Coming From Left Field (Video): Recent Episodes
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In this episode, we talk with St. Louis historian Jackie Dana, author of “The Unseen History of St. Louis,” about the hidden history of central and southern Illinois coal mining. Jackie traces how immigrant workers and their families, including her own Croatian relatives in Benld, Illinois, were drawn to the mines that helped power St. Louis industry and the American economy. We explore the rich ethnic communities that grew around the mines, the realities of company power and debt, child labor, black lung, mine disasters, and the daily dangers faced by workers who went underground to earn a living.
The conversation is also personal. Greg and Pat reflect on their own coal-mining family histories while Jackie discusses labor organizing, the Battle of Virden, Mother Jones, the United Mine Workers, and the militant tradition that produced the Progressive Mine Workers of America. This is a story about exploitation, solidarity, immigration, race, working-class struggle, and the long afterlife of coal beneath the fields and towns of Illinois.
About Jackie Dana
Jackie Dana is a St. Louis native, historian, freelance writer, editor, and novelist. She holds an MA in history from the University of Missouri, Columbia, and pursued doctoral work at the University of Texas. Through her Substack newsletter, “The Unseen History of St. Louis,” Jackie investigates the lesser-known stories that have shaped St. Louis and the surrounding region, including labor, immigration, architecture, race, industry, and local communities. Her work begins with the questions people encounter in everyday life: Who lived here? What happened in this building? Why does this place matter?.
Jackie’s Substack: https://substack.com/@jackiedana
Mentioned articles:
PART-1- https://unseenstlouis.substack.com/p/fuel-for-the-fire-illinois-coal-mining
PART-2- https://unseenstlouis.substack.com/p/forged-in-rebellion-organized-labor-illinois-coal-mines
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
Illinoiscoalmining#coalminers#Illinoislaborhistory#laborhistory#unionhistory#UnitedMineWorkers#UMWA#ProgressiveMineWorkersofAmerica#MotherJones#BattleofVirden#Illinoiscoalcountry#centralIllinoishistory#southernIllinoishistory#BenldIllinois#GillespieIllinois#UnionMinersCemetery#St.Louishistory#St.Louislaborhistory#immigrantworkers#industrialhistory#coalminedisasters#blacklungdisease#childlabor#labororganizing#laborunions#labormovement#mininghistory#JackieDana#TheUnseenHistoryofSt.Louis#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
This conversation with Bev Stohl, author of “Chomsky and Me,” takes you inside Noam Chomsky’s office and daily life in a way few people have ever seen. Drawing on nearly 25 years as Chomsky’s assistant at MIT, Bev shares intimate, funny, and moving stories about his work habits, his chaotic “checkerboard” office, his deep kindness toward ordinary people, and the emotional toll of spending a lifetime confronting war, propaganda, and injustice. Along the way we talk about Chomsky’s impact on linguistics, cognitive science, and radical politics, why he was shut out of mainstream media for telling the truth, and how he managed to keep going “by action, by moving” instead of being overwhelmed by despair.
The episode is also a love letter to the broader ecosystem of radical thinkers and organizers around Chomsky: Howard Zinn and the emotional power of his memorial, civil rights legend Dorie Ladner, union lawyer and Central America activist Dan Kovalik, and the many students, filmmakers, and musicians who passed through that cramped MIT office. Bev’s memoir and stories show Chomsky not as an abstract icon but as a complicated, sometimes awkward, always deeply principled human being—and highlight her own role using humor, care, and good judgment to keep him grounded.
About Bev Stohl
Bev Stohl is a writer, former MIT administrator, and longtime personal assistant to Noam Chomsky, whose memoir Chomsky and Me chronicles their quarter century working relationship. She came to Chomsky’s office from other administrative roles at MIT—including graduate programs in economics and ocean engineering—while completing her master’s degree in psychology, expecting an easier job and instead finding herself at the center of Chomsky’s intellectual and political life.
Over the years she managed his chaotic schedule, coordinated visits from students, activists, and documentary crews, and became a kind of social buffer and comic counterweight to his intense focus and often somber work. Beyond the Chomsky memoir, Bev has written extensively on wider political questions on Substack, has experience doing stand-up comedy, and recently completed an audiobook edition of Chomsky and Me with a Spanish translation forthcoming.
Order the book: https://orbooks.com/catalog/chomsky-and-me/
Bev’s substack: https://substack.com/@bevstohl
Mentioned articles:
I'm no longer waiting for the storm to pass (Bev Stohl): https://substack.com/home/post/p-190768008
“Ensnared” and “Manipulated” (Valéria Chomsky): https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/02/09/ensnared-and-manipulated-official-statement-by-valeria-chomsky-regarding-jeffrey-epstein/
Cross-Examining The Tabloid Left Show Trial of Chomsky w/ Rameez Rahman (Tara Van Duik): https://morbidsymptom.substack.com/p/cross-examining-the-tabloid-left
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
chomskyandme#memoir#bevstohl#BevBoisseauStohl#progressivepoliticspodcast#ValériaChomsky#CarolChomsky#howardzinn#normanfinkelstein#chrishedges#alanmacleod#vijahprashad#christianparenti#jefferyepstein#dankovalik#mitlinguistics#mediapropaganda#manufacturingconsent#antiwarmovement#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
This episode, artist, writer, and journalist Molly Crabapple discusses her new book, “Here Where We Live Is Our Country.” Through the conversation, she explores how art, memory, and reportage can challenge borders, social movements, and official narratives, focusing on the lives of workers, migrants, and resisters who carve out solidarity and dignity in hostile conditions. The discussion highlights the politics of looking—who is seen, who is erased—and how visual storytelling can expose injustice while honoring the full humanity of people living on the front lines of crisis and conflict.
Across the episode, Crabapple reflects on her own trajectory from artist to collaborator with radical journalists documenting war, incarceration, and economic exploitation. She talks about the responsibilities of depicting suffering, the intersections of culture and organizing, and why “Here Where We Live Is Our Country” reframes “country” as the networks of care and struggle we build together rather than flags or passports. If you’re interested in labor history, social movements, and the role of art in political resistance, this conversation offers a sharp, visually rich lens on the world we live in and the worlds we’re trying to create.
Molly Crabapple is an artist, writer, and journalist whose work sits at the intersection of illustration and political reportage. She first gained prominence for her intricate, densely detailed drawings and has since become known for visual essays and collaborations that address topics such as war, authoritarianism, incarceration, and economic inequality. Her illustrations and writing have appeared alongside investigative journalism and essays in major outlets, and she has worked extensively with reporters documenting events in the Middle East, Europe, and the United States. Crabapple is also the author of the memoir “Drawing Blood: A Radical Artist's Memoir of NYC Nightlife, Occupy, and Witness Journalism,” (2015), which examines her own life, work, and the political awakenings that informed her art and “Brothers of the Gun: A Memoir of the Syrian War,”(2018), a ground-level reflection on revolution and war. With “Here Where We Live Is Our Country,” she continues this trajectory, using image and text to honor the people and places that rarely make it into official histories, but whose lives and struggles define the world we actually inhabit.
Order the book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/646320/here-where-we-live-is-our-country-by-molly-crabapple/
Molly’s Website: https://www.mollycrabapple.com
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
MollyCrabapple#HereWhereWeLiveIsOurCountry#politicalart#Bund#JewishBundism#laborhistory#workingclassstruggles#warandresistance#migrationandborders#solidaritymovements#leftistpodcast#Zionism#SamRothbort#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
Vietnam veteran, poet, educator, and essayist Bill (W.D.) Ehrhart joins our podcast to discuss his new collection, “Getting Shot At: Essays on War, Conflict and Culture Clash.” Drawing on more than fifty years of writing and activism, Ehrhart reflects on how Vietnam shattered his belief in American good intentions and how that disillusionment informs his sharp, plain-spoken essays on U.S. militarism, culture wars, and historical amnesia. The conversation ranges from controversial poems and “snowflake” politics on both the left and the right to the corrosive impact of technology on education and to his relationships with truth-tellers like Daniel Ellsberg and H. Bruce Franklin. Thoughtful, funny, and unsparing, this episode is essential listening for anyone trying to understand how past wars shape our present conflicts—and what it means to keep telling the truth in a country that keeps trying to forget.
About Bill Ehrhart
Bill Ehrhart was born in Pennsylvania in 1948 and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps straight out of high school, serving 13 months in Vietnam during some of the war’s heaviest fighting. After returning home, he became one of the most widely recognized Vietnam veteran poets, publishing numerous collections of poetry, several volumes of memoir—including “Vietnam-Perkasie” and “Passing Time”—and multiple books of essays on war, politics, and American culture. Ehrhart earned a Ph.D. in American Studies and spent decades teaching, most notably at the Haverford School, where his work in the classroom paralleled his public writing as a critic of U.S. militarism and historical myth-making. His poems and essays are known for their plain-spoken language, narrative clarity, and unflinching moral engagement, qualities that have led scholars and fellow writers to describe him as “the dean of Vietnam War poetry” and a persistent voice of conscience.
Order the book: https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/getting-shot-at/
Bill’s Website: https://wdehrhart.com/
Follow Bill online:
LA Progressive: https://www.laprogressive.com/author/w-d-ehrhart
The New Hampshire Gazette: https://www.nhgazette.com/author/w-d-ehrhart/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
W.D.Ehrhart#BillEhrhart#GettingShotAt#EssaysonWarConflictandCultureClash#Vietnam#veteranpoet#VietnamWarliterature#Antiwarveteran#Progressivepolitics#U.S.militarism#DanielEllsbergPentagonPapers#BruceFranklinVietnammyth#Snowflakeculture#Free#Technologyandeducation#Warmemoirandessays#LAProgressivewriter#NewHampshireGazette#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode, our guest is Chris Smalls, discussing his new book, “When the Revolution Comes: A Fight for the Future of the Working Class.” Smalls, best known as the co-founder and former president of the Amazon Labor Union, led the first successful union drive at an Amazon warehouse in the United States.
Smalls traces his path from growing up working class in Hackensack, New Jersey, to becoming a warehouse worker and supervisor at Amazon, leading a COVID walkout over unsafe conditions, and being fired and smeared from the very top of the company. From there, we get into the nuts and bolts of how a small group of workers with a shoe-string budget, a table at the bus stop, and a lot of persistence built enough trust and solidarity to beat a trillion-dollar corporation at its own facility. Along the way, we talk about the broken NLRB, Amazon’s years long strategy of appeals to avoid bargaining, and why Smalls believes strikes and independent, worker led organizing are the only way to force the company to negotiate in good faith.
We conclude our conversation with Smalls connecting his fight at the fulfillment warehouse to a broader internationalist politics, talking about meeting Amazon workers and militant unions in Europe and tying Amazon and Google’s cloud and AI contracts for the Israeli military directly to the same surveillance infrastructure used on workers at home. He’s candid about the cost of taking a public stand for Palestine including lost followers, speaking invitations, even a potential movie deals—and about how quickly liberal politicians and union leadership disappear when a labor struggle becomes explicitly anti-imperialist. If you’re interested in what serious, unapologetic working-class politics looks like in practice, you will enjoy this conversation.
About Chris Smalls
Chris Smalls (born July 4, 1988) is an American labor organizer and prominent voice for worker rights, racial justice, and economic democracy. He has been widely profiled in major media outlets and was named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, while continuing to support union drives and picket lines.
Order the book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/724036/when-the-revolution-comes-by-chris-smalls/
Chris’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chris.smalls_/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
AmazonLaborUnion#ChrisSmalls#WhentheRevolutionComes#labormovement#labororganizing#Amazonunion#Amazonwarehouse#JFK8#AmazonStatenIsland#ProjectNimbus#Palestinesolidarity#COVIDwhistleblower#JeffBezos#unionbusting#NLRB#DemocraticPartyandlabor#anticapitalism#Times100ChrisSmalls#radicalpolitics#Teamsters#Palestineandlabor#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode, we feature historian Sven Beckert discussing his sweeping new book, “Capitalism: A Global History.” We dig into how capitalism emerged over the last thousand years, why it’s not just “markets” but a specific, historically created social order, and how it became a genuinely global system built on “connected diversity” of labor regimes—from wage work and peasant farming to slavery and colonial extraction. Beckert explains the crucial role of state power, empire, and the countryside in capitalism’s rise, and traces how different historical phases—mercantile, industrial, and neoliberal—have reshaped our world. We also talk about capitalism’s dual legacy of technological dynamism and staggering inequality, and why “denaturalizing” capitalism matters for how we think about today’s crises, from inequality to climate change.
If you’re interested in the history of capitalism, global political economy, or the roots of our current social order, this conversation offers an accessible big‑picture overview from an author recognized as one of the world's leading scholars on the history of global capitalism, 19th-century United States history, and labor.
About Sven Beckert
Sven Beckert is the Laird Bell Professor of History at Harvard University and one of the leading historians of capitalism working today. Born in Germany and trained in history, economics, and political science before earning his PhD at Columbia University, Beckert’s research focuses on the economic, social, and political history of capitalism in the nineteenth-century United States and from a global perspective. He is the author of the widely acclaimed “Empire of Cotton: A Global History”—winner of the Bancroft Prize and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. At Harvard, Beckert co-chairs the Program on the Study of Capitalism and the Weatherhead Initiative on Global History, teaches courses on American and global capitalism, and has helped lead major projects on the university’s historical ties to slavery, while receiving numerous honors and fellowships, including a Guggenheim Fellowship and election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Order the book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/541160/capitalism-by-sven-beckert/
Sven’s Website: https://www.svenbeckert.com/
Sven’s Substack: https://substack.com/@svenbeckert
Greg’s book review on MLToday: https://mltoday.com/thinking-about-capitalism/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
SvenBeckert#CapitalismAGlobalHistory#capitalismhistory#historyofcapitalism#globalcapitalism#economichistory#politicaleconomy#laborhistory#EmpireofCotton#industrialcapitalism#mercantilecapitalism#neoliberalism#globalization#globaltrade#slaveryandcapitalism#colonialism#connecteddiversity#Harvardhistorian#workingclasshistory#capitalismandinequality#capitalismanddemocracy#capitalismandclimatechange#worldhistory#Marxisthistory#criticaltheory#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
Les Leopold’s new book, “The Billionaires Have Two Parties – We Need a Party of Our Own,” starts from a simple claim: Republicans and Democrats alike have become instruments of the billionaire class, while working people are left with no real political home.
On Coming From Left Field, Leopold walks through the economic history behind that argument, from deindustrialization and NAFTA to Wall Street’s “financial strip mining” of communities through mass layoffs and stock buybacks. He highlights places like Mingo County, West Virginia—once a New Deal Democratic and union stronghold—where coal jobs collapsed, no serious public reconstruction ever arrived, and the opioid industry filled the vacuum as the only growth sector. In county after county across the Rust Belt and Appalachia, he and his co‑researchers found that rising mass layoffs map onto falling Democratic vote share; voters blame the party that was supposed to fight for them, not because of “wokeness,” but because Democrats abandoned New Deal‑style job guarantees and embraced a corporate‑first politics.
The heart of Leopold’s case, though, is that ordinary people are far readier for a bold working‑class program than the political class believes. In a 3,000‑person survey in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, he tested a fictional “Independent Workers Political Association” with a radical platform: a right to a job at a living wage (with the public sector stepping in if the private sector fails), a ban on compulsory layoffs at firms receiving government money, a genuinely livable minimum wage, and strong action against price‑gouging by pharmaceutical and food corporations. He expected fringe support; instead, 57% of voters backed the idea, only 18% opposed it, support was consistent across all four states, 40% of Trump voters said yes, and 70% of voters under 30 were on board. The same survey showed the Democratic label itself has become a liability: for identical populist platforms, “independent” candidates started about eight points ahead of “Democrats,” and in Ohio, the penalty for the Democratic label rose to roughly sixteen points.
For Leopold, the implication is clear: you cannot build a serious working‑class politics by trying to be “better Democrats” everywhere. Instead, his book calls for building a new “party of our own” from the ground up in deep‑red areas where Democrats barely exist—running independent working‑class candidates, pushing ballot initiatives like banning forced layoffs at firms on the public dime, and using labor‑rooted political education to turn widespread anger and insecurity into a coherent, independent working‑class movement.
About Les Leopold
Les Leopold is a longtime labor educator, author, and co‑founder of the Labor Institute, which has been training workers and union activists on economic and environmental issues since the 1970s. Raised in a working‑class family of war refugees, he studied at Oberlin College and earned a master’s degree in public affairs from Princeton before working closely with visionary labor leader Tony Mazzocchi, a pioneer of the occupational safety movement and an early advocate of a Labor Party. Leopold is the author of several books, including “Runaway Inequality,” “How to Make a Million Dollars an Hour,” “Wall Street’s War on Workers,” and a biography of Mazzocchi, “The Man Who Hated Work and Loved Labor.” His work combines data‑driven political economy with on‑the‑ground organizing, aimed at helping working people.
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/Billionaires-Have-Parties-Need-Party/dp/B0GX77LK8B/
Website: The Labor Institute
Substack: https://lesleopold.substack.com/p/the-billionaires-have-two-parties-f10
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
LesLeopold#TheBillionairesHaveTwoParties#partyofourown#workingclasspolitics#laborpolitics#thirdpartymovement#independentworkingclassparty#deindustrialization#RustBeltworkers#MingoCountyWestVirginia#financialstripmining#stockbuybacks#guaranteedjobs#livingwagejobs#nocompulsorylayoffs#TonyMazzocchi#LaborPartyhistory#politicalrealignment#rightwingpopulism#economicinequality#workingclassvoters#newworkersparty#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode of Coming From Left Field, we sit down with anthropologist Ida Susser to talk about her book “The Yellow Vests and the Battle for Democracy: Taking to the Streets of Paris in the 21st Century.” We dig into how a seemingly narrow revolt against a diesel fuel tax exploded into a nationwide uprising that shook Emmanuel Macron’s government and exposed the deep fractures between France’s urban elites and its abandoned provinces.
Susser traces the long build‑up to the gilets jaunes: decades of neoliberal “reform” that closed rural schools and clinics, cut public transport, and hollowed out social services while telling working‑class people to drive farther and pay more. She explains who the Yellow Vests really were—truckers, nurses, cashiers, civil servants, small farmers, grandparents, and first‑time protesters—and how roundabouts and self‑built roadside cabins became spaces of debate, solidarity, and political awakening. We also talk about the brutal police response and the emergence of les mutilés (protesters maimed by so‑called “non‑lethal” weapons), and how that violence pushed many Yellow Vests toward alliances with anti‑racist and Black Lives Matter movements.
From there, the conversation widens out: What can we learn from the Yellow Vests about spontaneous uprisings versus organized parties and unions? Why did the movement seem to “fizzle,” and in what ways did it quietly reshape French politics—strengthening mass pension protests, undermining Macron’s legitimacy, and helping set the stage for a new Popular Front that pushed back against Marine Le Pen’s far right? Susser uses Gramsci’s ideas of hegemony, civil society, and “war of position” to argue that these messy, grassroots experiments in “commoning” are slowly building a new democratic culture from below.
If you’re interested in French politics, social movements, or the parallels between rural France and the U.S. rust belt, this is a rich, hopeful, and sobering conversation.
Author Biography:
Ida Susser is an American anthropologist best known for her work on urban inequality, social movements, and the politics of health and welfare. She is a Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at Hunter College and the CUNY Graduate Center, and has also held roles as adjunct professor of socio‑medical sciences at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and leadership positions in major anthropological associations.
Born in South Africa to epidemiologists and anti‑apartheid activists Zena Stein and Mervyn Susser, she grew up in politically engaged circles, moved with her family to Manchester in 1956, and then to New York City in 1965. She earned her BA at Barnard College (1970), MA at the University of Chicago (1974), and PhD at Columbia University (1980), all in anthropology.
Ida Susser’s book (free PDF): https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/oa-mono/10.4324/9781003534518/yellow-vests-battle-democracy-ida-susser
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
IdaSusser#YellowVests#giletsjaunes#France#Frenchpolitics#EmmanuelMacron#neoliberalism#welfarestate#socialmovements#grassrootsprotest#workingclass#democracy#authoritarianism#policeviolence#BlackLivesMatter#anthropology#urbaninequality#rustbelt#deindustrialization#leftpolitics#politicaleconomy#labor#pensions#austerity#populism#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast #zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we interview philosopher Dr. John K. Roth to discuss his latest book, ”Saving the American Dream: Meditations for Dark Times.” Roth explores the origins of the American Dream, its dual nature as both an aspiration and a nightmare, and the urgent calls to revive it amid authoritarian threats in 2026.
Our conversation links Dr. Roth’s Holocaust scholarship to America's ideals. Key topics include the Dream's roots in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, its subversion by individualism and exceptionalism, and intersections with Nazi history as a warning.
Dr. Roth shares personal stories: his Fulbright lectures in Austria, Elie Wiesel's influence, and founding Claremont McKenna's human rights center. They critique politicization—from Trump-era rhetoric to Supreme Court decisions eroding voting rights—and debate global contexts like WWII atrocities.
About the Book
“Saving the American Dream” offers 10 meditations to combat poverty, corruption, and inequality: diminish poverty, grow jobs, empower education, promote pluralism, and more. Roth urges Gen Z resistance, echoing MLK and Marx: understand the world, then change
Author Biography
Dr. John K. Roth is Edward J. Sexton Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Claremont McKenna College, where he taught from 1966 to 2006 and founded the Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights (now Mgrublian Center).
A Yale Ph.D. graduate (B.A. Pomona College), Roth has authored/edited over 60 books on Holocaust studies, ethics, and American philosophy. His work spans Fulbright lectures, visiting professorships in Japan and Israel, and awards like U.S. National Professor of the Year.
