Current Affairs

This episode was originally released on our Patreon feed, but we've decided to release it for all listeners. If you enjoyed it, consider subscribing to our Patreon feed at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs for more episodes like this! Eli and Oren speak to two experts who have each been working for twenty years to bring attention to what goes on at the Guantánamo Bay detention camp: Shayana Kadidal (@ShayanaKadidal), senior managing attorney of the Guantánamo Global Justice Initiative at the Center for Constitutional Rights (@theCCR), and Carol Rosenberg of the New York Times (@carolrosenberg), winner of the Robert F. Kennedy journalism award for her peerless work on the subject. Please be advised this episode contains discussion of suicide. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

This episode was originally put on our Patreon feed back in November, but in light of the recent energy crisis in Texas, we've decided to unlock it for everyone. If you like this episode, please consider subscribing to our feed at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs! Infrastructure enthusiast Sparky Abraham is joined by Dr. Magnus Jamieson, an expert in electrical power systems, to discuss the fire which destroyed the town of Paradise, California in November 2018—the most destructive wildfire in California's history, caused by a single faulty electrical line and a whole bunch of systemic problems. Warning: this episode contains a lot of nerding out about transmission towers. The fire report: https://www.buttecounty.net/Portals/30/CFReport/PGE-THE-CAMP-FIRE-PUBLIC-REPORT.pdf?ver=2020-06-15-190515-977 This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The team uses the viral video of Handforth Parish Council as a jumping-off point to discuss the thorny concept of "community"; Sparky makes renting illegal; everyone explains something that makes them believe in the beauty of the universe. The panel this week was made up of finance editor Sparky Abraham, contributing editor Aisling McCrea, editor-in-chief Nathan Robinson, and host Nick Slater. Handforth Parish Council: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgGmYeAm0jk Windowswap: https://www.window-swap.com/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

This episode was originally released only to our Patreon subscribers, but we're making it free for everyone today! In this episode, infrastructure enthusiast Sparky Abraham speaks to Megan Milliken Biven about abandoned oil wells. "The Wreckage of the Last Energy Epoch": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/01/the-wreckage-of-the-last-energy-epoch-abandoned-wells-and-workers https://www.truetransition.org/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The panel debates whether art has been over-moralized, argues the benefits of short-selling, and airs their petty grievances. At one point, someone triggers the Dialectics Calypso. The panel this week consisted of amusements and managing editor Lyta Gold, finance editor Sparky Abraham, and editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. Your temporary host is Aisling McCrea. "Beyond the Guilt Tax": https://thepointmag.com/criticism/beyond-the-guilt-tax/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA. Music by Danny Bradley.

This episode was originally posted on the bonus feed, but we're releasing it for everyone today! Sparky speaks to Sam Yang (@StuffFromSam) of Southpaw, a radical podcast about combat sports. In the first of this two-parter, Sam explains why he's building an alternative to the Joe Rogan universe, labor issues in the world of MMA, and exploitation and liberation in the Western practice of martial arts. Southpaw podcast is here: https://www.southpawpod.com/

Sparky and Pete took a little break from the MMT series over the holidays. (You can see one of the reasons at the link below.) But don't worry—more episodes are on their way. https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/01/welcome-babies

Finance editor Sparky Abraham is joined by contributing editor Eli Massey, activist and filmmaker Astra Taylor, and journalist Elizabeth Bruenig to discuss the American medical debt crisis—who's behind it, what's being done about it, and potential paths to eradicating it. "Churches Step In Where Politicians Will Not": https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/27/opinion/covid-medical-debt-church-charity.html "A Saint's Sins": https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/16/opinion/junipero-serra-catholic-saint.html https://debtcollective.org/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

We dip once again into your voicemails! Topics include expectations for the Biden administration, anarchic education, and aliens. Stay tuned to the end so you can be sad. The panel this week was business manager Allegra Silcox, contributing editor Eli Massey, legal editor Oren Nimni, and editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. Your host was, for the final time...Pete Davis. "Education Gamification": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2019/10/education-gamification "The Past and Future of the Socialist Sunday School": https://www.currentaffairs.org/2020/08/the-past-and-future-of-the-socialist-sunday-school This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Eli speaks to assistant professor at Michigan State University and writer for In These Times, Shireen Al-Adeimi, about the ongoing war in Yemen—its causes, its human cost, and the role of the Obama, Trump and Biden administrations. This episode is also available as a transcript: https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/01/interview-shireen-al-adeimi-on-the-u-s-backed-war-in-yemen This transcript may vary slightly from the audio, as it has been edited for clarity. "Biden Must End The War on Yemen": https://inthesetimes.com/article/president-biden-obama-yemen-war International Day of Action on Yemen (Jan 25th 2021): https://masspeaceaction.org/event/international-day-of-action-on-yemen/ This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Aisling speaks to journalist Libby Watson (@libbycwatson), formerly of The New Republic and Splinter, about her new Substack newsletter, Sick Note. Towards the end, Aisling gets very enthusiastic about Libby's cat, Digby. Sick Note has launched! Read it here: sicknote.co This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

