Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy Best of the Left

Air Date 4/12/2024
The forces of capitalism and deregulation loom large as industrial transport disasters continue to pile up with new focus brought to the issue by the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse and the series of dangerous and deadly failures from Boeing.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: Horror in Baltimore: Awful New Info Emerges About Six Missing Workers - THE DAILY BLAST with Greg Sargent - Air Date 3-28-24
Two full days after the disastrous collapse of a bridge in Baltimore, little is known about six construction workers who went missing—and are now presumed dead.
Ch. 2: Everything we know about the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse - The Real News Podcast - Air Date 4-4-24
The Real News convened a panel of journalists working all sides of this story to get a sense of what we know about the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, what key questions still need to be answered, and what happens next.
Ch. 3: Cars, Bridges, Ships and Planes - The Zero Hour - Air Date 04-06-24
Discussing the Baltimore disaster in the context of infrastructure investment more broadly
Ch. 4: Everything we know about the Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse Part 2 - The Real News Podcast - Air Date 4-4-24
 
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FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 12: Final comments on the threat to society of runaway corporate executive pay
References:
The failure of Bill Clinton's CEO pay reform - Politico
The Executive Pay Cap That Backfired - ProPublica
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE:
Description: Photo taken from inside the Alaska Airlines flight 1282 Boeing plane that lost its door mid-flight. A rectangular hole in the side of the plane reveals a wall of white clouds. The nearby seats are empty and oxygen masks hang from the ceiling.
Credit: Photo taken by unidentified passenger and provided to the public by the National Transportation Safety Board(NTSB) as part of their investigation. | License: Public Domain
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Air Date 4/9/2024
The neoliberal legacy of the New Democrats continues to loom large but it really does seem like the progressive wing of the party and the broader demand for populist economic policies has had an impact. Now people just need to know that it's happening.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: American Socialism - Prospect: Generations - Air Date 4-6-23
In this episode of the Prospect’s Generations podcast, editor at large Harold Meyerson, who joined the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee in 1975, and writing fellow Luke Goldstein, who was attracted to socialism by Bernie Sanders
Ch. 2: The Legacy of the New Democrats - KPFA - Against the Grain - Air Date 8-17-22
Historian Lily Geismer looks at how the the Democratic Leadership Council and Clinton-era Democratic Party increased inequality, through development zones, charter schools, welfare “reform”, and microfinance.
Ch. 3: Clinton’s ‘Fabulous Failure’ Part 1 - Start Making Sense - Air Date 10-4-23
Our politics today is haunted by the failures of Bill Clinton—the “centrist” who “triangulated” with Republicans, lost on healthcare, and proclaimed that “the era of big government is over.” Nelson Lichtenstein explains Clinton’s turn to the right
 
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Ch. 7: Price Controls: An Inflation Solution That Doesn't Screw Workers - Deconstructed - Air Date 7-7-23
CENTRIST AND RIGHT-WING economists continue to advocate for laying off workers and engineering a recession to address inflation. But why not set price controls instead?
Ch. 8: Clinton’s ‘Fabulous Failure’ Part 2 - Start Making Sense - Air Date 10-4-23
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 12: Final comments on the way we think about political criticism
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE:
Description: Photo of President Joe Biden shaking hands with a hard-hat-and-safety-vest clad union worker during a campaign event in Pennsylvania.
Credit: “President Biden greeting union workers” by Governor Tom Wolf Flickr account | License: CC BY 2.0 | Changes: Cropped
 