Purchase the book: https://kingsbookstore.com/book/9798385249206
Link to The Mgrublian Center for Human Rights: https://youtu.be/-UuX1xuaiiE
Link to The Avett Brothers - We Americans (Official Music Video): https://youtu.be/0MKm9TB9b6s?si=g3kshHngBHPQd480
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
savingtheamericandream#johnkroth#meditationsfordarktimes#americandreampodcast#americandemocracy#holocauststudies#genocidestudies#humanrights#martinlutherkingjr#trumperapolitics#authoritarianisminamerica#genzactivism#progressivepolitics#politicalphilosophy#ushistory#heathercoxrichardson#claremontmckennacollege#israelgazadiscussion#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Heather Ann Thompson joins us to discuss “Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage,” her new book about the 1984 Bernie Goetz subway shooting and how it became a flashpoint in the Reagan-era politics of fear, austerity, and race. Drawing on never-before-seen archival materials, Thompson reconstructs what really happened that day on the train and recovers the lives of the four Black teenagers whose stories were buried beneath the vigilante myth. We explore how right-wing media, urban crisis, and a carefully orchestrated conservative project turned Goetz into a folk hero, helped dismantle the New Deal order, and laid the groundwork for Trump-era white rage and punitive “law and order” politics. Along the way, Thompson highlights the courage of families like Daryl Cabey’s and reflects on what this history can teach us about resisting manufactured fear and rebuilding a more just democracy today.
About Heather Ann Thompson
Heather Ann Thompson is a historian, activist, and professor best known for “Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and Its Legacy,” which won the Pulitzer Prize in History. Raised in Detroit and trained in African American studies at the University of Michigan and Princeton, she has spent her career documenting how prisons, policing, and economic policy shape the lives of marginalized communities and the broader contours of American democracy. Her latest book, “Fear and Fury,” continues this project by uncovering how one violent moment on a New York subway helped ignite a national politics of white rage whose consequences we are still living with today.
Resources:
Order the book: https://kingsbookstore.com/book/9780593702093
Webpage: https://www.heatherannthompson.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
fearandfury#heatherannthompson#berniegoetz#bernhardgoetz#subwayvigilante#1984newyorkcitysubwayshooting#reaganeighties#reaganera#whiterage#comingfromleftfieldpodcast#massincarceration#atticauprising#bloodinthewater#waroncrime#warondrugs#ronaldreagan#rightwingmedia#rupertmurdoch#foxnews#brokenwindowspolicing#racialpolitics#racialresentment#newyorkpost#southbronx#vigilantejustice#nra#lawandorderpolitics#trumpera#politicalhistory#americanracism#ushistory#truecrimehistory#urbancrisis#austeritypolitics#PatCummings #PatrickCummings #GregGodels #ZZBlog #ComingFromLeftField #Podcast #zzblog #mltoday
Philosopher and activist Gabriel Rockhill joined us today to discuss his new book, “Who Paid the Piper in Western Marxism?” where he lays out how US imperial power has waged an “intellectual world war” through universities, foundations, journals, and cultural institutions—shaping what counts as radical thought inside the imperial core.
We talk about Che Guevara’s assassination and the battle over his intellectual legacy, the role of the CIA and major foundations in promoting a safe, anti‑communist “Western Marxism,” and how obscure academic language can function to mystify reality rather than clarify it. Rockhill explains why some prominent left academics have reacted so fiercely to his work, and why he believes their careers are bound up with an intellectual franchise that avoids real opposition to imperialism.
The episode also looks forward: how to reconnect with an internationalist, anti‑imperialist Marxist tradition, how to reach a US working class saturated in anti‑communist propaganda, and why building a broad anti‑war, pro‑peace movement is a crucial step toward any serious socialist project today.
About Gabriel Rockhill
Gabriel Rockhill is a philosopher, cultural critic, and political theorist whose work sits at the intersection of critical theory, intellectual history, and radical politics. He is Professor of Philosophy at Villanova University and the Founding Director of the Critical Theory Workshop, an international research and education project that brings together scholars and militants to examine the relationship between theory and practice.
Resources:
Order the book: https://kingsbookstore.com/book/9781685901349
Webpage: https://gabrielrockhill.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
GabrielRockhill#WhoPaidThePiper#WesternMarxism#Marxism#AntiImperialism#CIA#ColdWarCulture#CriticalTheory#FrankfurtSchool#LeftTheory#Socialism#CheGuevara#AcademicLeft#Postmodernism#USEmpire#GlobalSouth#AntiWar#WorkingClass#PatCummings #PatrickCummings #GregGodels #ZZBlog #ComingFromLeftField #Podcast #zzblog #mltoday
In this episode of Coming From Left Field we feature author J. Albert Mann discussing her nonfiction book, “Shift Happens: The History of Labor in the United States,” and why honest labor history for young people is both urgently needed and systematically suppressed. Mann explains that she wrote the book for middle- and high-school readers using accessible language, drawing heavily on left labor historians such as Philip Foner and on Labor’s Untold Story, to create an easily readable narrative that places working-class struggle at the center of U.S. history rather than at the margins.
She talks about the “pyramid of oppression” as a core concept: capitalism maintains power by dividing workers—by race, gender, nationality, citizenship status, and other “bricks in the wall”—so people fight each other instead of the capital–labor relationship that actually determines their conditions. Mann emphasizes that this strategy appears across history, from feudalism through the Gilded Age’s violent strike-breaking (including private armies like the Pinkertons, who at one point employed more armed men than the U.S. Army) to current right-wing media’s focus on scapegoats like welfare recipients and trans youth.
The conversation walks through major episodes from the book—indentured servitude, the first Gilded Age, the Triangle Shirtwaist fire, the Palmer Raids and Red Scare, the destruction of the IWW, the New Deal and CIO era, wars and the rise of the military-industrial complex, and into today’s gig economy and AI—always stressing that labor history is “working-class history” and should be understood inside the broader political and economic context, not as isolated heroic tales. Mann criticizes how children’s literature usually presents labor as decontextualized, hero-centered vignettes (often returning to “safe” events like Triangle where adults can pretend the problem was solved) while largely erasing radical moments such as Haymarket and the deeper role of communists and left organizers.
She also recounts the book’s fraught publication: HarperCollins (owned by Rupert Murdoch) bought the manuscript, then, after legal review, fired her union-editor Stephanie Gordon and tried to kill the book, only relenting after contract pressure—one in-house lawyer reportedly said, “It’s labor. It’ll bury itself.” Mann argues that this reaction, and the near-total failure of contemporary unions to use books like hers as organizing tools for youth, underscores how threatening serious labor education remains to capital, and how essential it is for any future movement that hopes to confront gig work, privatization, and growing inequality
J. Albert Mann is an award winning author of fiction and nonfiction for children and young adults, with a focus on working class history, disability, and social justice. She has written six children’s books and has published short stories and poems in Highlights for Children, where she has received both the Highlights Fiction Award and the Highlights Editor’s Choice Award. Mann holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts.
Her work is shaped by her own experience with disability and by years of disability rights activism, including involvement in the “We Need Diverse Books” movement pushing for disabled protagonists and histories in youth publishing.
Resources:
Order the book: https://kingsbookstore.com/book/9780063273481
Webpage: https://jalbertmann.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
laborhistory# ShiftHappens# J.AlbertMann#unions# workingclass# classstruggle# pyramidofoppression# capitalism# GildedAge# Pinkertons# Haymarket# TriangleShirtwaistfire# RedScare# CIO# PhilipFoner# Labor’sUntoldStory# youthorganizing# laboreducation# gigeconomy# AIandwork# RupertMurdoch# HarperCollins# publishingpolitics# leftpolitics# socialism# solidarity# strikehistory# U.S.history#PatCummings #PatrickCummings #GregGodels #ZZBlog #ComingFromLeftField #Podcast #zzblog #mltoday
Caroline Fraser joins the Coming From Left Field podcast to discuss "Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers," her genre-bending blend of true crime, environmental muckraking, and personal memoir about growing up near Tacoma’s Asarco smelter in the heyday of Ted Bundy and other Pacific Northwest serial killers. Drawing on research about lead and arsenic exposure, brain science, and corporate archives, Fraser argues that heavy metal poisoning, especially from smelters and leaded gasoline, helped shape an era of unprecedented violent crime, while corporations and regulators concealed what they knew to protect profits.
The conversation ranges from the company town politics of Ruston and Kellogg, Idaho, to bankruptcy scams that left taxpayers with Superfund bills, to gendered effects of lead on male and female brains, and the cultural fascination with serial killers. Along the way, Fraser and the hosts connect Murderland to earlier work like Prairie Fires, to Frank Herbert’s Dune as an industrial-ecological parable rooted in Tacoma, and to today’s fights over toxic redevelopment and AI-era data centers, which repeat the same jobs-versus-health trade-offs.
Caroline Fraser is an American nonfiction writer and literary critic best known for her Pulitzer Prize–winning biography “Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder.” Born in Seattle to a Christian Science family, she graduated from Mercer Island High School and later earned a Ph.D. in English and American literature from Harvard University, writing her dissertation on the poet James Merrill.
Fraser previously worked on the editorial staff of The New Yorker and has written for publications such as The New Yorker, The New York Review of Books, The Atlantic Monthly, Outside Magazine, and the London Review of Books. She is the author of several major nonfiction books: “God’s Perfect Child: Living and Dying in the Christian Science Church,” a critical history and memoir about Christian Science; “Rewilding the World: Dispatches from the Conservation Revolution,” on global conservation; “Prairie Fires,” which won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize and 2017 National Book Critics Circle Award in Biography;
Resources:
Order the book: https://kingsbookstore.com/book/9780593657225
Webpage: https://www.carolinefraser.net/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
murderland#CarolineFraser#environmentaljustice#leadpoisoning#serialkillers#arseniccontamination#Asarcosmelter#RustonWashington#TacomaWashington#BunkerHillKelloggIdaho#corporatecrime#latecapitalism#structuralviolence#brainscienceandcrime#frontallobedamage#leadandviolentcrime#Superfundsites#DuneFrankHerbert#LauraIngallsWilder#TedBundy#GaryRidgway#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode, we sit down with sociologist and author Dr. Charles Derber to dig into his new book, “Fighting Oligarchy: How Positive Populism Can Reclaim America.” At a moment when most Americans feel one paycheck away from disaster and both major parties seem unable—or unwilling—to confront corporate power, Derber offers a clear, historically grounded argument for why Trump’s far‑right populism has been so successful and why it keeps enshrining the very corporate establishment it claims to oppose. He traces a long U.S. history of “phony” right‑wing populism, from the Confederacy and the Klan to America First and MAGA, and contrasts it with a largely forgotten tradition of democratic, left populism rooted in the 1890s People’s Party, New Deal‑era worker organizing, and movements that linked economic justice to civil rights and peace. Rather than treating populism as a dirty word, Derber insists it is an inevitable response to deep economic crisis; the question is whether it will be channeled into racist authoritarianism or into a broad, multiracial movement that targets oligarchic capitalism itself.
Over the course of the conversation, we unpack Derber’s notion of “positive populism”: a politics that names the oligarchy directly, connects everyday economic pain to structural corporate power, and pushes for something closer to Northern European–style social democracy—strong unions, universal healthcare, and a state that actually intervenes on behalf of ordinary people. Derber argues that simply “going back to normal” or reviving centrist neoliberalism is a trap that will only prepare the ground for the next Trump, because it leaves intact a system most people already know is rigged. Instead, he lays out core principles of resistance and democratic renewal designed to build a sustainable, caring U.S. democracy capable of confronting climate breakdown, militarism, and corporate rule.
This is a conversation for anyone wrestling with how to fight the oligarchy without falling for fake anti‑establishment politics—and how to rebuild a politics of solidarity in a society that has been deliberately fragmented.
Charles Derber is a professor of sociology at Boston College and a longtime analyst of capitalism, corporate power, and U.S. political regimes. The author of more than thirty books for general and academic audiences, his works include “Sociopathic Society, Corporation Nation, Bonfire: American Sociocide,” and now “Fighting Oligarchy: How Positive Populism Can Reclaim America.” His research and public writing focus on the intertwined crises of global capitalism, militarism, climate change, and the overwhelming power of multinational corporations, as well as the social movements that might transform them. Derber has been described as a leading critical voice on “corpocracy” and the erosion of democracy, and he advocates for broad, bottom‑up movements that can reclaim economic and political life from oligarchic control.
Resources:
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/Fighting-Oligarchy-Universalizing-Resistance-Charles/dp/1041119976/
Webpage: https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/schools/morrissey/departments/sociology/people/faculty-directory/charles-derber.html
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
fightingoligary#howpositivepopulismcanreclaimAmerica#positivepopulism#progressivepopulism#leftpopulism#rightwingpopulism#trumpismexplained#americanoligarchy#usdemocracycrisis#capitalismcritique#corporatepower#workingclasspolitics#americanfascism#bostoncollegesociologist#unionsandlabormovement#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode, we welcome Lorri Nandrea and Tony Pecinovsky to discuss the book they edited, “Square Up: Building Labor's Power in the Second Gilded Age”— a vital call to arms for the working class from International Publishers. Square Up is a collection of 16 essays bringing together activists, organizers, and rank-and-file trade union leaders to assess the state of labor in the Trump era and chart a path forward for the working class. Also joining the discussion is returning guest Chris Townsend — veteran organizer, former political director of United Electrical Workers (UE), and a driving force behind the Starbucks Workers United campaign — whose on-the-ground experience adds sharp tactical and historical depth to the conversation.
The genesis of Square Up, as Pecinovsky explains, grew directly from International Publishers' deliberate effort to expand its left-labor catalog and to spark a discussion within the progressive trade union movement about fighting back against the attacks of the second Trump administration.
The conversation addresses the alarming fact that 40% of union members voted for Trump, with Pecinovsky arguing persuasively that these workers are not ideologically committed to MAGA but are seeking community — something the labor movement has largely failed to provide, as union households, factory towns, and civic institutions have collapsed. Townsend points to the failure of union leadership to politically educate members, contrasting the courage of ATU president Larry Hanley, who endorsed Bernie Sanders against the grain, with today's leaders who simply funnel money to the Democratic Party.
The episode also explores private equity's predatory role in mobile home parks and rural communities, the lessons of the 1987 International Paper strike in Jay, Maine, the history of the Communist Party's indispensable role in labor organizing from the 1930s through Trade Unionists for Action and Democracy (TUAD), and the urgent need to frame immigration as a class struggle issue rather than a culture war one.
Lorri Nandrea is a writer, organizer, and author. She has a background in wide-ranging working-class experience — having worked as a waitress, barista, pizza cook, punch-press operator, and gas-station attendant before earning a PhD in English from Northwestern University — and has spent her career connecting academic analysis to grassroots activism. She writes regularly for People's World and the Communist Party USA, covering labor, climate, and racial justice issues.
Tony Pecinovsky is the President of International Publishers, the storied left-labor publishing house with a century-long history of bringing Marxist and labor literature to American readers. He is the author of "Let Them Tremble: Biographical Interventions Marking 100 Years of the Communist Party, USA," co-editor of "Faith in the Masses," and author of "The Cancer of Colonialism: W. Alphaeus Hunton, Black Liberation, and the Daily Worker, 1944–1946." A community activist and prolific writer, he contributes regularly to People's World, Black Perspectives, American Communist History, and the St. Louis Labor Tribune, and speaks frequently on college campuses across the country.
Chris Townsend is a veteran labor organizer with nearly five decades of experience across four unions — UE (United Electrical Workers), the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), the Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). He served as Political Action Director for UE for 25 years before retiring in 2013 and later helped found the Inside Organizer School at ATU, which became the launchpad for the Starbucks Workers United movement — sending the first wave of union salts into Buffalo stores and igniting a campaign that has now organized nearly 700 locations nationwide.
Resources:
Order the book: https://www.intpubnyc.com/browse/square-up-building-labors-power-in-the-second-gilded-age/
International Publishers webpage: https://www.intpubnyc.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
SquareUp #LaborPower #SecondGildedAge #UnionStrong #LaborMovement #WorkersRights #OrganizeNow #StarbucksWorkersUnited #AmazonWorkers #TonyPecinovsky #InternationalPublishers #CPUSA #LorriNandrea #ChrisTownsend #GrassrootsOrganizing #TradeUnions #AFLCIO #LaborLeft #SaltingUnions #LaborPodcast #ProgressivePolitics #UnionOrganizing#WageInequality #LivingWage #MobileHomePark #PatCummings #PatrickCummings #GregGodels #ZZBlog #ComingFromLeftField #ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast #zzblog #mltoday
This episode centers on a conversation with sociologists Dr. Nicholas Wolfinger and Dr. Matthew McKeever about their book “Thanks for Nothing: The Economics of Single Motherhood since 1980” and what it reveals about poverty, race, and U.S. policy. The hosts discuss the core puzzle: even after four decades of gains in women’s education and employment, single-mother families are still about five times more likely to be poor than two-parent families, just as they were in 1980.
The guests revisit the 1965 Moynihan Report on the “Negro Family,” how it got tangled up with Oscar Lewis’s “culture of poverty” thesis, and how both were weaponized in the culture wars. Wolfinger and McKeever stress that Moynihan’s actual policy prescriptions were economic—jobs programs and large-scale public investment in Black communities—not moral lectures, but that critics (and later conservatives) recast his work as an attack on Black family culture. They trace a longer state preoccupation with “the family,” from Civil War–era pensions for Union widows and anxieties over divorce in Teddy Roosevelt’s day to the backlash against desegregation and the way Brown v. Board rerouted structural segregation into school fights rather than housing policy.
The conversation then turns to single motherhood as an economic condition rather than a moral category. The guests emphasize a simple but often ignored fact: one-earner families have fewer resources than two-earner families, and the majority of people in single-parent families are children. They dismantle the “deserving vs. undeserving poor” narrative that paints single mothers as irresponsible, sexually reckless, or “choosing” poverty, arguing instead that policy has systematically stripped support from families at the bottom while rewarding a subset of working poor through mechanisms like the Earned Income Tax Credit. Programs such as the EITC, they note, do get cash to low-income workers, but they also deepen inequality within the population of single mothers by boosting those who can maintain steady employment while leaving the least advantaged further behind.
A recurring theme is the “fundamental attribution error”: the human tendency to attribute hardship to bad character instead of bad circumstances. The hosts use this to frame how conservative pundits like Ann Coulter talk about single mothers—blaming “promiscuity” and “choices” rather than the collapse of secure jobs, stagnant wages, and the cost of housing and childcare. Wolfinger and McKeever acknowledge that culture, neighborhood effects, and even heritable personality traits can play some role in intergenerational disadvantages, but they insist that the levers governments can actually pull are economic: wages, unions, transfers, and public goods like childcare and schooling.
Nicholas H. Wolfinger is a professor of sociology at the University of Utah, specializing in family demography, marriage and divorce, and social inequality.
Matthew McKeever is Professor of Sociology and Department Chair at Haverford. Prior to that, he was at Mount Holyoke College, Rice University, University of Houston, University of Kentucky, and Yale University.
Resources:
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/Thanks-Nothing-Economics-Single-Motherhood/dp/0199324328
Dr. Wolfinger webpage: http://www.nicholaswolfinger.com/
Dr. McKeever’s webpage: https://www.haverford.edu/users/mmckeever
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
NicholasWolfinger#MatthewMcKeever#ThanksforNothing#singlemotherhood#economicsofsinglemotherhood#singlemothersandpoverty#childpoverty#familypolicy#MoynihanReport#cultureofpoverty#welfarereform#EarnedIncomeTaxCredit#childallowance#basicincome#neoliberalism#Reaganomics#BillClintonwelfarereform#unionsandwages#labormovement#genderandwork# #raceandclass#singleparentfamilies#singlemoms#publicpolicy#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Toby Manning joins the Coming From Left Field Podcast to discuss his book, “Mixing Pop and Politics: A Marxist History of Popular Music,” a sweeping, theory-driven history of commercial popular music from the 1950s to today.
Dr. Manning traces how popular music doesn’t float above politics but is shaped by – and responds to – capitalism, class struggle, race, empire, and changing economic regimes from Fordism/New Deal social democracy to neoliberalism and austerity.
Rather than a narrow history of “protest songs,” he reads big-selling hits and major genres (rock and roll, Motown, soul, reggae, punk, post-punk, hip-hop, grunge, electronic dance music, contemporary pop) as expressions of dominant ideology, resistance, and contradiction inside a profit-driven culture industry. Drawing on Marxist concepts such as alienation, ideology, and dialectics, he shows how music both reflects the world and helps people imagine alternatives.
Toby Manning is a British writer, journalist, critic, and educator based in London. He describes himself as a “professional music geek.” Dr. Manning was born and grew up in North Wales and lived in various parts of the UK before settling in London. He holds a PhD in English and Creative Writing from The Open University, completed in 2015, and much of his later work has developed from his doctoral research. He has written for major UK music and cultural publications such as NME, Q, Mojo, The Word, The Guardian, The Quietus , New Statesman, Red Pepper, and The Big Issue. He has also contributed to journals and essay collections, including work on The Velvet Underground and Talking Heads.
Resources:
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Pop-Politics-Marxist-History/dp/1913462676
Twitter/X: @TobyManning
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TobyLManning/
Spotify Playlists:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6SzgjiHOtNowpny0zqkixQ?si=a0f8a7ad38f642a2
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7As7CSf79iXtQ6p8SCNODL?si=e2bebc6ec514442d
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0mki0qN9TeIxiTn8kfZH1Z?si=923e5c9ee6154dc7
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Greg’s Article on Coltrane: https://mltoday.com/coltrane-s-revolutionary-musical-journey/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
mixingpopandpolitics#marxisthistoryofpopularmusic#tobymanning#popmusicandcapitalism#marxismandmusic#historyofrockandroll#punkandpolitics#hiphopandclass#popularmusicideology#fordismandculture#neoliberalismandmusic#protestmusic#musicandsocialchange#musicandalienation#politicalmusichistory#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this intergenerational dialogue, we welcome writer A.J. Horn, a remarkable young Marxist-Leninist scholar.
