts this reality-bending narrative is having on contemporary politics in the United States. Jared states very clearly what this toxic narrative is producing right now in his recent article ‘A Cult Within A Cult: Qanon, Conspiracy Theories, and Growing Fascism’: “To fully grasp what Qanon is and what it could become, we have to break down the very essence of this cult. It is a rebranding of the New World Order conspiracy theory that has held sway over Am

[Intro: 7:19] In this episode, I speak with anti-racist and environmental activist Hilary Moore, author of ‘Burning Earth, Changing Europe: How the Racist Right Exploits the Climate Crisis–And What We Can Do About It’, and co-author of ‘No Fascist USA! The John Brown Anti-Klan Committee and Lessons for Today’s Movements.’ In her booklet ‘Burning Earth, Changing Europe’, Hilary examines how right wing ideology, in its various forms, reacts to, co-opts, and inserts its agendas into the discourse and activism surrounding climate change and environmentalism at large. As she points to in this interview:  1. Climate change is not an inherently progressive issue. 2. How you think and talk about climate change may prop up racist right-wing positions. 3. The far right does not need to govern to influence. With these truths in mind, Hilary points to how social justice itself must be central to any environmental and climate movement: “My advice to the environmental movement in the US is blunt: get out of the way

[Intro: 13:47 | Outro: 1:27:22] In this interview, I speak with journalist and author Vincent Bevins, author of ‘The Jakarta Method: Washington’s Anticommunist Crusade and the Mass Murder Program That Shaped Our World.’ The events that have shaped our world, particularly in the post-Cold War era, are often unexamined and under-appreciated. This is especially true in a time of rising right wing populism and reactionary violence in nations around the globe, with the rise of such far-right leaders as Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil and Donald Trump in the United States, as well as the growing concentration of wealth by the global capitalist elite, facilitated by decades of neoliberal economic policies and austerity. How did we get to this point? Vincent Bevins, in his truly important work ‘The Jakarta Method,’ provides something of a gift of insight into the events, often unexamined in the so-called First World, that have shaped the socioeconomic order that emerged out of decades of Cold War violence enacted and inf

[Intro: 8:44] In this episode, I speak with Bayo Akomolafe, author of 'These Wilds Beyond Our Fences', Executive Director and Chief Curator for The Emergence Network (A Post-Activist Project), and host of the online writing course, ‘We Will Dance With Mountains: Writing as a Tool for Emergence’.  We begin by discussing Bayo's recent essay ‘I, Coronavirus. Mother. Monster. Activist.’: “One of the central questions I ask with this essay is: If this is indeed a war, do we really want to win it? What if winning is the worst possible outcome we could imagine? Do we want to come out on top, stamp out this viral enemy, and restore agency to the cold ossified tentacles of the familiar? Are we sure this disruption is not what we want, what we’ve cried for in unvoiced ways? Should we not treat this opening as our grand marronage, our fugitive departure from exhausted cottonfields? Nothing about this moment is romantic. And we should be careful about smoothening the hard and recalcitrant edges of this phenomenon to

[Intro: 8:47] In this episode, I speak with dear friend, healer, and counselor Barbara Cecil. This is a griefful time. We are witnessing systems fail and a deep fracturing of our collective shared experience of reality, particularly for those embedded within the dominant culture of North America, to which many of us are tied to. More and more, time seems to be quickening and grinding to a stuttering halt, all at once.  Barbara and I deepen our exploration into the terrain of our current predicament, continuing with the themes journalist Dahr Jamail and I discussed in our recent interview released a few weeks ago. We discuss what it means to really be present in this time of trouble, and how vital it is to know how to ground oneself and (re)connect with our intuition. It is from this place that we may then proceed, as this wisdom and skill will prove to be increasingly needed as we meet our time of many endings. Barbara Cecil is the author of ‘Coming Into Your Own: A Woman's Guide Through Life Transitions.

In this episode, I speak with feminist writer and teacher Silvia Federici. We discuss the themes of her new book, Beyond the Periphery of the Skin: Rethinking, Remaking, and Reclaiming the Body in Contemporary Capitalism, published through PM Press.  The body—our sense of “self” in relation to others—has been restricted, reduced, and mutilated under Capitalism and the impositions of the State. This is particularly true with women, as Federici has thoroughly examined throughout her decades of research, in particular with her seminal work Caliban and the Witch, which lucidly explores the brutal transformation European populations were forced to endure as these societies began to transition to the social order of Capitalism, now global in scope and reach. Occurring over centuries, this transition—with the enclosure of the Commons and the femicidal witch hunts—dramatically restricted of the sovereignty of the peasant class and brutalized the bodies of women. This process was fundamental in the constriction of th

In this episode, I speak with award-winning journalist and author Dahr Jamail.  I can imagine most of you listening to this episode will recognize what Dahr and I both feel and know in this time we are in. Many of us are beginning to come to terms with the reality we have been dealt — a global predicament that includes a pandemic that won’t soon leave us, economic crisis and social unrest that will only worsen as the months pass on, and nonlinear climate disruption that continues to rear its ugly head, portending horrors that are only beginning to make themselves a reality. And we know, from these trends, this breakdown will only accelerate as the months and years pass. As Dahr states, citing his time in Iraq, “today is better than tomorrow.” // Episode notes + transcript: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/dahr-jamail-5 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

[Intro: 9:16 | Book: http://bit.ly/ORBITgr] In this interview, I speak with meteorologist and geoscientist Nicholas Humphrey.  As the nations of the world continue to confront the challenges of a global pandemic, and as the United States experiences the worst economic crisis in its history and convulses in the wake of accelerated social breakdown and civil unrest, the global climate crisis continues unabated. I ask Nicholas to provide his insights into the profound climate shifts the Arctic region has experienced the past several months (since the recording of this interview, a region in Siberia recorded a record-breaking temperature of 100.4°F/38°C). (https://lat.ms/2VnnYsG) This includes the impact these changes are having on the ocean currents and atmospheric jet streams — amplifying the severity of storms and nonlinear weather events around the globe, as well as triggering more tipping points and feedback loops in the climate system. We also examine how thawing permafrost in the Arctic is leading to inf