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Air Date 4/9/2024 The neoliberal legacy of the New Democrats continues to loom large but it really does seem like the progressive wing of the party and the broader demand for populist economic policies has had an impact. Now people just need to know that it's happening. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: American Socialism - Prospect: Generations - Air Date 4-6-23 In this episode of the Prospect’s Generations podcast, editor at large Harold Meyerson, who joined the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee in 1975, and writing fellow Luke Goldstein, who was attracted to socialism by Bernie Sanders Ch. 2: The Legacy of the New Democrats - KPFA - Against the Grain - Air Date 8-17-22 Historian Lily Geismer looks at how the the Democratic Leadership Council and Clinton-era Democratic Party increased inequality, through development zones, charter schools, welfare “reform”, and microfinance. Ch. 3: Clinton’s ‘Fabulous Failure’ Part 1 - Start Making Sense - Air Date 10-4-23 Our politics today is haunted by the failures of Bill Clinton—the “centrist” who “triangulated” with Republicans, lost on healthcare, and proclaimed that “the era of big government is over.” Nelson Lichtenstein explains Clinton’s turn to the right SEE FULL SHOW NOTES MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S) Ch. 7: Price Controls: An Inflation Solution That Doesn't Screw Workers - Deconstructed - Air Date 7-7-23 CENTRIST AND RIGHT-WING economists continue to advocate for laying off workers and engineering a recession to address inflation. But why not set price controls instead? Ch. 8: Clinton’s ‘Fabulous Failure’ Part 2 - Start Making Sense - Air Date 10-4-23 FINAL COMMENTS Ch. 12: Final comments on the way we think about political criticism MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions) SHOW IMAGE: Description: Photo of President Joe Biden shaking hands with a hard-hat-and-safety-vest clad union worker during a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Credit: “President Biden greeting union workers” by Governor Tom Wolf Flickr account | License: CC BY 2.0 | Changes: Cropped Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 4-7-24
Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss:
- Many facets of our society are clearly broken by capitalism, and bizarrely for some, chaos is the only thing that beings agency to their life  
- The delusion of RFK Jr. voters, the understandable desire to vote third party, and the age-old cry of the 'uniparty'
- The trend of conservative voters among communities of color and where they find themselves in Trump's Republican Party
- And that one of the Democrats main stumbling blocks is they're only interested in keeping things exactly as they are
REFERENCES:
The Americans Who Need Chaos
Andrew Tate on why he doesn’t read books
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Targets a Generation of Politically Disaffected, Extremely Online Men
Forget Kennedy Democrats. Here Comes the 2024 Kennedy Voter.
The Strange History of the ‘Uniparty’
The unexpected dynamic that could decide the Trump-Biden rematch
Duty Calls
 
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Original Air Date: 11/10/2020
Today we take a look at the long and shifting history of the myth of democracy in America. We've never had it since the beginning but the reasons have shifted, ebbed and flowed over time. Now, in the midst of an attempted slow-motion coup, we look back at this most central American myth.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: "Let the People Pick the President" The Case for Abolishing the Electoral College - Democracy Now! - Air Date 10-30-20
Two of the last three presidents — George W. Bush and Donald Trump — came to office after losing the popular vote. "The Framers who met at the Constitutional Convention really had no idea what they were doing when they established how to pick a president"
Ch. 2: The Second Revolution - Scene On Radio - Air Date 2-19-20
After the Civil War, a surprising coalition tried to remake the United States into a real multiracial democracy for the first time. Reconstruction, as the effort was called, brought dramatic change to America. For a while.
Ch. 3: Democracy: Past, Present... and Future? - The Laura Flanders Show - Air Date 6-26-19
Don't remember the past? Does that mean you're condemned to repeat it? What does our country's past tell us about our present— and how can it help us imagine a better future? This week, two leading thinkers on the tricky challenges of democracy.
Ch. 4: More Democracy - Scene on Radio - Air Date 6-10-20
What will it take to make the United States a more fully functioning democracy, and how can we, as citizens, bring about that change?
By host and producer John Biewen, with series collaborator Chenjerai Kumanyika.
 
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TAKE ACTION
GASenate.com
NewGeorgiaProject.org
BlackVotersMatterFund.org
VoteRiders.org
ACLUGA.org
Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman 
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
 
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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Air Date 4/3/2024
As the country gears up for the election in November, we look at a variety of ways the GOP and their election-denialist supporters are preparing to subvert the democratic process to get the result they want.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: Election Dissection 'How can the election system be improved' - The Gaggle: An Arizona politics podcast - Air Date 3-27-24
A question remains among most American, and specifically Arizonan, voters: how can we make elections better? David Becker is a co-founder of the Center for Election Innovation and Research to improve elections through technology and reliance on data.
Ch. 2: Giuliani ordered to pay $148 million for defamation of election workers - PBS Newshour - Air Date 12-15-23
A federal jury in Washington ordered Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump’s former campaign attorney, to pay $148 million to two Georgia election workers for distress caused by lies he spread following the 2020 election.
Ch. 3: Charlie Kirk Lackey Gets Humiliated By Election Official - The Majority Report - Air Date 3-3-24
Ch. 4: Far Right Plan Chaos Ahead of 2024 Election - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 3-22-24
Donald Trump and the far right want the 2024 election to be so chaotic they can make the case that Trump won, even if he goes down in flames losing by spectacular numbers.
 
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Ch. 9: Election Dissection 'How can the election system be improved' Part 3 - The Gaggle: An Arizona politics podcast - Air Date 3-27-24
Ch. 10: Exposing Secret Fascist Plan To ‘Win’ 2024 Election - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 2-26-24
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 12: Final comments on the backfire effect of lies about mail-in voting
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE: 
Description: A photo of a protestor, wearing a mask, and holding a sign up that says “When we count, democracy wins.”
Credit: “40a.BLM.Plaza.WDC.7November2020” by Elvert Barnes, Flickr | License: CC BY-SA 2.0 | Changes: Cropped
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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