We discuss the enduring legacy of the great intellectual, Michael Parenti, who passed away a month ago. We examine what made Parenti’s work—such as his classic “Blackshirts and Reds”—so powerful: his unwavering class analysis, his clear and principled writing, and his ability to trace society's deepest problems back to capitalism and exploitation. Our conversation highlights how Parenti’s approach cuts through the noise of mainstream media and liberal academia, offering a tool for understanding the world that remains as vital as ever.
The discussion then turns to the state of the left today, contrasting the red-baiting fears of past generations with the more open, progressive attitudes of A.J.’s peers. He shares his unique intellectual journey from dystopian novels to the works of Marx and Lenin and details his current projects in writing and organizing.
This episode is a fascinating look at how foundational ideas are passed on and adapted, celebrating Greg’s political activism and legacy with the US communist party while spotlighting the passion and clarity of a compelling new voice on the left.
A.J. Horn describes himself as a Marxist-Leninist dedicated to helping readers better understand socialism and communism by simplifying complex concepts. He identifies as a writer whose primary goal is to educate and mobilize the public against capitalism, liberalism, fascism, and other reactionary movements.
A.J.’s Resources:
Substack: https://substack.com/@ajhornwrites
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SimplifyingSocialism/shorts
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/simplifyingsocialism.substack.com
Newsletter: https://simplifyingsocialism.beehiiv.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
A.J.Horn#AJHorn#MichaelParenti#BlackShirtsandReds#Politicaltheory#ClassAnalysis#MarxistLeninist#Mediacriticism#Organizing#Substackauthor#1984GeorgeOrwell#Dystopianliterature#Socialism#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast episode, we interview Dr. Andy Lee Roth, a sociologist, media scholar, and editor known for his leadership role in the media watchdog group Project Censored. The discussion centers on their latest publication, State of the Free Press 2026, which marks the project's 50th anniversary of highlighting the year's most vital yet underreported news stories. Dr. Roth explains how corporate media systematically censors or distorts critical information and delves into specific examples from the book, including U.S. immigration authorities monitoring social media critics and tech giants like Facebook conducting mass takedowns of content at a government's request.
The conversation broadens to examine the precarious state of press freedom, touching on the decline of local newspapers, the threat of AI-powered misinformation, and the chilling effect of widespread surveillance. While acknowledging these serious challenges, the podcast also strikes a note of cautious optimism, celebrating the rise of a robust independent media landscape and the enduring importance of critical media literacy. Dr. Roth makes a compelling case for supporting non-corporate journalism as an essential tool for defending democracy and an informed public.
Andy Lee Roth is the associate director of Project Censored, a nonprofit media watchdog organization. He coordinates the Campus Affiliates Program, a network of students and faculty at colleges and universities across North America who research and identify the top "censored" news stories. He earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of California–Los Angeles and a BA in Sociology and Anthropology from Haverford College.
Resources:
Order the book: https://www.project-censored.org/shop/p/state-of-the-free-press-2026
Project Censored Website: https://www.project-censored.org/
Beyond Fact-Checking: A Teaching Guide to the Power of News Frames: https://www.projectcensored.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Beyond-Fact-Checking-web.pdf
Movement Media Alliance: https://movement-media.org/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
AndyLeeRoth#AndyRoth#MickeyHuff#ShealeighVoitl#StateoftheFreePress2026#ProjectCensord#FreePress2026#AI#algorithms#SocialMedia#MediaBias#Censorship#FirstAmendment#ICEsurveillance#socialmediamonitoring##AlgorithmicLiteracy#AlanMacleod#KevinGosztola#RobertMcChesney#Censorshipbyproxy#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this timely interview, author and civil rights attorney Alex Karakatsanis unpacks the powerful thesis of his book, “Copaganda: How Police and the Media Manipulate Our News.” He argues that the mainstream news media—including trusted liberal outlets like NPR, the New York Times, and PBS—operates in collaboration with politicians, prosecutors, and the multi-billion dollar prison industry to systematically distort our understanding of crime and safety. Through what he terms "copaganda," these institutions manipulate well-meaning people by narrowing our concept of threat to focus on offenses by the poor and marginalized, while ignoring far greater harms like wage theft and pollution. Karakatsanis masterfully explains how the media uses "selective anecdotes" and sheer volume of coverage to create a false perception that crime is perpetually rising, even when data proves it’s at historic lows, all to justify ever-increasing investments in what he calls the "punishment bureaucracy."
Moving beyond critique, the conversation delves into the real-world consequences of this propaganda machine. Karakatsanis reveals how every crisis, even a police killing, is funneled by the media into demands for more system funding—like more training or more officers—instead of prompting deeper questions about the system's purpose. He dismantles the "common sense" idea that more policing means more safety, presenting compelling data that shows investments in healthcare, housing, and education are vastly more effective. Ultimately, this podcast is a powerful call to recognize how we’ve been deceived and to shift the focus from punishment to addressing the root material conditions—like poverty and inequality—that truly determine community safety.
Alex Karakatsanis is a civil rights attorney, founder of the nonprofit Civil Rights Corps, and author of Usual Cruelty and Copaganda. A former public defender, he has dedicated his career to challenging the inhumanity of the American legal system. His work has been featured in major publications, and he is a leading voice in the movement for abolition and transformative justice.
Follow Alex & Civil Rights Corps:
Order the book: https://thenewpress.org/books/9781620978535/
Civil Rights Corps: https://civilrightscorps.org/
Alex on Twitter/X: @equalityAlec
Subscribe to his newsletter: https://equalityalec.substack.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
copaganda#alexkarakatsanis#criminaljusticereform#policereform#mediabias#massincarceration#prisonindustrialcomplex#defundthepolice#abolition#criminaljusticesystemexplained#UsualCruelty#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZsBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
Carranza Medina was a 42-year-old fisherman killed when the U.S. military bombed his small boat in the Caribbean off Colombia’s coast on September 15, 2025, in a strike the Trump administration described as targeting drug traffickers. In this podcast, we have a conversation with human rights lawyer and author Dan Kovalik, who represents the Carranza family and has filed a petition before the Inter‑American Commission on Human Rights arguing that the United States carried out an extrajudicial killing and violated both his right to life and Colombia’s sovereignty.
Kovalik discusses the escalating U.S. military intervention in the Caribbean, analyzing the blockade of Venezuela, deadly strikes on suspected drug boats, and the return of "gunboat diplomacy" under the Trump administration's new "Monroe Doctrine."
The conversation broadens to include the political struggle across Latin America, speculating why the progressive "Pink Tide" has receded and how right-wing forces have become ascendant. From the coups in Bolivia to the resilience of Cuba and Nicaragua, Kovalik draws crucial lessons for the left. Finally, the hosts confront the parallel erosion of democratic norms at home, the weaponization of the law, the dismantling of the administrative state, and the silent crisis in due process. This is a sobering yet essential analysis of modern imperialism and the urgent fight to inform and mobilize public resistance.
Dan Kovalik has taught International Human Rights at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he has shared his experience with students and broader audiences on labor struggles, Colombia, and international law. He has lectured internationally on human rights and U.S. foreign policy and has been active in public forums, media appearances, and conferences, including talks on Venezuela and other conflict zones.
He is the author of several books, including:
-
- The Plot to Scapegoat Russia (2017), on efforts in U.S. politics to vilify Russia.
- The Plot to Attack Iran and The Plot to Control the World, extending his critique of U.S. foreign policy and election interference abroad.
- The Plot to Overthrow Venezuela: How the US Is Orchestrating a Coup for Oil, with a foreword by filmmaker Oliver Stone.
- No More War: How the West Violates International Law by Using “Humanitarian” Intervention to Advance Economic and Strategic Interests (co-authored, 2020).
- The Case for Palestine: Why It Matters and Why You Should Care (2024), with a foreword by George Galloway.
Dan Kovalik’s Wikipedia Page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Kovalik
Dan Kovalik’s Books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Dan-Kovalik/author/B06XZ9ZRSD
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
DanKovalik#Venezuelablockade#USinterventionVenezuela#MonroeDoctrine#extrajudicialkillings#Colombiafishermanlawsuit#Inter-AmericanCommissionHumanRights#regimechange#gunboatdiplomacy#LatinAmericapolitics#PinkTide#USLatinAmericapolicy#Trumpforeignpolicy#oilwars#politicalassassination#dueprocess#humanrightslaw#NicaraguaCuba#socialisminLatinAmerica#USimperialism##PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZsBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this deep-dive episode, we sit down with legendary investigative journalist and author John Dinges to discuss his acclaimed book, “Chile in Their Hearts: The Untold Story of Two Americans Who Went Missing After the Coup.”
Journey back to the early 1970s, when Chile became the global epicenter for progressive hope, attracting thousands of idealistic foreigners, including young Americans, to witness Salvador Allende's democratic "revolution with red wine and empanadas." Dinges, who was there, sets the scene of this vibrant, politically charged moment.
The heart of the conversation is Dinges's decades-long investigation into the fates of two such Americans—Charles Horman and Frank Teruggi—who were killed after Pinochet's brutal 1973 coup. We tackle difficult truths and enduring myths, including the 1982 Academy Award-winning film, “Missing.” Dinges reveals his startling conclusion: while the U.S. government did not directly order their deaths, it was utterly complicit in the regime's terror and the ensuing cover-up.
We also explore Operation Condor, the sinister international assassination network Dinges helped expose, detailing the intimate and damning role of U.S. intelligence. This is a masterclass in investigative journalism, as Dinges explains why following the evidence—even when it contradicts your beliefs—is paramount.
John Dinges is an American investigative journalist, author, and longtime chronicler of U.S. involvement in Latin America, especially during the era of military dictatorships. He began his career at the Des Moines Register & Tribune and later worked as a freelance correspondent in Latin America, serving as a special correspondent for Time, The Washington Post, and ABC Radio. Dinges worked on the foreign desk of The Washington Post and then at NPR, where he became managing editor and helped shape the network’s foreign coverage.
Get the Book: https://www.ucpress.edu/books/chile-in-their-hearts/paper
John Dinges’s Homepage: https://johndinges.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/
JohnDinges#Chile#ChileInTheirHearts#1973#Chilemilitarycoup#SalvadorAllende#Pinochetdictatorship#OperationCondor#CharlesHorman#FrankTeruggi#Missingmovie1982#USinterventionChile#CIALatinAmerica#HenryKissingerChile#Investigativejournalism#LatinAmericanhistory#ColdWarChile#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZsBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast is an interview with Dr. Carla Kaplan, author of the biography "Troublemaker: The Life and Times of Jessica Mitford." The conversation centers on the extraordinary life of Jessica "Decca" Mitford, one of the famous (and famously eccentric) Mitford sisters.
Jessica "Decca" Mitford was an aristocratic British rebel who became a formidable American left-wing activist and muckraking journalist. Born into the famously eccentric Mitford family—where her sisters included a Nazi sympathizer and a fascist—Decca rejected her life of privilege to join the Communist Party in the United States. As the author explains, Decca was a "biographer's gift": fiercely principled, incredibly hard-working, and gifted with a brilliant sense of humor that she used as a powerful tool for activism. Her training in the Communist Party, particularly on the West Coast, taught her to listen to marginalized communities, shaping her into a highly effective and empathetic ally in the civil rights movement.
Dr. Carla Kaplan is a distinguished scholar in American literature, women’s writing, African American literature, and feminist theory. She holds the Davis Distinguished Professorship in American Literature at Northeastern University and founded the Humanities Center to encourage diversity and interdisciplinary dialogue. Her academic career includes roles at Yale University, the University of Southern California, Wellesley College, and the University of Illinois. Dr. Kaplan also teaches writing through various arts councils and writers’ centers. She earned a Ph.D. in English from Northwestern University.
Get the Book: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/troublemaker-carla-kaplan
Dr. Kaplan’s Homepage: https://carlakaplan.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
JessicaMitford#Troublemakerbiography#CarlaKaplaninterview#Mitfordsisters#DeccaMitford#AmericanWayofDeath#CommunistPartyUSA#muckrakingjournalism#leftwingactivism#biographypodcast#Britisharistocracy#fascistMitfordsisters#DianaMitford#UnityMitford#civilrightsmovement#investigativejournalism#funeralindustryexpose#famouswritersschool#historicalbiography#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast we discuss the just released book, “No Neutrals There,” in which labor historian Dr. Jeff Schuhrke outlines the US labor movement's century-long, official alliance with Zionism and Israel, arguing that this stance was driven both by early ideological sympathy for Labor Zionism and, more significantly, by the labor bureaucracy's strategic alignment with US imperial aims during the Cold War and the "War on Terror." He reveals a history of top-down suppression of internal dissent, where national leaders routinely quashed rank-and-file efforts to support Palestinian rights and the BDS movement.
However, Dr. Schuhrke also highlights a persistent tradition of grassroots solidarity, a movement galvanized by the ongoing genocide in Gaza, which has created significant cracks in the official position and serves as a critical litmus test for a labor movement at a crossroads, forcing it to choose between entrenched power and principled internationalism.
This book, “No Neutrals There,” was released three weeks ago, and we were honored to be one of his first interviews. Other publications to feature his work which focus on the intersections of labor, foreign policy, and political organizing, with a particular emphasis on current events and historical trajectories within the US labor movement include Democracy Now!, Jacobin, In These Times, Common Dreams, Jewish Currents, and Workday Magazine.
Dr. Jeff Schuhrke is a labor historian, journalist, union activist, and assistant professor at the Harry Van Arsdale Jr. School of Labor Studies, SUNY Empire State University in New York City. He has a Ph.D. in History from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Master's in Labor Studies from UMass Amherst.
Get the Book: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2608-no-neutrals-there
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
JeffSchuhrke#NoNeutralsThere# USLaborZionismandtheStruggleforPalestine#AFL#CIO#AFLCIO#CIA#AFCIO#Zionism#Palestine#LaborHistory#Imperialism#AntiCommunism#Genocide#Gaza#RankandFileOrganizing#GeorgeMeany#LaneKirkland#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Think you know the story of the American Revolution? Think again. In this episode, acclaimed author and history professor Dr. Richard Bell joins the podcast to discuss his book "The American Revolution and the Fate of the World,” where he dismantles the myths and explores the shocking global story behind America's founding.
Forget the simple tale of colonists vs. the British crown. Dr. Bell reveals the Revolution as a world war, a chaotic and contingent struggle whose outcome was never certain. We dive into the fascinating, often overlooked connections to China, India, and the Caribbean, and uncover the critical roles played by Native Americans, enslaved Africans, and European powers.
Dr. Richard Bell is a historian and professor specializing in early American history, currently serving as a Professor of History at the University of Maryland.
Dr. Bell received his BA from the University of Cambridge and his PhD from Harvard University. He joined the University of Maryland in 2006, earned tenure in 2012, and was promoted to full professor in 2020. His teaching and research focus on American history between 1750 and 1877, with a particular emphasis on social history, slavery, and revolutionary transformation.
Get the Book: https://kingsbookstore.com/book/9780593719510
Richard Bell’s Website: https://www.richard-bell.com
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
RichardBell#TheAmericanRevolutionandtheFateoftheWorld#AmericanRevolution#RevolutionaryWar#USHistory#WorldHistory#GlobalHistory#FoundingFathers#EarlyAmerica#MythvsHistory#Loyalists#250thAnniversary#Washington#KenBurns#ThomasJefferson#KingGeorgeIII#MollyBrant#HarryWashington#Hessians#MarquisdeLafayette#BenedictArnold#PeggyShippen#BaronvonSteuben#PatCummings#GregGodels#CFLF#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode, acclaimed author and law professor Joan Williams joins the podcast to discuss her book "Outclassed: How the Left Lost the Working Class and How to Win Them Back."
Williams delivers a powerful diagnosis of the political rift dividing America, arguing that the Democratic Party has become dominated by a cosmopolitan elite and has alienated the "middle 50%" of Americans through economic neglect and cultural condescension. She describes how alienation is a primary reason for Trump’s appeal.
The conversation offers a roadmap for how the left can reconnect by acknowledging a rigged economy, ditching neoliberal policies, and finally showing respect for the communities it has left behind. The New York Times Magazine described Joan Williams as having “something approaching rock star status” in a 2007 profile highlighting her influence as a leading voice on gender equality and workplace reform. She is currently Distinguished Professor of Law (emerita) at the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, and previously at American University. As Founding Director of WorkLife Law (WLL), Williams has played a leading role in documenting workplace bias against mothers. In 2012, Williams was honored with the American Bar Foundation's Outstanding Scholar Award.
Get the Book: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250368980/outclassed/
Mentioned in the podcast- Class Bubble Quiz: https://www.classbubblequiz.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
JoanWilliams#Outclassed#WorkingClass#DemocraticParty#TrumpVoters#PoliticalDivide#ClassDynamics#DEI#CulturalElites#EconomicInequality#Wages#GigEconomy#Neoliberalism#Populism#Classism#Cosmopolitanisvs.Rootedness#WhiteWorkingClass#EconomicAnxiety#PoliticalRealignment#UnionDecline#StoptheSteal#BrahminLeft#CulturalCondescension#HillaryClintonDeplorables#DonaldTrump#JDVance#JohnFetterman#RubenGallego#RachelMaddow#TeaParty#JenniferSherman#NewDealCoalition#PatCummings#GregGodels#CFLF#ComingFromLeft Field#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode of "Coming from Left Field," we discuss the book, "Domestic Causes of American War: Economic and Political Triggers," with author and former National Security Analyst for Congress, Dr. Ivan Eland. This is a provocative reassessment of American military history. Dr. Eland systematically argues that the standard narrative of the United States going to war for national security and democratic ideals is largely a myth. Instead, he contends that the true drivers behind most major US conflicts, from the early Barbary Wars and the War of 1812 through the World Wars and up to the invasion of Iraq, have been domestic economic interests and political calculations. This revisionist history challenges us to see past patriotic rhetoric and recognize a persistent pattern where commerce, territorial expansion, and the political benefits of war have consistently outweighed genuine defensive needs.
Dr. Eland's analysis extends to re-evaluating America's most "righteous" wars, suggesting that even the Civil War and World War II were more complex and less morally clear-cut than traditional histories claim. A central theme of his work is the powerful role of the "military-industrial-congressional complex," an iron triangle of defense bureaucracy, weapons manufacturers, and Congress that perpetuates interventionist policies for economic gain. The book ultimately serves as a cautionary tale, urging greater public skepticism toward the justifications for war and highlighting the recurring and often ill effects that these conflicts have had on American society and civil liberties.
Dr. Eland has worked for more than four decades in the fields of foreign policy, national security, energy, and presidential studies, including 16 years working for the U.S. Congress. He is currently the Director of the Center on Peace and Liberty at the Independent Institute. Dr. Eland has written and published eight other books, written many pieces in prominent newspapers and journals, appeared on hundreds of major TV and radio interviews, and testified before congressional committees. He has a PhD in defense policy, an MBA in business economics, and a BA in Poli Sci/International Relations. Dr. Eland is the author of many books, including the forthcoming US Role in a New Multipolar World: Less Military Intervention Brings More Security with Fewer Costs. Some of his eight previously published books have won publishing awards. He is a contributor to numerous other books and the author of forty-five in-depth studies on national security issues.
Get the Book: https://www.claritypress.com/product/domestic-causes-of-american-wars-economic-political-triggers/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
DomesticCausesofWar#EconomicTriggers#PoliticalTriggers#MilitaryIndustrialCongressionalComplex#IronTriangle#Warof1812#MexicanAmericanWar#SpanishAmericanWar#CivilWar#WorldWarI#WorldWarII#VietnamWar#WarinAfghanistan#IraqWar#WaronTerror#IndependentInstitute#Libertarianism#GeopoliticalConcepts#TerritorialExpansion#CommerceProtection#Isolationismvs.Interventionism#Sanctions#IsraelGazaConflict#PatCummings#GregGodels#CFLF#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode of "Coming from Left Field," we sit down with world-renowned neuroscientist Dr. Robert Zatorre to discuss his book “From Perception to Pleasure: The Neuroscience of Music and Why We Love It.”
We discuss the connection between music and the human brain, exploring how abstract sounds are transformed into intense emotional experiences and profound pleasure. Dr. Zatorre shares the fascinating science behind musical "chills," why we have emotional epiphanies with new music, and how our brains are physically rewired by the music we love.
Moving from the laboratory to daily life, the conversation delves into the vital role music plays in our social and emotional well-being. We discover why musical taste is formed during adolescence, how music functions as a powerful tool for mood regulation across all cultures, and the critical importance of music education. Dr. Zatorre also addresses the puzzling question of why some people don't enjoy music at all, a condition known as "musical hedonia." If you've ever wondered why a particular song can evoke such a profound emotional response, our discussion offers an accessible look at the neuroscience behind one of life's greatest joys.
Robert Zatorre, PhD, is a distinguished cognitive neuroscientist renowned for pioneering work in the science of music and auditory cognition. He is a professor at the Montreal Neurological Institute of McGill University in Canada, where he holds a Canada Research Chair in Auditory Cognitive Neuroscience. In his lab, he studies how the brain processes complex auditory abilities, especially speech and music. He has published over 300 scientific papers spanning topics such as pitch perception, auditory imagery, music production, absolute pitch, and the role of brain reward circuitry in musical pleasure.