With the Supreme Court very much in the news cycle, Oren speaks to Yale professor of law and history, Samuel Moyn, about why we should not "pack the court", as many leftists call for, but instead end the court as we know it. scotusreform.com Articles by Moyn: https://newrepublic.com/article/159710/supreme-court-reform-court-packing-diminish-power https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/the-case-for-ending-the-supreme-court-as-we-know-it https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/08/reform-the-court-but-dont-pack-it/614986/ https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/09/supreme-court-socialists-ruth-bader-ginsburg-death https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3665032 This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The team discuss the ensmallening of culture, women in science fiction, and reveal which things they suspect may not be real. The panel this week was senior editor Brianna Rennix, amusements & managing editor Lyta Gold, and business manager Allegra Silcox. Your host is Oren Nimni. Music, as ever, is by Current Affairs musician-in-residence Danny Bradley. If you so wish, you can support Danny by purchasing "How Was Your Year?" here: https://dannybradleymusic.com/songsforcurrentaffairs/howwasyouryear This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Hello all! We took a week off for the holidays, but now we're back—and we've brought presents! To ring in the new year, we're bringing everyone five free episodes throughout the week. Some of them will be brand-new, some will be former Patreon exclusives; some will be new episodes that would usually be Patreon-only, but that we want to share with you because we just like you that much. If you enjoy these episodes, we'd recommend you subscribe to our Patreon for more, but either way, we hope you like them. Today, we return to our Room 101 miniseries, in which two members of the CA team try and convince each other to consign their most hated objects, people and concepts to the deepest, darkest room. Nathan, Oren, Lyta and Brianna have all previously appeared in this miniseries; this time around, it's Nick and Sparky. Candidates for banishment include two geographical regions of the United States, one type of clothing, one political concept, and one beloved television show. Things get a little banish-happy t

This week, Lyta Gold had an extra-long, two-part conversation with Current Affairs editor-at-large Yasmin Nair, in which they dissect the arts industry, media gossip, creative labor, why writing doesn't pay, and why the arts culture today feels so stagnant. This is a preview of two episodes available in full to our $5 Patreon subscribers. To listen to the whole episode, as well as lots of other brilliant bonus episodes, please consider becoming one of our subscribers at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs!

This episode was originally on our bonus feed, but we've released it so everyone can listen for free! Associate editor and real-life French person Vanessa A. Bee speaks to Paris-based journalist Cole Stangler about the recent French protests against police brutality and racism, as well as the broader context of protest and power in France. Some of Cole's work: https://jacobinmag.com/2020/06/france-racial-justice-protests-adama-traore-assa https://jacobinmag.com/2020/11/emmanuel-macron-liberalism-without-civil-liberties This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

The panel dissects Obama's new memoir and what it says about his legacy, investigate the concept of 'cabals', and share their favorite competitive reality shows. The panel this week was made up of newsletter editor Nick Slater, lieutenant editor Brianna Rennix, poet-at-large Cate Root, and editor-in-chief Nathan Robinson. Your temporary host is Sparky Abraham. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.

Associate editor and real-life French person Vanessa A. Bee speaks to Paris-based journalist Cole Stangler about the recent French protests against police brutality and racism, as well as the broader context of protest and power in France. This is a preview of an episode available in full to our $5 Patreon subscribers. To listen to the whole episode, as well as lots of other brilliant bonus episodes, please consider becoming one of our subscribers at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs!

Modern Monetary Theory—three simple words that are tearing apart the left. Pete Davis and Sparky Abraham have spent the last few years feeling curious and confused about this highly contentious theory, which posits that the U.S. government can deficit spend much more than it currently believes it can. (Or maybe it doesn't posit that. We're not sure.) Together, they've decided to launch a new series, in which they will interview people across the spectrum of left economics, ask questions, admit what they don't know, and try and muddle through one of the most complex questions in the world of policy: is MMT real? Episode #1 in this special series is available here for free, and episodes two through five will be released to our Patreon subscribers throughout the week. In the near future, the series will be published on a separate feed, where it will be made available to all in full. But if you want to hear the series as soon as possible, you can do so by subscribing to our $5 tier at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffa

Lyta and Brianna discuss Star Trek—its utopias, its assumptions, it fun parts, and its hot people. This is a preview of an episode available in full to our $5 Patreon subscribers. To listen to the whole episode, as well as lots of other brilliant bonus episodes, please consider becoming one of our subscribers at www.patreon.com/CurrentAffairs!