Get the Book: https://www.amazon.com/Perception-Pleasure-Neuroscience-Music-Love/dp/0197558283/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
FromPerceptiontoPleasure#TheNeuroscienceofMusicandWhyWeLoveIt#neuroscienceofmusic#RobertZatorre#neuroscience#musicpsychology#brainscience#whywelovemusic#musicandthebrain#cognitivescience#dopamine#auditorycortex#neuroplasticityandmusic#musicalhedonia#musicchills#fromperceptiontopleasure#McGillUniversityneuroscience#PatCummings#GregGodels#CFLF#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we have a conversation with poet Bill Ehrhart, whose new poetry book, “Smart Fish Don’t Bite,” serves as a testament to a life fully examined. While Ehrhart's identity is often intertwined with the war—a theme he explores but resists being solely defined by—the discussion reveals a writer whose poetry grapples with a vast range of human experience, from the nostalgic innocence of childhood and the enduring comfort of love and friendship to sharp, satirical critiques of modern politics.
The interview traces his unconventional path to becoming a writer, sustained by his wife's support and his own determination to prioritize art over career, and evolves into a broader philosophical reflection on memory, aging, and finding perspective in the face of political and personal turmoil, all punctuated by readings of his evocative and powerful poems.
Ehrhart is a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Vietnam War and was involved with Vietnam Veterans Against the War. He has authored numerous books of prose and poetry, such as "Vietnam-Perkasie: a Combat Marine Memoir" and "Thank You for Your Service: Collected Poems." He is a prominent interview subject in the 2017 PBS documentary by Ken Burns, “The Vietnam War.” Ehrhart earned a PhD from the University of Wales at Swansea and worked for many years as a Master Teacher of English and History at the Haverford School for Boys, retiring in 2019.
0:00 - Introduction to Bill Ehrhart
16:17 - Poem: "Eating Oysters in Easton"
24:24 - Poem: "Things My Mother Gave Me"
30:54 - Poem: "Night Stalkers"
38:11 - Poem: "On Smedley Butler's Grave"
44:46 - Poem: "Cycling at Vésinet"
48:28 - Discussion on Politics & Poem: "Soup Can Blues"
53:38 - Poem: "MAGA Voter's Lament"
55:30 - Philosophical Discussion on History & Democracy
Get the Book: https://moonstone-arts-center.square.site/product/ehrhart-w-d-smart-fish-don-t-bite/YD2QGAXXBUFHBNEM4K6HS6AF
Mentioned: Hollywood Progressive article "Cycling at Vesinet" https://hollywoodprogressive.com/art/cycling-at-vesinet
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
BillEhrhart#WDEhrhart#SmartFishDon'tBite#PoetryReading#VietnamVeteran#PoetInterview#WarPoetry#KenBurnsVietnam#SmedleyButler#HaverfordSchool#VeteranStories#AntiWarPoetry#GregGodels#PatCummings#CFLF#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
Richard Beck was 14 years old when planes flew into the Twin Towers on 9/11. He grew up in a Philadelphia suburb as a “mainstream liberal Democrat,” and during high school, was more concerned with music than politics. After graduating from Harvard, Beck moved to New York, where he still resides, and began contributing to the progressive journal n+1,a print and digital magazine of literature, culture, and politics.
In this podcast, we discuss his new book, “Homeland: The War on Terror in American Life,” a groundbreaking history of how the decades-long war on terror changed virtually every aspect of American life.
Key Themes Discussed:
- Impunity Culture: A major shift was the open defense of previously clandestine or denied practices (like torture) by officials from both parties (Bush and Obama administrations). This created a precedent where powerful figures face no consequences for their actions.
- Media & Propaganda: The press became "stenographers" for power, exemplified by Judith Miller's reporting in the New York Times, which helped propagandize the case for war.
- Political Culture: A climate of intense nationalism and suppression of dissent was created (e.g., the backlash against the Dixie Chicks).
- Pop Culture as a Reflection: Superhero movies (e.g., Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, Iron Man) are analyzed as cultural products that processed the anxieties of the War on Terror, glorifying special forces-type heroes and wrestling with themes of torture, surveillance, and extra-legal violence.
- New Atheism: The movement (Hitchens, Harris, Dawkins, etc.) is criticized for devolving into a racist, Islamophobic project that framed the conflict as a "clash of civilizations," similar to the Bush administration's rhetoric.
- The Economic Purpose ("The Missing Why"): A significant portion of the discussion focuses on the book's third section, which argues that the War on Terror had a deeper economic logic.
- The Illusion of Democracy: The hosts and Beck reference a study suggesting that U.S. government policy has no statistical relationship to public opinion, arguing that the undemocratic trends exacerbated by the War on Terror were long underway.
Get the Book: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780593240229
Mentioned: https://www.nplusonemag.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
RichardBeck#Homeland:TheWaonTerrorandAmericanLife#WeBelievetheChildren#WaronTerror#9/11#AmericanPolitics#HomelandSecurity#ImpunityCulture#PoliticalEconomy#DonaldTrump#GeorgeW.Bush#BarackObama#n+1Magazine#SuperheroMovies#NewAtheism#Islamophobia#Trumpism#Authoritarianism#DemocraticErosion#U.S.Hegemony#Torture#Surveillance#MilitaryIndustrialComplex#GregGodels,PatCummings,CFLF,ComingFromLeftField,Podcast,zzblog,mltoday
Was the founding of the United States a "great leap forward for humanity" or a project deeply rooted in slavery and settler colonialism?
In this episode, we sit down with renowned historian Dr. Gerald Horne to discuss his new book, “The Capital of Slavery: Washington, D.C. 1800-1865.”
We dismantle the myth of Washington, D.C. as a pure symbol of democracy and reveal its brutal reality as the nerve center of American slavery. We discuss how enslaved people were sold in the shadow of the Capitol and how their resistance—including joining the British to burn the White House in 1814—shaped the nation's politics.
We explore:
- How the "unpaid sector of the working class" built the capital and constantly challenged their oppression.
- The direct link between the American Colonization Society (which created Liberia) and the backlash against Black resistance.
- The parallels between the Fugitive Slave Act and modern ICE raids, and the historical roots of family separation.
- Why this suppressed history is so threatening that it sparks modern-day battles over "woke" museums and critical race theory.
Dr. Horne places this history in an urgent contemporary context, arguing that understanding this past is essential to comprehending the rise of neo-fascism and the political struggles of today. This is a conversation about America’s hidden past and the fight for its future.
Horne received his undergraduate education at Princeton, received his Ph.D. from Columbia University, and a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. He is currently the John J. and Rebecca Moores Chair of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston.
Get the Book: https://www.intpubnyc.com/browse/capital-of-slavery/
Mentioned: https://www.kpfk.org/on-air/freedom-now/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
GeraldHorne#AmericanHistory#Slavery#WashingtonDCCapital Slavery# 1619Project#AmericanRevolution#SettlerColonialism#BlackHistory#Historiography#Trump#Fascism#Smithsonian#Reparations#IndigenousHistory#BookInterview#CriticalRaceTheory#NatTurner#GregGodels#PatCummings#CFLF#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode of Coming from Left Field, we engage in a thought-provoking conversation with author Leigh Claire La Berge about her book “Fake Work: How I Began to Suspect Capitalism is a Joke.” Drawing from her surreal experience documenting Y2K compliance for a Fortune 500 company—a job focused on generating legal cover rather than solving technical issues— La Berge explores the absurdity of modern corporate culture and how "bullshit jobs" reveal deeper flaws in capitalism.
The discussion touches on Marxist critiques, parallels between the dot-com bubble and today’s AI hype, and La Berge’s humorous project Marx for Cats, which uses feline behavior to explain economic theory.
Blending memoir, satire, and political analysis, the episode challenges listeners to rethink the meaning of work while offering sharp insights into alienation, class dynamics, and the possibility of systemic change.
Get the Book: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2534-fake-work
Mentioned: http://marxforcats.com
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
LeighClaireLaBerge#FakeWork#HowIBegantoSuspectCapitalismisaJoke#Capitalism#Marxism#BullshitJobs#Y2K#CorporateCulture#MarxforCats#DavidGraeber#LateStageCapitalism#GregGodels#PatCummings#CFLF#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
Join us for a heartfelt and thought-provoking conversation with poet Janice Cummings O’Mahony as we dive into her new collection of poetry, “Raise Your Hand If You Hear My Voice,” exploring memory, family, love, grief, and resilience.
Janice’s work blends nostalgia with sharp wit, tackling themes like childhood, military trauma, aging, and social justice. Her poems move seamlessly between emotional depth and snarky humor, offering a raw and authentic look at life’s complexities.
In This Episode, We Discuss:
- Why Janice turned to poetry after a career in social work and government
- How her father’s PTSD from WWII and Korea shaped her writing
- The challenge of editing poetry—killing your "darlings" for clarity
- Feminist themes in poems like "Sleeper Cell" and "Decorum"
- Satirical takes on privilege in "First World Musing"
- The haunting reality of gun violence in "Uvalde Lament"
Why You’ll Love This Episode:
- Poetry for skeptics: Even if you’re not a poetry fan, Janice’s earthy, relatable style might change your mind.
- Personal & political: From family secrets to social critique, her work bridges the intimate and the universal.
- Raw readings: Hear Janice perform excerpts, including Pat reading the poignant "Morning Glory” and Greg reading darkly funny "Bad Art."
Get the Book: JaniceO’Mahony.com (https://JaniceOMahony.com )
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
JaniceOmahony#JaniceCummingsOmahony#O’Mahony#RaiseYourHandIfYouHearMyVoice#Poetry #PoetryPodcast #PoetryCommunity #PoetryLovers #SpokenWord #AuthorInterview #PoetInterview #BookLaunch #NewBook #PoetryBook#MemoryPoetry #FamilyPoetry #LovePoems #GriefAndHealing #Resilience #MilitaryPTSD #VeteranStories #WhidbeyIsland#FeministPoetry #SocialJustice #AgingAndTime#GregGodels#PatCummings#CFLF#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast #zzblog #mltoday
In this thought-provoking episode, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Greg Grandin joins us to discuss his groundbreaking book, “America, América: The Origins of Hemispheric and Global Hegemony,” which challenges traditional narratives of U.S. history by centering Latin America’s pivotal role.
We discuss:
- Why does U.S. history begin with the Mayflower—and not the Spanish conquest?
- How did Latin America pioneer social rights (healthcare, education) decades before the U.S. or Europe?
- The dark legacy of U.S. intervention: From Cold War coups to the rise of Trumpist politics in Latin America today.
- Myth-busting the frontier, the Catholic Church’s dual legacy, and the untold stories of Indigenous resistance.
We also debate FDR’s New Deal, the failures of neoliberalism, and why Latin America’s leftist "Pink Tide" (Chávez, Lula, Morales) faced backlash—leading to today’s right-wing surge (Bolsonaro, Milei, Bukele).
This is a must-listen for history buffs, political junkies, and anyone questioning the standard U.S. origin story!
Order the book: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780593831250
Greg Grandin Website: https://greggrandin.com/
Follow Greg Grandin on Twitter: @GregGrandin
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
GregGrandin #USHistory #America, América # The Origins of Hemispheric and Global Hegemony #LatinAmerica #AmericanRevolution # Pulitzer Prize-winning historian #ColdWar #PinkTide #SocialRights #Trumpism #PoliticalHistory #American Revolution #Spanish Conquest #Colonialism #New Deal #Cold War in Latin America # Indigenous Resistance #GregGodels# PatCummings#CFLF#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast #zzblog #mltoday
This episode features an interview with Pam Beal, a board member of Radio Tacoma (KTAH 101.9), a grassroots low-power FM station dedicated to democratizing media and amplifying local voices.
Pam attended Wilson High School, Concordia Lutheran College, and Reed College. She received her Ph.D. in English (dissertation on William Blake and Enlightenment philosophy) from SUNY Buffalo, which provides a perfect background to run a community radio station.
Radio Tacoma is part of the rise of low-power FM (LPFM) community radio stations, focusing on local content that includes progressive politics, labor rights, climate activism, indigenous rights, and the homegrown music and poetry scene.
Coming From Left Field has been added to the content broadcast on Radio Tacoma, making this a reciprocal interview that blends media critique, local activism, and radical philosophy, with a common “left field” ethos shared by the podcast and station.
Radio Tacoma (KTAH 101.9): https://radiotacoma.org
Also streamed on TuneIn: http://tun.in/sfyVw
Radio Tacoma Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RadioTacoma101.9
Find your LPFM station: https://lpfmdatabase.weebly.com/
Good resource for LPFMs: https://recnet.com
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
PamBeal #CommunityRadio #LowPowerFM #LeftistPodcast #MediaJustice #Tacoma #Activism #CommunityRadio #LowPowerFM #IndependentMedia #GrassrootsJournalism #MediaReform #Political & Philosophical #LeftistPodcast #Marxism #Socialist #ProgressiveTalk #AntiCapitalism #ChristianSocialism #LiberationTheology #Tacoma #GritCity #LocalPolitics #ActivistRadio #ClimateJustice #IndigenousRights #PublicBanking #RadioTacoma #SarahAugustine #PoliceReform #NoamChomsky #GregGodels# PatCummings#CFLF#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast #zzblog #mltoday
This is a 10-minute "deep dive" overview of the Coming From Left Field Podcast created by Google's AI NotebookLM research assistant. It provides a summary of the content and highlights selective episodes that have been aired over the past four years, where we discuss politics, history, economics, social justice, media, and philosophy—often from a critical, leftist perspective.
Core Themes Include:
- Politics & History: Critique of mainstream narratives, discussions on democracy, imperialism, and historical events (e.g., Greensboro massacre).
- Economics & Labor: Focus on neoliberalism, wealth inequality, and labor movements.
- Education & Media: Analysis of education policy, media bias, and press freedom (e.g., Julian Assange coverage).
- Social Justice: Indigenous rights, civil rights, and critiques of policing.
- Philosophy & Marxism: Deep dives into Marxist theory, socialism, and ideological debates.
- Health & Culture: Intersections of politics and health, mental health, and occasional cultural topics (poetry, music).
Final Thought:
I hope you will conclude that our podcast exemplifies how niche, persistent media can deepen public engagement with specific ideologies and counter-narratives, filling gaps left by traditional news cycles.
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Leftist podcast#Political analysis#Socialist podcast#Marxist theory#Progressive media#Critical politics#American imperialism#Labor movement history#Neoliberalism critique# Media bias explained# Education reform debate# Capitalism vs socialism# Academic discussions# Book review podcast#Investigative journalism#Greg Godels# Pat Cummings#CFLF#Coming From Left FieldPodcast,zzblog,mltoday
In this episode, we dive deep into America's social crisis with sociologist Charlie Derber, author of “Bonfire of America: Sociocide, Broken Relationships, and the Quest for Democracy.” Derber explores the concept of "sociocide"—the systemic unraveling of societal bonds—arguing that hyper-individualism, neoliberal economics, and political polarization have eroded trust, community, and collective identity. The discussion traces how Reagan-era policies, Silicon Valley's disruption, and the Democratic Party's abandonment of class solidarity have fueled Trumpism as a symptom, not an anomaly. While bleak, Derber highlights grassroots resistance as a path forward, warning against nostalgia for a pre-Trump "normal" that never addressed inequality. A provocative mix of history, sociology, and urgent political critique that concludes with a tone of hope for a better future.
Order the book: https://tinyurl.com/5t3ye96s
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Sociocide# Trumpism# Neoliberalism# Political polarization# Social capital# Decline of democracy# Economic inequality# Authoritarianism# Charlie Derber# Leftist podcast# Breakdown of society# Civic deserts# Loneliness epidemic# Working-class alienation# Democratic Party failure# Silicon Valley billionaires# Fascism in America# Social media isolation# Resistance movements# Fight oligarchy# Political sociology# American crisis# Democracy podcast# Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Coming From Left Field#CFLF#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this episode of Coming from Left Field, we dive into America’s broken elder care system with Judy Karofsky, author of “DisElderly Conduct: The Flawed Business of Assisted Living and Hospice.” We discuss how corporate greed and lack of regulation have turned assisted living into a profit-driven nightmare, where facilities—often run by private equity firms—prioritize cost-cutting over resident dignity. With shocking stories from Judy’s own mother’s ordeal (including wrongful death notices and evictions), the conversation highlights systemic neglect, underpaid staff, and families left powerless.
Our discussion pivots to solutions, from policy reforms (like Biden’s stalled staffing mandates) to grassroots activism. Judy’s book serves as a rallying cry, comparing the crisis to Silent Spring—a wake-up call to demand dignity for the elderly. While the system feels rigged, the episode ends on a note of defiance: by sharing stories, organizing, and pressuring lawmakers, change is possible. This is a raw, urgent look at a crisis affecting us all—because, as Judy warns, “Every one of us will need or provide this care someday.”
Order the book: https://diselderlyconduct.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
private equity healthcare#elder care crisis#assisted living problems#nursing home abuse# private equity healthcare#elder care costs#aging in America# hospice c#are flaws#Judy Karofsky interview#Diselderly#Conduct book#senior living scams#Medicare assisted living#elder care reform#caregiver burnout#elder rights advocacy#aging parents care#elder care horror stories#VA vs private elder care#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Coming From Left Field#CFLF#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we discuss Greg's article "Obscene Wealth" from MLToday, based on Gabriel Zucman's research on U.S. wealth inequality. Zucman reveals that in 2024, the wealth of the top 0.00001% (19 households) increased by $1 trillion, surpassing Switzerland’s GDP. The top 10% possess 67% of the wealth, while the bottom 50% hold just 3%, leading to economic and political marginalization. The article argues that capitalism inherently concentrates wealth, reinforcing class divisions between capital owners and workers.
A few topics we cover in our conversation include:
- Why wealth inequality is worse than income inequality—and how it strangles democracy.
- The death of the middle class: From thriving factory towns to hollowed-out economies.
- Cold War secrets: How post-WWII prosperity was a fluke (and why it collapsed).
- Why both Democrats & Republicans serve the ultra-rich (hint: lobbyists, gerrymandering, and media control).
- Possible answer: Replacing capitalism with socialism is presented as a viable solution.
Article in MLToday: https://mltoday.com/obscene-wealth/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Obscene Wealth #Wealth Inequality #Billionaires #Late Stage Capitalism #Robber Barons #1Percent #Oligarchy #Marxist Analysis #Rust Belt #Working Class #Leftist Podcast #Economic Justice #Jeff Bezos #Elon Musk #Dark Money#Rust Belt #Democracy In Decline#Leftist Podcast##Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Coming From Left Field#CFLF#Podcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast we discuss Greg’s recent article in MLToday: “Antonio Gramsci: Theirs and Ours.”
Gramsci, an Italian Marxist philosopher, theorized that ruling classes maintain power through cultural hegemony—controlling institutions like media, education, and religion to shape societal norms. Surprisingly, today’s far-right (e.g., Steve Bannon, Christopher Rufo, Marine Le Pen) has weaponized Gramsci’s ideas, using his playbook to dominate politics by attacking "wokeness," reshaping schools, and leveraging media.
Meanwhile, the left has fragmented into identity politics, failing to unite around class struggle or build a counter-hegemonic movement. Gramsci’s lesson is clear: to challenge authoritarianism, progressives must reclaim cultural institutions and prioritize collective working-class solidarity over divisive individualism. The right understands this; the left must relearn it.
Article in MLToday: https://mltoday.com/antonio-gramsci-theirs-and-ours/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
MLToday#Theirs and Ours#Antonio Gramsci#Steve Bannon#Christopher Rufo#Marine Le Pen#Javier Milei#Giorgia Meloni#Mussolini#Lenin#Karl Marx#Eric Hobsbawm#Cultural Hegemony#Marxism-Leninism#Class Struggle#Identity Politics#Manufacturing Consent (Chomsky)#Intersectionality#Critical Race Theory (CRT)#Far-Right Populism#MAGA Movement#Project 2025#Neofascism#Wokeness#Media Propaganda#Left’s Fragmentation#Right’s Cultural Offensive#Liberalism’s Failures#Academic Elitism#Transgender Rights Debate#)#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday
Our podcast features Stephen Gowans, a Canadian political analyst, author, and activist known for his anti-imperialist and socialist views on U.S. foreign policy, capitalism, and Western interventionism.
Gowans authored The Killer's Henchman: Capitalism and the Covid-19 Disaster (2022), Israel, A Beachhead in the Middle East (2019), Patriots, Traitors and Empires (2018), and Washington's Long War on Syria (2017).
His blog, “What’s Left,” critiques Western dominance, corporate media, and capitalism from an anti-imperialist and class struggle perspective.
This discussion examines U.S. foreign policy, media influence, and the challenges faced by the left in addressing capitalism. Gowans suggests a focus on Marxist-Leninist principles centered on working-class efforts rather than performative activism.
What’s Left Blog: https://gowans.blog/
Follow Stephen on twitter: @GowansStephen
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Stephen Gowans#What's Left#Whats Left#Canada#Trump Tarriff#Anti-imperialism#Anti-capitalism#Marxism-Leninism#Socialism#Neoliberalism#Economic sanctions#Class struggle#Cuba blockade#Venezuela sanctions#Korean War#Media manipulation#Project Esther#Corporate media bias#Heritage Foundation#Noam Chomsky#Bolsheviks3Pandemic & capitalism (COVID-19)#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday#Killers Henchman# Israel A Beachhead in the Middle East# Patriots Traitors and Empires
In this podcast, our guest is Peter Byrne, a national and international award-winning investigative reporter and science writer. His works have been published in Scientific American, Wired, Mother Jones, and New Scientist. In partnership with Project Censored, Byrne has launched Military AI Watch, a groundbreaking ten-part series that will run monthly on the Project Censored website.
This exposé reveals the manifold dangers of developing AI applications for military purposes and how the public has been kept in the dark about these efforts, which present potentially disastrous consequences for the world, while promising a financial bonanza to wealthy investors. Byrne has spent the last two years conducting in-depth research for this series and is at work on a database of selected AI weapons companies and their investors. This collaboration between Project Censored and Peter Byrne provides much-needed attention to an issue that has a profound public impact and has been under-reported for too long.
Follow Military AI Watch on Project Censored: https://www.projectcensored.org/military-ai-watch/
Peter Byrnes Website: https://www.peterbyrne.info/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Peter Byrnes#Military AI Watch#Project Censored#Andy Lee Roth#Mickey Huff#One Ring to Rule Them All#Stargate Fiasco#Data Centers#Gold Award#ChatGPT#CoPilot#DeepSeek#Wheres Daddy#Lavender#Artificial Intelligence#Predictive Policing#Military Industrial Complex#Peter Andreas#Peter Thiel#Palantir#Boeing#Lockhead Martin#Rathion#Northrop Grumman#Artificial Intelligence#SandboxAQ#Elon Musk#SpaceX#JADC2#OpenAI#Anduril#Iran Dress Codes#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, our guest is Malcolm Harris, the author of the national bestseller “Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and the World,” a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Today we discuss his latest book, “What’s Left: Three Paths Through the Planetary Crisis,” an ambitious work that explores political strategy, alliances, and antagonisms necessary to confront existential threats like climate change and societal collapse. It critiques capitalism's role in these crises and proposes three strategic paths for a viable future: Market Craft, Public Power, and Communism.
Climate crisis demands rapid action and Harris rejects defeatism. He offers hope that the left must organize across differences and confront the systemic obstacles built into our politics and economic system that support the status quo rather than change. In What's Left, Malcolm Harris cuts through the noise and gets real about our remaining options for saving the world.
Order the book: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/malcolm-harris/whats-left/9780316577434
Website: malcolmharris.substack.com
Twitter: @BigMeanInternet
For those in Philadelphia, a holistic nonsectarian events calendar for the Philly Left. Book events and film screenings, organizing meetings and skill shares: https://philacal.com
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Malcolm Harris#Philacal#Kids These Days#Shit is Fucked Up and Bullshit#Santa Cruz#Philidephia#planetary crisis#public power#Verso Books#What's Left#Whats Left#Global Warming#Market Craft#Communism#Greta Thunberg#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, our guest is Nicholas H. Wolfinger, a professor of sociology at the University of Utah, specializing in family demography, marriage and divorce, and social inequality. We discuss his recent book, “Professors Speak Out: The Truth about Campus Investigations,” which examines the often opaque and controversial processes surrounding campus investigations into faculty misconduct, particularly those involving Title IX, discrimination, and other institutional policies. Drawing on firsthand accounts from professors who have undergone such investigations, Dr. Wolfinger highlights concerns about due process, transparency, and the potential for reputational harm—even in cases where allegations are unfounded or politically motivated. We discuss that accountability is necessary; however, current investigative systems frequently fail to balance fairness for both accusers and the accused. He calls for reforms to ensure greater transparency, impartiality, and faculty involvement in designing investigative procedures.
Order the book: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781680535570
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
nick Wolfinger#Nicolas Wolfinger#Professors Speak Out#Academic freedom#Campus investigations#Faculty rights#University policies#Higher education controversies#Due process in academia#Title IX investigations#Bias in campus investigations#Faculty grievances#Tenure disputes#Free speech on campus#Legal challenges in academia#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, our guest is Russell Razzaque, M.D., a practicing psychiatrist based in London, England. He earned his medical degree from the University of London and is a member of the UK Royal College of Psychiatrists. Dr Razzaque is also a writer and media commentator. He has written numerous columns across various publications, including The Guardian, The Telegraph, and The Independent. He regularly provides psychological opinions on international television news channels, including the BBC and SKY. He is particularly interested in US politics, and his contributions to the US media include op-ed pieces for The Wall Street Journal and USA Today.
Just a few months ago, he began a YouTube channel that explores progressive politics, philosophical insights, and mental health perspectives on politics, economics, and current events.
Dr. Razzaque’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@russrazz/featured
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Dr Russell Razzaque#Razzaque# psychiatrist# London#Trump#Open Dialogue# Authoritarianism in America# Adolescence NetFlix# Christriantiy#MAGA#Trump Enablers#Russell Razzaque YouTube#Mindfulness#Psychiatry#Mental health awareness#Breaking Down is Waking Up book#Toxic Masculinity# #Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, our guest is Sarah Kendzior, the best-selling author of “The View From Fly Over Country, “Hiding In Plain Sight,” and “They Knew.” Her latest book, “The Last American Road Trip: A Memoir,” is part political history and part memoir, but it is mostly a great road trip romp with her family across the United States before it is too late.
Kendzior has a PhD in anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis, where she studied authoritarian regimes of the former Soviet Union. After getting her PhD in 2012, Kendzior spent a decade writing about the decline of the United States for various publications around the world. She lives with her husband and kids in St. Louis.
Order the Book: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250879882/thelastamericanroadtrip/
Subscribe to Sarah’s Substack Newsletter: https://sarahkendzior.substack.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Sarah Kendzior#Last American Road Trip# American road trip#Political corruption#Trump kleptocracy# Authoritarianism in America# Surveillance capitalism# Conspiracy culture. Media disinformation# Midwest flyover country#They Knew# Hiding in plain site#Paywall censorship#Route 66 nostalgia#FBI watchlists#Paywall censorship#ransnational organized crime#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, our guest is Jim Painter, who spent 40 years in the newspaper business as a reporter and photojournalist and ended his career as managing editor of Phoenix’s West Valley View newspaper, published twice a week with a circulation of 80,000.
Jim was one of the first guests on our podcast four years ago. Then we talked about the state of the media, its evolution, biases, and challenges.
Today, we continued to discuss the media landscape that is controlled by a handful of conglomerates, shrinking independent outlets, staff cuts, dominance of Right-Wing consolidation, and declining revenues.
But there may be a ray of hope with independent journalism, challenging the dominance of traditional newspapers, offering alternative perspectives, and better adapting to the digital age.
We also review Jim’s new book, “Crossroad of Change,” a collection of his photos from his time in the 1980s and 1990s when he chronicled the pivotal decade of growth and development in the Phoenix Southwest Valley. Jim is a remarkable photographer, not just when he was a newspaper photojournalist, but also today.
Google Photo Album of some pictures mentioned: https://photos.app.goo.gl/6eNnK3EJrzUY97aK9
Visit Jim Painter’s art: https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/jim-painter
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/Crossroads-Images-decade-change-Southwest/dp/B0DJJWHRVZ/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Jim Painter#Crossroads of Change#Meida#West Valley View newspaper #Alternaive Media#Newspaper decline#Phonenix history#John McCain#Goodyear#Litchfield Heritiage Center#Barry Goldwater#Luke AFB#Charles Keating##Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Dan Kovalik shares what's really happening in Syria after a recent trip to the country and their new “de facto” government brought to power in large part by U.S. The fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad ended a 53-year dynasty that began with his father. In Syria, the U.S. has now reaped what it has sown as the new leader, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, takes charge, a former member of ISIS.
Dan Kovalik visited the country in the latter part of January to see for himself what Syria is like under the new regime. He had something to compare this to as he had visited Syria twice back in 2021 when it was still under the leadership of Bashar al-Assad.
Dan Kovalik is a human and labor rights lawyer and peace activist. He graduated from Columbia Law School in 1993 and then began a 26-year career as the in-house counsel of the United Steelworkers AFL-CIO. Kovalik has also frequently commented on and contributed to various media outlets, sharing his perspectives on international affairs, human rights issues, and U.S. foreign policy. He has authored eight books over the last seven years. His most recent book is “The Case for Palestine.”
Greg’s MLToday Article:
https://mltoday.com/a-return-to-basics-rasmus-the-neoliberal-turn-and-exploitation/
Pat’s Substack:
https://patcummings.substack.com/
DanKovalik#CaseForPalestine#GazaStrip#Isreal#WestBank#Genocide#Syria#alJulani#TripSyria#USSanctions#EthnicCleansing#Holocost#Kakba#Hamas#Zionists#Chomsky#StephenGowans#JefferySachs#AlJazeera#ISIS#CivilRights#MiddleEast#WarCrimes#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Zoltán Grossman discusses his book, “Unlikely Alliances: Native Nations and White Communities Join to Defend Rural Lands,” which explores the surprising alliances between Native American tribes and white ranchers, farmers, and fishers who historically competed over natural resources, came together to protect their shared environment from external threats like mining, dams, and pipelines.
Zoltán Grossman is known for his work in Native American and Indigenous Studies within the field of geography. He focuses on the intersections of racial and ethnic nationhood, natural resources, militarism, and settler colonialism. His research emphasizes social movement alliances, environmental justice, and decolonization.
Order the books:
“Unlikely Alliances: Native Nations and White Communities Join to Defend Rural Lands”
https://orcabooks.com/book/9780295741529
Zoltán Grossman Social Media:
Website: https://sites.evergreen.edu/zoltan
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zoltan.grossman
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
ZoltánGrossman#ZoltanGrossman#BoldtDecision#BretWeinsien#BenjamanBoyce#EvergreenStateCollege#Evergreen#EnvironmentalAlliances#KeystonXL#fishery#Dinali#GulfofMexico#GulfofAmeria#Greenland#Trump#SalishSea#SettlerColonalism#DoctrineofDiscovery#Crossculturalcooperation#Indigenousrights#BlackLivesMatter#BLM##PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Jesse Hagopian discusses his recent book, ““Teaching Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education,” a powerful call to action to defend honest education in the face of increasing censorship, attacks on teachers, the destructive Project 2025 playbook, and constant pressures to dismantle our public education system. Hagopian argues that the struggle for a liberatory education is crucial for democracy and challenges the status quo by highlighting the importance of teaching truth and resisting efforts to regulate knowledge
Jesse Hagopian is an award-winning educator and a prominent voice on educational equity, social justice unionism, and the school-to-prison pipeline. He teaches Ethnic Studies at Seattle's Garfield High School and is known for his activism against standardized testing.
Order the books:
“Teach Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education” https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9798888902516
Jesse Hagopian Social Media:
Website: https://iamaneducator.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JessedHagopian
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessehagopian
Rethinking School Magazine: https://rethinkingschools.org/magazine/
Black Lives Matter at School: https://www.blacklivesmatteratschool.com/
Teaching for Black Lives: https://rethinkingschools.org/books/teaching-for-black-lives/
Zinn Education Project: https://www.zinnedproject.org/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
TeachTruth#LindaMcMahon#ChristopherRufo#JesseHagopia#DemocracyNow#AntiracistEducation#RacialJustice#EducationalEquity#CriticalRaceTheory#SocialJustice#BlackLivesMatter#BLM#ZinnProject##EthnicStudies#PublicEducation#Censorship#EducationalActivism#SystemicRacism#TeachingforLiberation#HistoricalAccuracy#DemocracyinEducation#UncritialRaceTheory#howardZinn#MelissaTemple#Rainbowland##BlackHistoryMonth#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Aran Shetterly discusses his recent book, “Morningside: The 1979 Greensboro Massacre and the Struggle for an American City's Soul,” a recounting of all but forgotten, though no less shocking, 1979 racial tragedy that divided Greensboro, North Carolina and then the nation. The book details how a caravan of Klansmen and Neo-Nazis attacked a procession of protestors, resulting in the deaths of five people. This event, known as the Greensboro Massacre, highlights the racial conflict, economic anxiety, and clashes of ideologies that were prevalent at the time.
Aran Shetterly is a writer, editor, and narrative historian. He received numerous fellowships, including the Virginia Humanities Fellowship and the National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship. He holds a BA in Literature from Harvard College and an MA in American Studies.
Mentioned in the podcast:
Nelson Johnson | Beloved Community Center
https://belovedcommunitycenter.squarespace.com/rev-nelson-n-johnson
Video | Greensboro Massacre
https://youtu.be/Ia8qiglxscw
Greg’s article on Lorraine Hansberry | MLToday
https://mltoday.com/lorraine-hansberry-never-to-be-forgotten-a-life-too-short/
Order the books:
“Morningside: The 1979 Greensboro Massacre and the Struggle for an American City's Soul”
https://www.harpercollins.com/products/morningside-aran-shetterly
"The Americano: Fighting with Castro for Cuba’s Freedom"
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/aran-shetterly/the-americano/9781565128521/
Magazine: Inside Mexico
https://www.inside-mexico.com
Aran Shetterly Social Media:
X: @aranshetterly
Website: https://www.aranshetterly.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
AaronShetterly#Morningside#1979GreensboroMassacre#GreensboroMassacre#MargoLeeShetterly#HiddenFigures#CivilRightsMovement#LaborRights#KuKluxKlan#KKK#SocialJustice#RacialViolence#CommunistWorksParty#NelsonJohnson#BelovedCommunityCenter#AmericanNazis#DeathToTheKlan#LorraineHansberry#RasinInTheSun#NeoNazis#1979#BlackHistoryMonth#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Alan MacLeod discusses his recent books and journalism. Dr. Macleod completed his PhD in Sociology at Glasgow University focusing on research interests of social media, Internet subcultures, propaganda, fake news, and Latin American politics. He is a prolific journalist and has contributed to FAIR.org, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, and MintPress News.
His most recent books include:
“Bad News from Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting,” which examines how Western media has reported on Venezuela since the election of President Hugo Chavez in 1998 including coverage that is often distorted and contributes to the spread of misinformation and "fake news" in support or the US imperialism and hegemony.
"Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent" is a collaborative volume that updates Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky's propaganda model for the modern media landscape. The book explores how the original ideas from their 1988 book, "Manufacturing Consent," remain relevant today.
Order the books:
Bad News from Venezuela
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781032178752
Propaganda in the Information Age
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781138366404
Alan MacLeods Social Media:
Instagram: @alan.r.macleod
X: @AlanRMacLeod
MintPress News: https://www.mintpressnews.com/author/alan-macleod/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
AlanMacLeod#MintPressNews#BadNewsfromVenezuela#PropagandaInformationAge#Venezuela#FakeNews#Misreporting#MediaBias#HugoChavez#Neoliberalism#WesternMedia#Journalism#PropagandaModel#Chavismo#MediaStudies#LatinAmerican#NoamChomsky#EdwardHerman#Disinformation#Cambridge#Analytica#SyrianCivilWar#Russiagate#MediaFilters#egirls#LunchBagLujan#Jolani#PhillipCross#8200#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Michelle Phelps discusses her book, “Minneapolis Reckoning- Race, Violence & the Politics of Policing in America,” which traces the history of the Minneapolis Police Department, from its founding through to the murder of George Floyd and subsequent reforms. Phelps provides a vivid picture of the possibilities and limits of challenging police power, showing how the dual meaning of the police—as both a promise of state protection and a threat of state violence—creates complex politics that thwart change.
Michelle S. Phelps is a Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota. Her research focuses on the sociology of punishment, particularly the rise of probation supervision as a criminal justice sanction and its relationship to mass incarceration. She has published extensively in interdisciplinary peer-reviewed journals and co-authored the book "Breaking the Pendulum: The Long Struggle Over Criminal Justice" with Philip Goodman and Joshua Page.
Order the book:
Minneapolis Reckoning- Race, Violence & the Politics of Policing in America by Michelle S. Phelps
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691245980/the-minneapolis-reckoning
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
MichellePhelps#MichelleSPhelps#PoliceReform#BlackLivesMatter#BLM#MPD#PoliceReform#Chauvin#GeorgeFloyd#GunViolence#Powderhorn#OverPolice#CURA#CommunityPolicing#DeeschalationTraining#BodyCamera#PolitcalActivism#ViolencePrevention#CAHOOTS#CUAPB#MinneapolisPolice#ViolenceInteruptionProgram#waronpoverty#KernerReport#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Tariq Ali discusses the second volume in his memoir series, following “Street Fighting Years.” The book, “You Can’t Please All: Memoirs 1980-2024” covers Ali’s life and political activism from 1980 to 2024. It includes autobiographical notes, journalism, essays, political commentary and personal reflections.
Tariq Ali is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual. He is well-known for his anti-imperialist stance and has been involved in various political movements since his youth. Ali has written or co-authored over 100 fiction and nonfiction books, covering a wide range of topics, including geopolitics and the history of post-colonialism.
Order the book:
You Can't Please All: Memoirs 1980-2024 by Tariq Ali
https://www.versobooks.com/products/2937-you-can-t-please-all
Bhupen-Khakhar painting mentioned:
https://brooklynrail.org/2017/02/artseen/Bhupen-Khakhar/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
TariqAli#IslamQuintet#EdwardSaid#DerekJarman#ChristopherHitchen#Bhutto#MaryKayWilmers#SusanWatkins#NewLeftReview#StreetFightingYears#StreetFiightingMan#HugoShavez#MickJaeger#JohnLennon#BhupenKhakhar#ChrisHedges#PolitcalActivism#VietnamProtest#AnitImperisalism#Palestine#LeninScenario#OliverStone#postcolonialism#WinstonChurchill#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, Andy Lee Roth discusses the annual publication of Project Censored State of the Free Press, which takes the pulse of the media and shares the 25 most essential but underreported stories of the past year. Editors Mickey Huff, Shealeigh Voit, and Andy Lee Roth look back on a year in which significant news stories lost out to coverage of celebrities and non-events. They highlight 25 of the most underreported stories of 2024.
Andy Lee Roth is the associate director of Project Censored, a nonprofit media watchdog organization. He coordinates the Campus Affiliates Program, a network of students and faculty at colleges and universities across North America who research and identify the top "censored" news stories. He earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of California–Los Angeles and a BA in Sociology and Anthropology from Haverford College.
Order the book:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/760692/project-censoreds-state-of-the-free-press-2025-by-mickey-huff/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
AndyLeeRoth#AndyRoth#MickeyHuff#ShealeighVoit#StateoftheFree Press2025#ProjectCensord#FreePress2025##AI#algorithms#SocialMedia#MediaBias#Censorship#FirstAmendment#Journalism#Newsworthiness#AlgorithmicLiteracy#ShadowBanning#HorseRaceReporting#AlanMacleod#KevinGosztola#Gatekeepingmodel#Censorshipbyproxy#qualitativedataanalysis#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we talk with Jeff Schuhrke about his book ‘Blue Collar Empire: The Untold Story of US Labor’s Global Anticommunist Crusade.” This book recounts the AFL-CIO’s global anticommunist crusade in the late 20th century, shows how it took place in partnership with the US government’s Cold War-era quest to control labor struggles abroad and explores what this history means for the possibility of international solidarity in the US labor movement today.
Jeff Schuhrke is a labor historian, journalist, union activist, and assistant professor at the Harry Van Arsdale Jr. School of Labor Studies, SUNY Empire State University in New York City.
Order the book:
https://www.versobooks.com/products/2979-blue-collar-empire
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
JeffSchuhrke#BlueCollarEmpire#AFL#CIO#AFLCIO#CIA#AFCIO#anticommunism#anticommunist#coldwar#foreignpolicy#FreeTradeUnion#CommunistParty#HarryVanArsdale#USLabor#USImperalism#TradeUnions#RedScare#GoodNeighbors#EndowingDemocracy#MamaMaida#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we talk with Charles Derber and Yale Magrass about their book, “Who Owns Democracy?: The Real Deep State and the Struggle Over Class and Caste in America.” This book uniquely reverses today’s MAGA conspiratorial concept of the deep state to reveal how a very real “deeper state” is evident throughout history, back to the founding of American democracy.
Charles Derber, Professor of Sociology at Boston College, has written 26 books on politics, democracy, fascism, corporations, capitalism, climate change, war, culture wars, and social change.
Yale Magrass is a Chancellor Professor of Sociology at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. He is the author/coauthor of nine books, most co-authored with Charles Derber, and eighty articles. His work focuses on how militaristic capitalism distorts everyday life as it promotes inequality, bullying, environmental devastation, and war.
Order the book:
Who Owns Democracy?: The Real Deep State and the Struggle Over Class and Caste in America by Charles Derber and Yale R. Magrass https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781032781907
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
CharlesDerver#YaleMagrass#YaleRMagress#deepstate#WhoOwnsDemocracy#Americanfascism#capitalistclass#capitalistdeep#caste#ChristianRight#CIA#ColdWar#communist#deepdemocracy#DemocraticParty#elites#fascist#FDR#GildedAge#identitypolitics#JPMorgan#JimCrow#proto#fascism#racism#Reagan#MAGA#RepublicanParty#slavery#socialist#WallStreet#corporatepower#neofascism#Americanmilitarism#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we talk with Rob Larson about his book, “Mastering the Universe: The Obscene Wealth of the Ruling Class, What They Do with Their Money, and Why You Should Hate Them Even More.” Larson is a professor of economics for the past 18 years and has authored numerous books, including “Bit Tyrants: The Political Economy of Silicon Valley” and “Capitalism vs. Freedom: The Toll Road to Serfdom”. He writes for Jacobin and Dollars & Sense and is the House Economist for Current Affairs magazine.
In this book, Larson delves into the extreme wealth and influence of the ruling class. This includes the problems of wealth distribution, the extravagant lifestyles and moral failings of the ultra-wealthy and their negative impact on societal issues, including environmental destruction and public health crises.
Order the book:
Mastering the Universe: The Obscene Wealth of the Ruling Class, What They Do with Their Money, and Why You Should Hate Them Even More: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9798888900857
Mentioned in the podcast:
Current Affairs Magazine: https://www.currentaffairs.org/
World Inequity Database: https://wid.world/
A New Approach to Measuring Income Inequality Over Recent Decades | RAND: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RBA516-1.html
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
RobLarson#NathanJRobinson#NathanRobinson#BillGates#billionaire#carbon#ElonMusk#ClimateChange#WorldInequityDatabase#CurrentAffairsMagazine#economics#economists#Richistain#masteringtheUniverse#ObsceneWealth#Rand#ClimateCrisis#IncomeInequity#Captial#GuildedAge#ThomasPiketty#UltraWealthy#WealthDistribution#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we talk with Nathan J. Robinson about the book he co-wrote with Noam Chomsky, “The Myth of American Idealism: How U.S. Foreign Policy Endangers the World.” In this book, Noam Chomsky and Nathan J. Robinson outline America’s pursuit of global domination, offering an incisive critique of the self-serving myths that dominant elites in the United States continue to push. They discuss Washington's role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the impact of policies on The Global South, and the potential for future conflicts with Russia and China. They argue that U.S. power poses a significant threat to global security.
Noam Chomsky is institute professor emeritus in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and laureate professor in the Agnes Nelms Haury Program in Environment and Social Justice at the University of Arizona. His work is widely credited with revolutionizing modern linguistics, and he is equally renowned for his incisive writings on global affairs and U.S. foreign policy. Chomsky is the single most cited and published living author, winner of numerous international awards, and has written over one hundred books,
Nathan J. Robinson is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Current Affairs magazine. He is the author of Why You Should Be a Socialist and Responding to the Right, and his articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The New Republic, among others. Robinson holds a JD from Yale Law School and a PhD in sociology and social policy from Harvard University.
Order the book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/
Current Affairs Magazine: https://www.currentaffairs.org/
Nathan J. Robinson’s Website: https://www.nathanjrobinson.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
NoamChomsky#NathanJRobinson#NathanRobinson#TheMythofAmericanIdealism#CritiqueForeignPolicy#globalinstablity#JakartaMehod#VincentVevins#ArmsControl#Cuba#GlobalSouth#IsraeliPalestanConflict#WorldBank#USInterventions#EcomonicDomination#VijahPrashad#ClimateCrisis#DavidFrum#ClimateDisturciont#MythAmercianIdealism#ManufacturingConsent#IndonesianMassKIllings#MediaControl#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, we talk with Frank Schaeffer to discuss his recent blog post regarding “Project 2025” and its origins in the theologically conservative Opus Dei and deep-pocket conservative think tanks. Schaeffer is an author, film director, screenwriter, and painter. He is the son of theologian and author Francis Schaeffer, who, with other evangelicals, is responsible for the pro-life movement and the religious-right that emerged in the 1970s. His crisis of faith and disillusionment with the movement led to his departure in the mid-80s.
Duty to Warn: May I Tell You What Project 2025 Really Is?
https://frankschaeffer.substack.com/p/duty-to-warn-may-i-tell-you-what
Frank Schaeffer’s Substack:
https://frankschaeffer.substack.com/
Frank Schaeffer’s Art
https://www.frankschaefferart.com
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
FrankSchaeffer#CrazyforGod#HeritageFoundaton#Project2025#ChristianRight#OpusDei#ReligiousRight#FrancisSchaeffer#EdithSeville#FrankSchaefferArt#JerryFarwell#JamesDobson#BillGraham#ReligiousRight#ElonMusk#PatRobertson#TuckerCarlson#PeterTheil#WhyIAmAnAthiest#MandateForLeadership#DutyToWarn#PowellMemo#ChristoFacism#Patriarchy#Evangelical#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Nolan Higdon and Allison Butler are specialists in media literacy and, with their book, Surveillance Education: Navigating the Conspicuous Absence of Privacy in Schools, they focus attention on the pervasive use of digital surveillance technologies in schools that often results in a pernicious effect on students.
Nolan Higdon is a founding member of the Critical Media Literacy Conference of the Americas, a Project Censored National Judge, an author, and a lecturer at Merrill College and the Education Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, USA.
Allison Butler is a Senior Lecturer and Director of the Media Literacy Certificate Program in the Department of Communication at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA. She is also Co-Director of the Mass Media Literacy non-profit organization, where she develops and runs training programs for teachers covering critical media literacy in K–12 schools, Vice President on the Board of the Media Freedom Foundation, and a spokesperson for Project Censored.
Order the book:
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781032812274
Nolan Higdon’s Substack:
https://nolanhigdon.substack.com
Mentioned in the podcast
Project Censored
https://www.projectcensored.org/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
NolanHigdon#AllisonButler#MediaLiteracy#SurveillanceEducaton#Privacy#ProjectCensored#DigitalSurveillance#SurveillanceCaptialism#DataBreach#CritialMediaLiteracy#AnatomyofFakeNews#FakeNews#DigitalCulture#TikTokHarm#ChallengeVideo#Secition230#InternetHarm#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Dr. Vanessa Wills is a political philosopher, ethicist, educator, and activist based in Washington, DC. She is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at George Washington University. Her areas of specialization are moral, social, and political philosophy, nineteenth-century German philosophy (especially Karl Marx), and the philosophy of race. She is a founding editor of Spectre Journal, a biannual journal of Marxist theory, strategy, and analysis.
In her book Marx's Ethical Vision, she presents novel Marxist positions in various philosophical debates and covers a wide range of Karl Marx's writings while giving a holistic account of his views throughout his life.
Order the book:
Marx's Ethical Vision by Vanessa Christina Wills https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780197688144
Spectre Journal
https://spectrejournal.com/
Vanessa, the Jazz Singer!
From Indiana With Love-Feme (feat. Vanessa Wills)
https://youtu.be/4Ssr_K3EbIA
Mentioned by Greg:
Rhiannon Giddens new version of Peggy Seeger's classic:
https://youtu.be/lmwwqHmwZq8
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
VanessaWills#VanessaChristinaWills#AnalyticalMarxism#MarxsEthcialVision#CommunistManifesto#MoralObjectivism#Philosophy#Alienation#HistoricalMaterialst#Captalism#Spectre#SpectreJournal#CapitalismCritcism#MoralPhilosphy#GeorgeWashingtonUniveity#EthicsAngelaDavis#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Vijay Prashad is a historian, journalist, and executive director of the Tri-Continental Institute for Social Research. He has authored or edited 72 books. In “On Cuba,” co-written with Noam Chomsky, they trace Cuban history from the 1950s revolution to the present, interrogating U.S. interventions and extracting lessons on U.S. power and influence in the Western Hemisphere. This book thoroughly analyzes the U.S. government’s long-standing vendetta against Cuba.
Order the book:
On Cuba: Reflections on 70 Years of Revolution and Struggle by Noam Chomsky and Vijay Prashad: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781620978573
Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research:
https://thetricontinental.org/
Call to Action: a Remarkable Open Letter on US Designation of Cuba as Sponsor of Terrorism:
https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/09/18/call-to-action-a-remarkable-open-letter-on-us-designation-of-cuba-as-sponsor-of-terrorism/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
OnCuba#Cuba#CubaHistory#Relectionson70yearsofRevolutionStruggle#VijayPrasad#NoamChomsky#TheWithdrawl#WashingtonBullets#FidelCastro#TriContinentalInstituteforSocialResearch#TriContinentalInstitute#PeaceActivist#Cubahistory#USEmpire#colonialism#SvenLindquvist#ExterminateAlltheBrutes#MonroeDoctrine#economicsanctions#embargo#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Betsy Phillips, a journalist and historian, is the author of the new book about three unsolved bombings by segregationists in the civil rights era, “Dynamite Nashville: Unmasking the FBI, the KKK, and the Bombers Beyond Their Control.” Phillips not only paints a detailed picture of the social dynamic of the times but reveals how a violent fringe of racists came to national prominence. In Dynamite Nashville, Phillips unmasks "The Confederate Underground," identifying its principal leader, J.B. Stoner, and shines a much-needed historical spotlight on unsung civil rights hero and near martyr Z. Alexander Looby.
Order the book:
Dynamite Nashville: Unmasking the FBI, the KKK, and the Bombers Beyond Their Control
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9798986614571
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
BestyPhillips#DynamiteNashville#FBI#KKK#JBStoner#ZAlexanderLooby#FreddieOConnel#HattieCotton#HattieCottonBombing#JewishCommunityCenter#1950sSynagoguebombings#TheConfederateUnderground#ConferateUnderground#LoobyBombing#Segregation#BrownVBoard#BrownBoardOrEdcuaton#MLKing#UnsolvedBombing#segregationists#HistoricNashville#CivilRights#JohnLewis#DianeNash#JamesEarlRay#assasinationMLK#NeoNazis#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Dr. David Detmer is a Professor of Philosophy at Purdue University Calumet and author of numerous books and professional articles. In his new book, “Zinnophobia: The Battle Over History in Education, Politics, and Scholarship,” Detmer offers an extended defense of the work of radical historian Howard Zinn, author of the bestselling A People's History of the United States, against his many critics. It includes a discussion of the attempt to ban the book in classrooms, a brief summary of Zinn's life and work, an analysis of Zinn's theorizing about bias and objectivity in history, and a detailed response to twenty-five of Zinn's most hostile critics, many of are (or were) eminent historians.
Order the book:
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781785356780
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
DavidDetmer#DaveDetmer#Zinnophovia#HowardZinn#NoamChomsky#APeoplesHistory#APeoplesHistoryoftheUnitedStates#Renaissance#NorthernLights#MitchDaniels#BookBann#ZinnEducationProject#MaryGrabar#SamWineburg#DavidGreenberg#WarProtest#BostonUniversity#SpellmanCollege#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Dr. Matthew Ferrence is an English professor at Allegheny College. In 2020, he ran for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in a deeply red district and lost badly.
In his new book, “I Hate It Here, Please Vote For Me: Essays on Rural Political Decay,”Ferrence chronicles his election defeat to explore how the American political narratives refuse to recognize the existence and value of rural progressive voters and how his election defeat offers insight into the politics of our nation.
In essays focused on living in the countryside, the political power of poetry, and his landslide election loss, Ferrence offers a counter-narrative to stereotypes of rural American voters and emphasizes the misunderstanding of our Red-Blue divide.
Order the book:
https://wvupressonline.com/I-Hate-It-Here-Please-Vote-For-Me
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
MattTerrence#MatthewTerrence#IHateItHere#PleaseVoteForMe#Campaigns#Electons#RuralPoltics#RedBlueDivide#PolticalScience#PolticalDecay#AlleghenyCollege#Meadville#BradleyRose#Poetry#PoetryBan#PennsylvaniaHouseofRepresentatives#ElectionReform#GreenParty#ToxicModeration#RuralRage#TheWisconsinIdea#AppalacihiaNorth#WendellBerry#Fetterman#FlyOverCountry#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Dr. Gerald Horne is Moores Professor of History and African-American Studies at the University of Houston. He is a renowned historian who has extensively researched and written about issues of racism, labor, politics, civil rights, and international relations. He has authored more than thirty books and numerous scholarly articles. Cornel West describes Dr. Horne as " one of the great historians of our time.”
Today, we discussed his new book, “Armed Struggle? Panthers and Communists; Black Nationalists and Liberals in Southern California through the Sixties and Seventies.” This book examines the complex dynamics and interactions of the Black Panther Party, including their communist influences, community social programs, FBI sabotage, and lasting influences.
Order the book:
https://www.intpubnyc.com/browse/armed-struggle/
Follow Dr. Horne on KPFK 90.7 FM, Freedom Now, Saturday 11 AM -12 PM:
https://www.kpfk.org/on-air/freedom-now/
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
GeraldHorne#ArmedStruggle#ArmedStruggle?#BlackPantherParty#BP#Communist#Communistparty#CP#GerogeJackson#RedScare#BlackNationalist#Scottsboronine#HeuyNewton#EldridgeCleaverBenDavis#AngelaDavis#SlaveRebellions#Cointerpro#JEdgarHoover#MathewJohnson#PoiiceBrutality#KPFK#FreedomNow#AfricanAmericanStudies#RebeccaMooresChair#MooresProfessor#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Vincent Bevins is an award-winning journalist. He reported for the Financial Times in London, then served as the Brazil correspondent for the Los Angeles Times, before covering Southeast Asia for the Washington Post.
His first book, The Jakarta Method, came out in 2020 and was named one of the best books of the year by the Financial Times and NPR. Today we discuss his book, “If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution.” From 2010 to 2020, more people participated in protests than at any other point in human history. “If We Burn” investigates, why haven’t we seen significant revolutionary change from these uprisings? This is an important book that should be read by scholars and activists.
Vincent’s website: https://vincentbevins.com/
Vincent’s substack: https://substack.com/@northsouthnotes
Order the books
If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution by Vincent Bevins
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781541788978
SUB
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
VincentBevins#IfWeBurn#MassProtest#JakartaMethod#LondonSchoolEconomics#Chomsky#Lenin#WomensMarch#OccupyWallstreet#UNRWA#EthnicCleansing#Holocost#Kakba#Hamas#Zionists#Chomsky#ManufacturingConsent#ArabeSpring# GeziPark#UkraineEuromaidan#HungerGames#PolitialSciende#Indonesia #PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Daniel Kovalik is an American lawyer, human rights activist, author, and academic. He has been involved in various legal and human rights issues, particularly focusing on workers' rights, indigenous rights, and international law. In the book, “The Case for Palestine: Why It Matters and Why You Should Care,” Kovalik unveils the brutal realities of the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza, exposing the devastating toll exacted on its civilian population. It documents the role of the United States in sponsoring this destruction by providing unwavering support to Israel.
Dan’s website: https://danielmkovalik.weebly.com/
Order the books
The Case for Palestine: Why It Matters and Why You Should Care By Dan Kovalik, Forward by George Galloway
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781510780590
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
DanKovalik#CaseForPalestine#GazaStrip#Isreal#WestBank#Genocide#LiveratonTheology#WestBank#Rafah#UNRWA#EthnicCleansing#Holocost#Kakba#Hamas#Zionists#Chomsky#Oct7#GeorgeGalloway#AlJazeera#activist#CivilRights#MiddleEast#WarCrimes#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Jesse Hagopian is a high school teacher in Seattle, a union organizer, co-author of several books, and a powerful force in pushing back against the "over-testing" of students. Jesse’s writing has appeared in such publications as The Seattle Times, The Nation, and The Progressive, and his commentary on education and politics has been featured in Time magazine, The New Yorker, The PBS News Hour with Gwen Ifill, The Dan Rather Report, and Democracy Now!
Jesse’s website: https://iamaneducator.com/
Order the books
More Than a Score: The New Uprising Against High-Stakes Testing By Jesse Hagopian (Editor), Diane Ravitch (Preface by), Alfie Kohn (Foreword by)
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781608463923
Black Lives Matter at School: An Uprising for Educational Justice By Jesse Hagopian, Denisha Jones, Opal Tometi (Foreword by)
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781642592702
Support the documentary film project by Magnum Opus Films, “Help Us Tell The Story of Discovering Where Our Ancestors Were Enslaved-Where I Got My Name: A Story of Struggle and Self Discovery.”
GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-us-tell-the-story-of-our-enslaved-ancestors
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
JesseHogopain#MoreThanAScore#GarfieldHighSchool#BLM#BLMatschool#optoute#MAPboycott#TestBoycott#CriticalRaceTheory#CRT#ChristopherRufo#FairTest#DianeRavvitch#TeacherUnion#NEA#GeraldLenoir#EnslavedAncestors#MississippiSlave#HighstakesTesting#activist#SeattleSuit#culturewars#EducationPolicy#StandardizedTesting#MomsForLiberty#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Our guest is Mike Hixenbaugh, senior investigative reporter for NBC News. He has been named a Pulitzer Prize finalist and won a Peabody Award for reporting on the battle over race, gender, and sexuality in American classrooms. “They Came for the Schools,” his first book, is the winner of the prestigious Lukas Work-in-Progress Award. We also discuss his Peabody Award-winning and Pulitzer Prize finalist “Southlake” podcast and his most recent podcast, “Grapevine,” which, unfortunately, is referred to on several occasions as “Grapeview.”
Order the book: They Came for the Schools: One Town's Fight Over Race and Identity, and the New War for America's Classrooms
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780063307247
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
MikeHixenbaugh#TheyCamefortheSchools#CarrollSchoolBoard#CarrollISD#ChristianNationalizm#Southlake#Texas#CriticalRaceTheory#CRT#ChristopherRufo#Grapevine#LBTQ#PatriotMobile#DeSantis#SouthlakeFamiliesPAC#TuckerCaarlson#viralvideo#Nword#GregAbott#NBCInvestigation#culturewars#EducationPolicy#DEI#MomsForLiberty#SevenMountainIdology#micoragressions#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Our guest on this podcast is investigative journalist Tim Schwab. His book, “The Bill Gates Problem: Reckoning with the Myth of the Good Billionaire.” It is a definitive critique of Bill Gates and other billionaires who use their immense wealth to forge into the world of unaccountable power philanthropy.
Order the book: The Bill Gates Problem
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781250850096
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Timschwab#billgates#melindagates#melindafrench#billionaires#philantropy#theBillGatesProblem#microsoft#billmelindagatesfoundaton#mythgoodbillionare#neilkrause#jonshelton#commoncore#stackranking#edlabs#seattletimes#JesseHagopian#commoncore#mccarverproject#tacomapublicschools#smallschools#meritpay#tacomahousingauthority#stackranking#gatesfarmland#dianerativich#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
In this podcast, our guest is a poet, Pat’s sister, Janice O’Mahony. She lives on Whidbey Island, Washington, and has immersed herself in the community's creative environment.
Janice has always been creative, but once she retired, she focused on being a “poet.” She has published her works in journals and books and spends much of her time honing her bard craft.
Order the book OUT OF THE BLUE four voices
https://store.bookbaby.com/book/out-of-the-blue1
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Poems
(12:47) Bad Art
(15:20) 26 Letters
(28:05) 2nd Act
(30:46) Advanced Directive
(33:06) Dentist Day
(36:10) Dodge Ball Target
(44:28) Decorum
(50:23) Starch
(52:55) Morning Glories
(57:25) What I Want to Know
(1:00:06) Pickup Sticks
Janiceomahony#outoftheblue#whidbeyilsand#poetry#DianneShiner#DallasHuth#FaithWilder#kevinmiller#dereksheffield#etrimbathcreative#bookbaby#creativity#poemsdad#ginodeschruyver#lisatice#militarybrat#ptsd#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
This podcast examines education policies, history, and reform from two academics; Dr. Neil Kraus, is Professor of Political Science at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls. His book, The Fantasy Economy: Neoliberalism, Inequality, and the Education Reform challenges the basic assumptions of the education reform movement. Dr. Jon Shelton is Associate Professor of Democracy and Justice Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. His book, “The Education Myth: How Human Capital Trumped Social Democracy” traces how the predominant American view of education evolved from an instrument of democratic instruction to the primary path to a good job.
Both professors offer a different perspective on our present educational landscape. Together they merge politics, public policies, history, economics, and labor relations to provide insight to the purpose of education.
Order the book: The Education Myth
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781501768149
Order the book: The Fantasy Economy
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781439923719
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
NeilKraus#JonShelton#UW#universitywisconsin#educationreform#fantasyeconomy#educationmyth#STEM#neoliberalism#reagan#wisconsin#humancapital#scottalker#wisconsinidea#socialjustice#nationatrisk#workforce2000#charterschools#education#nochildleftbehind#onlinelearning#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Working Class and What to Do About It,” connects the dots between long-term trends in corporate capitalism and the last 50 years of neoliberal attacks on the working class. He shows the direct relationship between deregulation, predatory private equity firms, mass layoffs, stock buybacks, and the resulting destruction of the middle class.
As a longtime labor educator and journalist, Leopold describes how the Democrats have lost the longstanding support of millions of urban and rural workers and how both parties take their marching orders from Wall Street and wealthy donors.
Order the book: Wall Street’s War on Workers (https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781645022336)
Substack: (https://lesleopold.substack.com/)
Webiste: (https://runawayinequality.org/)
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
LesLeopold#WallStreetsWarOnWorkers#WallStreet#TonyMazzocchi#HedgeFunds#stockbuybacks#LaborInstiture#OberlinCollegy#LayOffs#masslayoffs#MingoCounty#WhiteRuralRage#ThomHartmann#MattTaibbi#ChrisHedges#RuralPoverty#HedgeFunds#PrivateEquity#LeverageBuyouts#NeoLiberal#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
FjHkr0T5PBYmOzjeuv9V
Kevin Gosztola’s book, “Guilty of Journalism,” is an essential guide to the case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. As a journalist, Kevin has been reporting on Julian Assange for more than a decade and returns to our podcast to discuss London's High Court recent decision regarding his extradition to the United States. This is an important matter that impacts the future of journalism, freedom of speech, and democracy itself.
Order the book: https://www.sevenstories.com/books/4493-guilty-of-journalism
House Bill 934: https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-resolution/934
Follow Kevin:
https://substack.com/@kgosztola
https://thedissenter.org/
https://www.youtube.com/@Kevin_Gosztola
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
KevinGosztola#JulianAssange#EspionageAct#Belmarsh#AbbyMartin#projectcensored#espionageact#censorship#vault7#pressfreedom#trial#RoyalCourts#RogerWalters#JusticeJeremyJohnson#ChleseaManning#StellaAssange#CIAwaronjourlists#GuiltyofJournalism#whistleblowers#underreported#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Today, our guest is Kathrine Yeske Taylor, a rock journalist who has interviewed hundreds of musicians. In her book, “She’s a Badass,” Taylor focuses on twenty significant women in rock such as Ann Wilson, Joan Osborne, Paula Cole, Suzi Quatro, Orianthi and more. She devotes an entire chapter to each one, taking an in-depth look at the incredible talent and influence they had on our music landscape.
Order the book:
She's a Badass: Women in Rock Shaping Feminism
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781493072545
Kathrine’s social media:
https://www.facebook.com/katherine.yeske.taylor/
https://www.instagram.com/kyt_in_nyc/
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Music List:
- Suzi Quatro
Suzi Quatro – “Can The Can” (1973) - Ann Wilson
Heart - "Barracuda" (1977) - Exene Cervenka (X)
John Doe and Exene Cervenka (X)- The New World live (1983) - Gina Schock
The Go-G0’s – “We Got The Beat” -American Bandstand (1982) - Lydia Lunch
Sonic Youth & Lydia Lunch-“Death Valley '69” (1985) - Suzanne Vega
“Luka” (1988) - Cherie Currie (the Runaways)
The Runaways – “Cherry Bomb” (2007) - Joan Osborne
Joan Osborne – “One Of Us” (1996) - Donita Sparks (L7)
L7 – “Pretend That We're Dead” (Live At The Download Festival 2018) - Amy Ray (Indigo Girls)
Indigo Girls – “Closer to Fine” (on David Letterman 1989) - Tanya Donelly (Throwing Muses, the Breeders, Belly)
Belly - Feed The Tree (1993) - Paula Cole
Paula Cole – “I Don't Want to Wait” (1996) - Tobi Vail (Bikini Kill)
Bikini Kill – “Rebel Girl” (1992) - Laura Veirs
Laura Veirs - "Sun Song" (2013) - Catherine Popper
Puss n Boots- "Jesus, Etc." (2013) - Amanda Palmer
Amanda Palmer – “Runs In The Family” (2008) - Bonnie Bloomgarden (Death Valley Girls)
Death Valley Girls - "Magic Powers" (The Roxy 2022) - Orianthi
Orianthi - "According To You" (2009) - Fefe Dobson
Fefe Dobson - "Stuttering" (2010) - Sade Sanchez (L.A. Witch)
L A Witch - "Fire Starter" (2020)
womenrock#Shesabadass#KathrineTaylor#KathrineYeskeTaylor#rockcritic#rollingstone#book#feministbook#SuziQuatro#AnnWilson#ExeneCervenka#GinaSchock#SuzanneVega#JoanOsborne#AmyRay#IndigoGirls#AmandaPalmer#Orianthi#alicecooper#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Today, our guest is Dr. Judith Herman, one of America’s most influential psychiatrists and a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies and is a distinguished life fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.
Today, we discuss two of her books, the 1992 classic “Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence – from Domestic Abuse to Political Terror,” and her recent book “Truth and Repair: How Trauma Survivors Envision Justice.”
Order the books:
Truth and Repair
Trauma and Recovery
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
traumahealing#childhoodtrauma#trauma#healing#traumarecovery#women#intergenerationaltrauma#healingjourney#therapy#psychology#JudithHerman#PTSD#Reagan#Deinstitutionalization#VictimsViolenceProgram#Freud#Hysteria#ConsciousnessRasingGroups#ChristineBlaseyFord#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#mltoday
Kevin Gosztola, has spent the last decade covering Julian Assange, WikiLeaks, and the wider war on whistleblowers and journalists. His book, “Guilty of Journalism” offers a balanced and comprehensive perspective on all the events leading up to what press freedom advocates have called the trial of the century.
Noam Chomsky noted that Kevin’s book is “Essential reading for those who care about freedom of expression and elementary justice” and the late Daniel Ellsberg stated “Kevin Gosztola is a rare journalist who understands the abominable threat that the case against Assange poses to press freedom.”
Order the book: https://www.sevenstories.com/books/4493-guilty-of-journalism
Follow Kevin:
https://substack.com/@kgosztola
https://thedissenter.org/
https://www.youtube.com/@Kevin_Gosztola
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
KevinGosztola#JulianAssange#AbbyMartin#projectcensored#espionageact#censorship#vault7#pressfreedom#trial#RoyalCourts#RogerWalters#JusticeJeremyJohnson#ChleseaManning#StellaAssange#CIAwaronjourlists#GuiltyofJournalism#whistleblowers#underreported#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday
Andy Lee Roth is the associate director of Project Censored, an American nonprofit media watchdog organization. He holds a PhD in sociology from UCLA.
Project Censored was founded in 1976 by Dr. Carl Jensen at Sonoma State University to research and publicize news media censorship in the news and to develop students’ critical thinking skills and media literacy. Every year, they publish a book, “State of the Free Press,” that highlights the top 25 censored stories and media analyses that promote independent investigative journalism and education about the crucial role of our free press.
Order the book: https://www.project-censored.org/shop/p/state-of-the-free-press-2024
Website: https://www.projectcensored.org/
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
andyleeroth#andyroth#mickeyhuff#projectcensored#stateoffreepress#censorship#corporatemedia#freeepress#medialiteracy#journalism#stories#underreported#newsdeserts#russiagate#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday#CarlJensen
Three years ago, we started the podcast Coming From Left Field… where we talk about politics, books, and current events. In this podcast we reflect on some of our guests we have hosted over the 68 episodes, argue where we agree and disagree, and provide observations about our current political apocalypse.
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Marxism-Leninism Today (MLToday): https://mltoday.com/
Timestamps:
(01:45) book discussion “How Democracies Die”
(14:14) Dan Kovalik, “Cancel This Book,” “Pink Tide,” “Trip to Russia & Crimea”
(16:24) book discussion Karl Marx
(20:47) Carlos Garrido, “Last Years of Marx” book discussion
(22:41) Eddie Smith, “Blackshirts and Reds” book discussion
(24:38) Christian Parenti, “First Privilege Walk & Radical Hampton”
(26:22) Janice O’Mahony & Kevin Miller, “A Couple of Poets”
(27:49) Stephen Gowans, “Israel, A Beachhead in the Middle East”
(30:07) Jim Painter, “Media,” & “The Black March Novel”
(30:49) Hoss Hollwedel, “”Exterminate All the Brute” & “Amazon unions”
(32:21) Toni Gilpin, “The Long Deep Grudge:
(32:47) Roger Keeran, “The Communist Party and the Autoworker's”
(34:06) Tony Monterio, “The lost legacy of Henry Winston”
(37:09) Walter Johnson, “The Broken Heart of America”
(39:09) Tariq Ali, “Winston Churchill”
(39:20) Vijay Prashad, “The Withdrawal”
(39:25) Joanna Moncrieff, “The Serotonin Theory of Depression”
(41:42) Gerald Horne, “Black Liberation / Red Scare”, “Jazz and Justice”
(45:14) Walter Bragman, “Moms for Liberty”
(45:21) Anthony Conwright, “Jan 6, Big Lie”
(45:31) Kathryn Joyce. “War on Public Schools”
(45:42) Andy Campbell, “We Are Proud Boys”
(47:53) Suzanne Gordon, “Wounds of War”
(49:42) Bill Ehrhart, “Thank You for Your Service,” “Smedley Butler,” “Essays”
(51:27) Norman Finkelstein,” I'll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It!”
(54:29) Ruth Ben-Ghiat, “Strongmen”
(57:16) Fredrik deBoer, “Cult of Smart,” ”How Elites Ate the Social Justice Movement”
PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#DanKovalik#KarlMarx#MidwesternMarist#CarlosGarrido#EddieSmith#Blackshirts#MichaelParinti#ChristianParenti#JaniceO’Mahony#KevinMiller#Poets#StephenGowans#JimPainter#ToniGilpin#RogerKeeran#CommunistParty#TonyMonterio#WalterJohnson#TariqAli#VijayPrashad#JoannaMoncrieff#GeraldHorne#JazzandJustice#WalterBragman#AnthonyConwright#KathrynJoyce#Andy#Bill Ehrhart#WDEhrhart#NormanFinkelstein#RuthBen-Ghiat#Strongmen#FredrikdeBoer
Stephen Bezruchka is a graduate of Harvard, Johns Hopkins, and Stanford universities. He now is an Associate Teaching Professor Emeritus, Health Systems, and Population Health at the University of Washington. He worked for three decades as an emergency physician.
In “Inequity Kills Us All” Bezruchka takes a deep dive into the global health data and considers his years of experience as an ER doctor and a public health educator to expose how unjust economics adds up to poor health and higher mortality, and how living in a society with entrenched hierarchies increases the negative effects of illnesses for everyone, and early life lasts a lifetime.
Order the book https://www.amazon.com/Inequality-Kills-Us-All-COVID-19s/dp/1032278390/
Website: https://stephenbezruchka.com/
InequalityKillsUsAll#StephenBezruchka#TrekkingNepal#TrekkinginNepal#GlobalHealth#SchooolofpublicHealth#HealthData#UniversityofWashington#UW#InequityHealthcare#PublicHealth#RichardWilkinson#lifeexpecancy#AirRageSyndrome#Medicare#StressandHealth#HealthOlypics#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
Sarah Kendzior is the New York Times bestselling author of Hiding in Plain Sight and The View from Flyover Country. Today we discuss her third book, “They Knew: How a Culture of Conspiracy Keeps America Complacent” which delves into the world of conspiracy theories and their impact on American society. She argues that the proliferation of conspiracy theories has eroded trust in institutions, undermined democracy, and hindered collective action to address pressing issues.
Kendzior is known for her reporting on St. Louis, her coverage of the 2016 election, and her academic research on authoritarian states. She was named by Foreign Policy as one of the "100 people you should be following on Twitter to make sense of global events." Her reporting has been featured in many publications, including Politico, Slate, The Atlantic, Fast Company, The Chicago Tribune, TeenVogue, The Globe and Mail, and The New York Times. She lives in St. Louis.
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/They-Knew-Culture-Conspiracy-Complacent/dp/1250210720
Subscribe to Sarah’s substack: https://substack.com/@sarahkendzior
Website: https://sarahkendzior.com/
TheyKnew#HowaCultureofConspiracyKeepsAmericaComplacent#SarahKendzior#conspiracytheory#ViewfromFlyoverCountry#authoritarianism#BakerHotel#NormanBaker#Putin#JeffreyEpstein#LolitaExpress#Pizzagate#QAnnon#GaslitNation#HidingInPlainSite#DonaldTrump#cooruption#oligarchs#St.Louis#StLouis#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
Charlie Derber is a professor of sociology at Boston College and the author of 25 books. Current work focuses on the crises of capitalism, globalization, corporate power, American militarism, the culture of hegemony, the climate crisis, and the new peace and global justice movements.
Today we discuss the book, “Dying for Capitalism: How Big Money Fuels Extinction and What We Can Do About It” by Charles Derber and his co-author, Suren Moodliar.
Order the book:
https://www.amazon.com/Capitalism-Universalizing-Resistance-Charles-Derber/dp/103251258X/
Greg’s article (mentioned) “An Overdue Look at the Environmental Crisis”: https://mltoday.com/an-overdue-look-at-the-environmental-crisis/
CharlesDerber#CharlieDerber#SurenMoodiar#ClimateCrisis#ClimateChange#Militarism#EnvironmentalDistruction#FredrickDouglass#Abolishonists#triangleofextinction#Chomsky#Marx#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
Theresa Amato is a public advocate, attorney, and founder of the Citizen Advocacy Center in Illinois. She was the national campaign manager and in-house counsel for Ralph Nader for his presidential runs in both 2000 and 2004.
“Grand Illusion: The Myth of Voter Choice in a Two-Party Tyranny” is a powerful argument for electoral reform, especially related to third-party and independent candidates. Phil Donahue’s book review stated Amato “takes the biggest swing―not a jab, but a roundhouse punch―at America’s corrupt electoral system.”
Grand Illusion: The Myth of Voter Choice in a Two-Party Tyranny:
https://www.amazon.com/Grand-Illusion-Choice-Two-Party-Tyranny/dp/1595583947
Citizen Advocacy Center:
https://www.citizenadvocacycenter.org/
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
TheresaAmato#GrandIllusion#TheMythofVoterChoiceinaTwo-PartyTyranny#RalphNader#CitizenWorks#CitizensAdvocacyCenter#ballotaccess#ThirdParty#ElectoralSystem#PresidentalDebates#RossPerot#PatBuchanan#electonlaws#AlGore#ElectorialReform#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#CultofSmart#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
Freddie DeBoer has written for many mainstream publications but, in the past few years, has established himself as a Sub stack community for 47K readers who have had enough of the polarized media. Today, we will discuss his new book, “How Elites Ate the Social Justice Movement,” which explores why a passionate but unfocused social justice movement failed.
Freddie’s Website: https://fredrikdeboer.com/
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/How-Elites-Social-Justice-Movement/
Freddie’s Substack (subscribe!): https://freddiedeboer.substack.com/
Greg’s Blog (subscribe!): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Freddiedeboer#Fredrikdeboer#HowElitesAteTheSocialJusticeMovement#Substack#GeorgeFloyd#NonProfitIndustrial#IdentiySyntheses#BLM#BlackLivesMatter#DefundPolice#FredHampton#SamHarris#YaschaMounk#NGO#Marx#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#CultofSmart#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
It is hard to describe Peter Serko. He’s been a counselor, IT professional, playwright, filmmaker, museum quality photographer and now, add novelist. After acquiring a tattered cardboard box with old books, photos, and diaries from his great-grandmother, Peter became inspired to research his family genealogy and write a historical fiction novel about Hattie, a 14 year old girl and distant relative trying to make sense of post-Civil War America.
We also discuss Peter’s play, “My Brother Kissed Mark Zuckerberg” and film, “Footnote” which is a loving tribute to his brother who died of AIDS in the late 1980’s, and his photography.
The David Serko Project: https://davidserko.com
Here is a link to the book on Amazon: https://a.co/d/7Fw5KGt
Watch Footnote on VIMEO (38 min): https://vimeo.com/203771933
Peter’s Photography: https://peterserko.com/transformation-art-changes-a-city/
PeterSerko#HattieWar#Hattie’swar#DavidSerko#ActUp#Footnote#AIDS#HIV#ArtChangesACity#Transformation#DavidSerkoProject#Wintrop#VashonIsland#Vashon#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#Photograpy#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
Professor and author, Christian Parenti, discusses a wide range of topics today including his article in NONSITE.org, ‘The First Privilege Walk,’ which may be the symbolic origin story of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion industry. We also overview his book 'Radical Hamilton' and how the founding father was more progressive for his time than credited. In a fun, free-for-all exchange, many other topics are covered such as COVID, wokeness, policing, political economy vs capitalist economic development, and the left’s response to the pandemic.
References:
The First Privilege Walk -NONSite.org
Radical Hamilton: Economic Lessons from a Misunderstood Founder -Verso Books
ChristianParenti#PrivelegeWalk#RadicalHampilton#FBI#MannyElis#Nonsite#leftpolitics#COVID#NaomiKlein#CharlesBeard#Grayzone#Trumpderangement#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#Marcuse#DEI#DiAngelo#MichaelParenti#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
Our guest today is award-winning investigative journalist and contributing writer at The Intercept, Trevor Aaronson. His seminal book “The Terror Factory: Inside the FBI’s Manufactured War On Terrorism” exposed the questionable counterterrorism tactics the Bureau used so they could claim it was winning the “war on terror.” His recent podcast, ‘Alphabet Boys” is a secret investigation of the FBI, CIA, DEA, ATF, and other alphabet agencies. He asks the question, “Are America’s top cops catching criminals -- or creating them?”
- Website: https://trevoraaronson.com/
- Podcast: Alphabet Boys Podcast: Trojan Hearst
- Book: The Terror Factory: Inside the FBI’s Manufactured War On Terrorism
- TED Talk: How this FBI strategy is actually creating US-based terrorists by Trevor Aaronson (1,377,952 views):
- Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
TrevorAaronson#InvesitgativeReporter#PoliticsNews#FBI#ChinookCenter#ChurchCommittee#leftpolitics#TuckerCarlson#survalience#PatCummings#GregGodels#alphabet#alphabetboys#alphabetboyspodcast#snitchjacketing#BLM#blacklivesmatter#blm##blackidentity#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast
Our guest today, Alfred de Zayas, is a prominent scholar, lawyer, historian, and human rights expert. He has an impressive academic background, having earned a law degree from Harvard Law School, as well as a Ph.D. in history from the University of Göttingen in Germany. Throughout his career, he has focused on international law, human rights, and the protection of civilians in armed conflicts.
Website: http://alfreddezayas.com/ Blog: https://dezayasalfred.wordpress.com/
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
AlfreddeZayas#DeZayas#UnitedNations#TheHumanRightsIndustry#CounteringMainstreamNarratives#FakeNews#FakeLaw#FakeFreedom#BuildingaJustWorldOrder#rapporteur#humanrights#Ukraine#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Bill Ehrhart’s experiences in the Vietnam War have defined his life—first as an enlisted member of a Marine infantry battalion, then as an author, poet, and teacher who has spent fifty years explaining the war and its consequences in books, lectures, and interviews.
In this podcast, we discuss his recent book of essays on diverse topics, being a teacher, the VA, coming from Vietnam, and much more.
W.D. Ehrhart home page https://wdehrhart.com/
Buy the book: https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/what-we-can-and-cant-afford/
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
BillEhrhart#WDEhahart#Poet#ThankYouForYourService#KenBurns#WhatWeCanand CantAfford#PatriotismAmericanLife#Poet#EssayonVietnam#MomsforLiberty#Veteran#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#mcfarlandbooks
Vijay Prashad is an American-based Indian Marxist historian; he has written over 20 books and is the founder and executive director of the Tri-Continental Institute for social research. In this podcast, we discuss his recent book with Noam Chomsky, "The Withdrawal," and his observations regarding our foreign policy with China.
Wenhua Zongheng, Quarterley Journal of Chinese Thought
https://dongshengnews.org/en/whzh-vol1-no1/
https://dongshengnews.org/en/whzh-vol1-no2/
The Withdrawal: Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, and the Fragility of U.S. by Noam Chomsky (Author), Vijay Prashad (Author), Angela Y. Davis (Introduction) | (2022)
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781620977606
Greg’s Article on MLToday: "Mired in Opportunism"
https://mltoday.com/mired-in-opportunism/
VijayPrasad#NoamChomsky#Russia#China#Iraq#Libya#Afghanistan#TheWithdrawl#WenhuaZongheng#TriContinentalInstitute#PeaceActivist#zzblog#PatCummings#GregGodels#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Daniel Kovalik, is a human rights lawyer, author, and professor. He has focused on issues such as labor rights, human rights, and international law. He has written numerous books that criticize what he sees as U.S. foreign policy agendas and media narratives that demonize certain countries.
In this podcast we discuss his recent trip to Russia and Crimea where, as a peace activist, he tries to make sense of the Ukraine conflict and offer context for understanding and resolution.
Photo Album (supplement to podcast) https://comingfromleftfield.com/photos
Dan’s books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Dan-Kovalik/author/B06XZ9ZRSD
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
DanKovalik#RickSterling#Russia#Crimea#Columbia#Venezuela#Nicaragua#AlexSaab#Putin#Ukraine#PeaceActivist#zzblog#PatCummings#GregGodels#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
We welcome Norman Finkelstein to our podcast, a prominent political scientist known for his writings, research, and scholarship on the middle east. In 2020, he was named the fifth most influential political scientist in the world.
In his new book,” I'll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It! Heretical Thoughts on Identity Politics, Cancel Culture, and Academic Freedom,” he discusses how the Left undermines class politics from within, the misguided legacy of Barack Obama, the censorious culture within US academia and his new book, and the crazy politics of social activists like Kimberlé Crenshaw, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Robin DiAngelo.
Norman Finkelstein website: https://www.normanfinkelstein.com/
Order the book: I'll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It!: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9798986788425
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Finkelstein#IlBurnThatBridgeWhenIGettoIt#NormanFinkelstein#IlBurnThatBridgeWhenIGettoIt#KimberléCrenshaw#TaNehisiCoates#RobinDiAngelo#AlanDershowitz#BrandyLee#zzblog#PatCummings#GregGodels#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast#Chomsky#Identypolitics#WhiteFragility#Dershowitz#wokeness#cancelculture#academicfreedom#academicfreedom#politicalcorrectness#cancelculture#MattKennard#SilentCoup#WEBDubois#PaulRobeson
Walker Bragman is a journalist, JD, occasional cartoonist, and co-founder of OptOut Media Foundation. He writes for Salon, The Hill, Truth Out, Huffington Post and other publications. His recent reporting involves “Moms for Liberty,” an astroturf organization influenced by right-wing dark money that has been accused of using "parental rights" as a cover for strategically harassing public schools.
Links to Walker Bragman’s journalism:
Important Context News: https://www.importantcontext.news/
OptOut News: https://www.optout.news/
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Walkerbragman#momsforliberty#M4L#MFL#parentrights#astroturf#maskmandates#rondesantis#twitter#matttaibbi#schoolboardharrassmen#concerntparents#InformedParentsofWashington#PeninsulaSchoolDistrict#antivax#sexeducastion#bookbanning#CRT#bookbans#SEL#antiunion#teacherunions#zzblog#PatCummings#GregGodels#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Sarah Augustine, a Pueblo (Tewa) descendant, is the founder and co-chair of the Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery, a legal principal that originated in the 15th and 16th centuries to justify colonial expansion and domination of indigenous land rights and tribal sovereignty. We discuss impact of this doctrine, native boarding schools, combating the “extractive logic” of exploiting nature for profit rather than social value and rights for indigenous people.
Book:
The Land Is Not Empty: Following Jesus in Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery
Website:
The Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery
Greg's ZZs Blog:
SarahAugustine#DoctrineofDiscovery#DoctrineDiscovery#CoaltiontoDismantleDocturineDiscovery#TheLandIsNotEmpty#Tewa#Pueblo#Yakima#BoardingSchools#indigenious#PopeFrancis#zzblog#PatCummings#GregGodels#SIHF#WHO#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast# AnabaptistWitness #NativeAmerican
William Z. Foster was one the most recognized and respected labor leaders in U.S. history. Chris Townsend is his prodigy. A long-time union organizer and, with the support of others, is instrumental in the unionization of Starbucks stores across the country.
Book:
Working Class Giant by Arthur Zipser
https://www.intpubnyc.com/browse/working-class-giant/
Links:
The Undercover Organizers Behind America’s Union Wins-Portside
https://portside.org/2023-04-04/undercover-organizers-behind-americas-union-wins
Secret Union Tactic Fuels Unprecedented Labor Wins- Bloomberg News Original- YouTube:
https://youtu.be/6xDlvGn0F6A
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
ChrisTownsendt#WorkingClassGiant#WillamFoster#WillaimZFoster#Salting#Union#Strabucks#Amazon#zzblog#PatCummings#GregGodels#JazBrisack#HowardSchultz#LaborOrganizing3ComingFromLeftField#WorkingClass #ClassStruggle#LaborHistory
The promise that you can “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” is central to the story of the American Dream. Not so fast…. Acclaimed journalist Alissa Quart argues that at the heart of our suffering is a do-it-yourself ethos, the misplaced belief in our independence, and the conviction that we must rely on ourselves alone.
Alissa Quart website:
http://www.alissaquart.com/
Book:
Bootstrapped: Liberating Ourselves from the American Dream by Alissa Quart
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780063028005
Economic Hardship Project
https://economichardship.org/
Podcast:
Going For Broke
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-for-broke/id1585501973
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
AlissaQuart#EconomicHarship#NickelandDimet#GoingForBroker#Bootstrapping#littlehouseontheprairie#BarbaraEhrenreich#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField
Carlos Garrido provides a comprehensive development of his concept of the purity fetish, tracing the outlook to the Eleatic school of Ancient Greek philosophy and showing how it has appeared in 20th and 21st century Western Marxism and contemporary U.S. socialism.
Book:
"The Purity Fetish and the Crisis of Western Marxism" by Carlos Garrido
https://www.midwesternmarx.com/books.html
Please subscribe to the Midwestern Marx YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@MidwesternMarx
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
CarlosGarrido#MidwesternMarxism#PurityFetisht#FreddieDeboer#Socialism#SovietUnion#Cubanrevolution#China#CrisisWesternMarxism#Socialism#Socialist#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField
Nathan Robinson is the editor of Current Affairs magazine and is a leading voice of millennial left politics. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New Republic, The Nation, Salon, The Guardian, and elsewhere.
We discuss his new book where he gives a detailed explanation of how conservative arguments work and why we need to resist them, then goes through twenty-five separate talking points, showing precisely why each one fails.
Book:
Responding to the Right: Brief Replies to 25 Conservative Arguments by Nathan J. Robinson
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781250777744
Magazine:
Current Affairs: A Magazine of Politics and Culture
https://www.currentaffairs.org/
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
NathanRobinson#NathanJRobinson#Respondingtotheright#CurrentAffairs#Magazine#Brief Repliesto25ConservativeArguments#NoamChomsky#FreddieDeBoer#Woke#Wokism#Right-Wing#ConservativeArguments#Socialism#Socialist#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField
Our “friend of the show,” Bill Ehrhart returns to our podcast to discuss General Smedley D. Butler, one of the most colorful officers in the Marine Corps' long history; he was one of the two Marines who received two Medals of Honor for separate acts of outstanding heroism. Butler and Ehrhart are both cut from the same cloth, Marines, opinionated, on the correct side of politics.
Supplemental pictures and videos:
https://ComingFromLeftField.com/sb
Books:
War Is A Racket by Smedley D. Butler
Gangsters of Capitalism: Smedley Butler, the Marines, and the Making and Breaking of America's Empire
by Jonathan M. Katz
Devil Dog: The Amazing True Story of the Man Who Saved America (Pulp History)
by David Talbot (Author), Spain Rodriguez (Illustrator)
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
BillEhrart#WDEhart#WarIsARacket#SmedleyButler#MarineCorps#MetalHonor#Ultra#RachelMaddow# #GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Ruth Ben-Ghiat is a Professor of History and Italian Studies at New York University. She is an MSNBC Opinion Columnist and commentator on CNN, MSNBC, and other media outlets about authoritarianism, Fascism, and threats to democracy around the world.. Her latest book, Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present, looks at how illiberal leaders use propaganda, corruption, violence, and machismo - and how they can be defeated.
The book:
Strongmen- Mussolini To The Present
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780393868418
Substack:
Ruth Ben-Ghiat Lucid Substack
https://lucid.substack.com/
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
RuthBenGhiat#RuthBen-Ghiat#Strongmen#MussolinitoPresent# authoritarianism #Factism#Facist#propaganda#machismo#Trump#illiberal#Putin#Lucid#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Tom Hulst was a policy advisor to Washington Governor Daniel J. Evans, an administrator in the State Office of Public Instruction, superintendent of Peninsula School District, and college political science teacher. His book “The Footpaths of Justice William O. Douglas” is a remarkable tribute to Douglas, hiking, place, and family.
Tom’s book:
The Footpaths of Justice William O. Douglas: A Legacy of Place
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780595330409
Greg's ZZs Blog:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
TomHulst#TomRHulstl# TheFootpathsofJustice#WilliamODouglas#ALegacyofPlace#Originalist#Yakima#Hiking#PacificNW#FreeSpeech#FreeSpeech#Environmentalism#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Anthony Conwright is a writer and educator based in New York City. He contributes to Mother Jones, The Nation, Huffington Post, New Republic, and others. He is a remarkable journalist, always with a refreshingly unique perspective on our modern political economy. Follow his works on:
Mother Jones:
https://www.motherjones.com/author/anthony-conwright/
The Nation:
https://www.thenation.com/authors/anthony-conwright/
Huffington Post:
https://www.huffpost.com/author/aconwright-628
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
AnthonyConwright#MotherJonesl#TheNation#HuffingtonPost#Jan6#BigLie#Facism#Journalsit#Commitee10#RobertPape#LostCause#AdamHochshild#Fergeson#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Tariq Ali is a writer, activist, and longtime public intellectual. He has authored many books and is a member of the editorial committee of the New Left Review. He contributes to The Guardian, CounterPunch, and the London Review of Books.
His most recent book is a critical review that exposes Churchill’s leadership in the context of forgotten Imperial crimes.
Book:
“Winston Churchill: His Times, His Crimes” with Tariq Ali
https://www.versobooks.com/books/3971-winston-churchill
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
TariqAlil#WinstonChurchill#Empireft#Colonialism#WWII#WarCrimes#ChurchillWarCriminal#TimesHis Crimes#BritishEmpire#BengalFamine#CarolineElkins#BBCGreatestBritons#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Stansfield Smith is a member of Chicago ALBA Solidarity, formerly the Chicago Committee to Free the Cuban 5. Stansfield is a long-time anti-war activist and opposed U.S. interference over the years in Latin America. He is a prolific writer, and his works have appeared in publications such as CounterPunch, Dissident Voice, MLToday, Black Agenda, CovertAction Magazine, and MultiPolarisia.
Links:Part 1: National Security State Censoring of Anti-Imperialist Voices the Latest Phase of their Long-Term Strategy to Divide and Control the Left (Jun 23, 2022)
https://tinyurl.com/yjpschj3
Part 2: Behind the Decline of the US Left (Nov 28, 2022):
https://tinyurl.com/9f63ta9n
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
StanSmithl#StansfieldSmith#Behindthedeclineoftheusleft#Leftpolitics#ChicagoALBASolidarity#ChicagoCommiteetoFreeCuban5#Cuban5#LatinAmerica#PinkTide#mediacensorship#Anti-imperialism#DivideLeft#compatibleleft#twitterfiles#matttiabbi#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Andy Campbell, the Senior Editor of Huffington Post, joined us today to discuss his book, “We Are Proud Boys: How a Right-Wing Street Gang Ushered in a New Era of American Extremism .” Andy is considered an expert on American extremism, having covered the modern rise of the far-right at the ground level, including the neo-Nazi rallies in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017.
Links: “We Are Proud Boys: How a Right-Wing Street Gang Ushered in a New Era of American Extremism” by Andy Campbell:
https://www.amazon.com/Are-Proud-Boys-Right-Wing-Extremism/dp/0306827468
Andy Campbell articles in Huff Post:
https://www.huffpost.com/author/andy-campbell
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
AndyCampbell#WeAreProudBoys#ProudBoys#GavinMcInness#Extemist#Jan6#EnruqyeTarrio#VICE#HuffingtontPost#HuffPost#JoeRogan#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Today’s guest is an American poet, writer, scholar, and Vietnam veteran. Bill (W.D.) Ehrhart has been called "the dean of Vietnam war poetry." His activism in the form of his prolific literary work has been featured in numerous articles, books, periodicals, and even Ken Burns’ documentary, The Vietnam War.
Links: W.D. Ehrhart’s books from McFarland Publishing:
https://mcfarlandbooks.com/?s=W.+D.+Ehrhart&search_id=product&post_type=product
W.D. Ehrhart Articles in the LA Progressive |Jun 2014 to Nov 2022: https://www.laprogressive.com/author/w-d-ehrhart
Webpage: https://wdehrhart.com/index.html
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
BillEhrhart#WDEhahart#Poet#ThankYouForYourService#KenBurns#Vietnam#Veteran#PTSD#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Our guest today is an award-winning New York Times best-selling historian Adam Hochschild to discuss his book, “American Midnight: The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy’s Forgotten Crisis.” Adam Hochschild is a prominent historian, author of eleven books, and a co-founder, editor, and writer at Mother Jones magazine.
Links: “American Midnight: The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy’s Forgotten Crisis.”
https://www.harpercollins.com/products/american-midnight-adam-hochschild?variant=40001056014370
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
AdamHochschild#AmericanMidnight #WoodrowWilson#JEdgarHoover#Debs#Facism#WW1#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeftField#Podcast
Our guests today are Joe Jamison (pen name: Thomas Kenny) and Roger Keeran, authors of “Socialism Betrayed: Behind the Collapse of the Soviet Union.” Although written two decades ago, it remains the definitive expose of what led to the overthrow of the Soviet Union. With the recent death of Mikhail Gorbachev, their book is especially relevant, providing a clear and insightful analysis of this historic event.
Links:
“Socialism Betrayed: Behind the Collapse of the Soviet Union”:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/socialism-betrayed-behind-the-collapse-of-the-soviet-union-roger-keeran/7617565
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
JoeJamsion#ThomasKenny#RogerKeeran#SocialismBetrayed#CollapseSovietUnion# Mikhail Gorbachev#Ukraine#SecondEconomy#CarlosMartinez#MidwesternMarxist#JeffreySommers#CollapseUSSR#RiseChina#NATOExpansion#Marx#Communism# GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeft Field#Podcast
Our guest today is Kathryn Joyce, an investigative reporter at Salon. She recently authored a three-part series: ‘The war on public schools is being fought from Hillsdale College,” which focuses on a private Christian school playing an outsized role in nearly all our current fights about education.
Hillsdale is a “feeder school” for the Trump administration, its leadership directed Trump’s “patriotic education” 1776 Commission. Their lecture series and related magazine are the place where right-wing politicians and thinkers go to pilot their most ambitious ideas.
Links:
“The war on public schools is being fought from Hillsdale College”: https://www.salon.com/2022/03/16/salon-investigates-the-on-public-schools-is-being-fought-from-hillsdale-college/
Kathryn Joyce website (articles and books): http://kathrynjoyce.com/
Political Research Associates Articles – Ben Lorber Research Analyst: https://politicalresearch.org/bio/ben-lorber
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
KathrynJoyce#WarPublicSchools#Education#Christian#HillsdaleCollege#CriticalRaceTheory#CRT#ChristopherRufo#RightWingCollegeLies#Salon#PeninsulaSchoolDistrict#InformedParentsofWashington#Imprimis#charterschools#GregGodels#zzblog#PatCummings#ComingFromLeft Field#Podcast
Our guest today is Dan Canon, a civil rights lawyer, teacher, and author of "Pleading Out: How Plea Bargaining Creates a Permanent Criminal Class." His book is a searing analysis of America’s assembly-line approach to criminal justice and the shameful practice at its core: the plea bargain.
Canon is also known as counsel for Kentucky and Indiana plaintiffs in the landmark cases successfully supporting changes in marriage equality laws.
Links:
Dan’s book:
“Pleading Out: How Plea Bargaining Creates a Permanent Criminal Class”: https://www.basicbooks.com/titles/dan-canon/pleading-out/9781541674684/
Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
DanConan #PleadingOut# civilrights#lawyer#criminaljustice #marriageequality #Plea Bargaing#Attorney# #polticalanalysis #greggodels #zzblog #zzsblog #patcummings #ComingFromLeftField #podcast #laborhistory #unionbusting
Our guest today is Dan Kovalik, a prolific author of many books on Latin America. He sheds light on the “pink tide,” the trend of numerous self-proclaimed socialist democracies moving away from neoliberal authoritarian regimes.
Links:
- Dan Kovalik Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Kovalik
- Preorder Dan’s book: Nicaragua: A History of US Intervention & Resistance– January 1, 2023: https://www.amazon.com/Nicaragua-History-US-Intervention-Resistance/dp/1949762602
- Greg's ZZs Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
DanKovalik #pinktide #Columbia #Venezuela# Nicaragua #GustavPetro#NicolasMaduro#Marxist-Leninist#polticalanalysis #greggodels #zzblog #zzsblog #patcummings #ComingFromLeftField #podcast #operationcondor #politicaleconomy #capitalism #latinarmerica
Our guest today, Eddie Smith, is a political scientist with expertise in anti-imperialism and socialist projects. He is co-host of the popular podcast, Midwestern Marx, which has over 24,000 subscribers. Today we discuss Michael Parenti’s classic, Blackshirts & Reds, and other topics regarding class, capitalism, and contemporary Marxism.
Links:
- Midwestern Marx YouTube: (https://www.youtube.com/c/MidwesternMarx/ )
- Midwestern Marx Tik Tok: (https://www.tiktok.com/discover/midwestern-marx )
- Eddie’s July 3, 2021 article: American Slavery and Global Capitalism (https://www.midwesternmarx.com/articles/american-slavery-and-global-capitalism-by-edward-liger-smith/ )
- Website WTF Happened in 1971 (https://wtfhappenedin1971.com/ )
- Link to Greg's blog: ZZs Blog (http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/)
EddieSmith #EdwardLigerSmith #midwesternmarx #marxism #parenti #michaelparenti #blackshirtsandreds #polticalanalysis #greggodels #zzblog #zzsblog #patcummings #ComingFromLeftField #podcast #racism #politicaleconomy #slavery #capitalism #KyleKulinski
Our guest today, psychiatrist Dr. Joanna Moncrieff, has created quite a buzz with her recent journal article that capsized the brain chemistry imbalance hypothesis of depression. The article is scientifically sound and well respected by her peers; however, it is a threat to the big pharma industry and other narratives regarding the individual defect theory of mental health.
- Marx, Spinoza, and the Political Implications of Contemporary Psychiatry | CounterPunch by Bruce Levine | June 7, 2022
- The Political Economy of the Mental Health System: A Marxist Analysis | Frontiers in Sociology by Joanna Moncrieff | Jan 17, 2022
- The serotonin theory of depression: a systematic umbrella review of the evidence | Molecular Psychiatry by Joanna Moncrieff | June 21, 2022
JoannaMoncrieff #UniversityCollegeLondon #seritonin #depressioin #mentalhealth #molecularpsychiatry #politicaleconomy #Frontierssociology #brainchemisrty #bigpharma #counterpunch #greggodels #zzblog #zzsblog #patcummings #ComingFromLeftField #podcast
One of our favorite guests, Dr. Gerald Horne, joins us today to discuss his book, “Jazz and Justice: Racism and the Political Economy of the Music.” A remarkable scholar discusses the history of jazz, “the story of a beautiful lotus, growing from the filth of the crassest form of human immiseration.”
Order the book: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781583677858
Link to Greg's blog (ZZs Blog): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Spotify Playlists Jazz Musicians by Location New Orleans: https://spoti.fi/3Is9AXs
Kansas City: https://spoti.fi/3uA7jn4
St. Louis: https://spoti.fi/3yOAaqu
New Jersey: https://spoti.fi/3OS8xm0
Chicago: https://spoti.fi/3yqGcvX
Pittsburgh: https://spoti.fi/3OUHSoA
Cuba: https://spoti.fi/3ynYm1r
New York: https://spoti.fi/3NW6N9Q
Memphis: https://spoti.fi/3Rde87Q
geraldhorne #marvinhorne #jazzhistory #jazz activism #anti-fascism #charlesmingus #archieshepp #jazzjustice #greggodels #zzblog #zzsblog #patcummings #ComingFromLeftField #podcast #racism #politicaleconomy #music #jimcrow
Today we talk with Stephen Gowans, a political analyst, and writer who shows how capitalism, its incentives, and its power dominate the political process and impeded the protection of public health.
Order the book, “The Killer's Henchman: Capitalism and the Covid-19 Disaster”
Link to Stephen’s blog (What's Left): https://gowans.blog/
Link to Greg's blog (ZZs Blog): http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
StephenGowans
Gowans
KillersHenchman
The Killer'sHenchman
COVID
CovidDisaster
WhatsLeft
CapitalismCovid
GregGodels
ZZblog
ZZsblog
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
podcast
Today we talk with Angel Krempa, a former Starbucks shift supervisor in Buffalo, New York, who was fired in retaliation for organizing one of the first successful unionization efforts against the coffee giant. In 2020, not a single one of the company's 9,000 stores had a union. In the past few months, more than 150 Starbucks voted to unionize, and the corporate overlords are not happy.
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
AngelKrempa
Starbucks
Worker Unitied
HowardSchultz
RossannWilliams
Union
GregGodels
WorldFederationTradeUnion
WFTU
ZZblog
ZZsblog
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
podcast
Today, we welcomed Kent Garrett and Jeanne Ellsworth to discuss their book, " The Last Negroes at Harvard," a story of 18 remarkable Black men admitted to Harvard’s class of 1963. The book is equal parts memoir, group biography, and history of a turbulent civil rights era.
Book: The Last Negroes at Harvard (2020)
https://thelastnegroesatharvard.com/
Podcast: available on Spotify and Apple Podcast
Link to Greg's blog :
ZZs Blog
KentGarrett
JeanneEllsworth
LastNegroesatHarvard
Classof1963
Harvard
CivilRights
Memoir
GregGodels
ZZblog
ZZsblog
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
podcast
Today, we welcomed Dr. Mark Vonnegut to discuss his book, "The Heart of Caring: Reflections from a life lived in medicine." Dr. Vonnegut, son of writer Kurt Vonnegut, has practiced pediatrics for the last forty years. We discuss the crisis in the health care system and how for-profit influences are harming the mission of helping patients.
Books:
The Heart of Caring: Reflections from a life lived in medicine (2022)
Just Like Someone Without Mental Illness Only More So: A Memoir (2011)
The Eden Express: A Memoir of Insanity (1975)
Link to Greg's blog :
ZZs Blog
MarkVonnegut
TheHeartofCaring
Pediatrics
MentalIlness
Memoir
SubstanceAbuse
KurtVonnegut
BiPolar
Godels
ZZblog
ZZsblog
Cummings
ComingFromLeftField
Today, we welcomed Sam Quinones to discuss his book, "The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth." The book follows his 2015 release, Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic. Both books are critically acclaimed.
In January 2022, The Least of Us was nominated for a National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) award for Best Nonfiction Book of 2021.
Book:
The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth (2021)
Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate (2015)
Link to Greg's blog :
ZZs Blog
SamQuinones
TheLeastofUs
Dreamland
Podcast
Meth
Fentanyl
Homeless
Drugaddiction
GregGodels
ZZblog
ZZsblog
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Today, we welcomed Carlos L. Garrido to discuss Marcello Musto's book, "The Last Years of Karl Marx: An Intellectual History," and his research focus, including Marxism, Hegel, and early 19th Century American socialism.
Book:
Marcello Musto's book, "The Last Years of Karl Marx: An Intellectual History"
The Midwestern Marxist YouTube channel: (https://www.youtube.com/c/MidwesternMarx/) and website: (https://www.midwesternmarx.com/ )
The article mentioned: A Critique of Western Marxism's Purity Fetish
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
Carlos L Garrido
MidwesternMarxist
Marcelo Musto
The Last Years of Marx
GregGodels
ZZblog
ZZsblog
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
We welcomed today Chris Townsend to discuss his four decades as a union organizer and the relevance of William Z. Foster’s book, “American Trade Unionism” on today’s labor struggles.
Book:
American Trade Unionism by William Z. Foster https://www.intpubnyc.com/product/american-trade-unionism/
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
ChrisTownsend
American Trade Unionism
WilliamFoster
UE
ATU
podcast
Amazon
ChrisSmalls
GregGodels
ZZblog
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Jennifer Sherman to discuss her book "Dividing Paradise: Rural Inequality and the Diminishing American Dream.” Dr. Sherman is a Professor of Sociology at Washington State University and her work focuses on rural America, poverty, and inequality.
Book: Dividing Paradise: Rural Inequality and the Diminishing American Dream
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780520305144
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
JenniferSherman
DividingParadise
WSU
Sociology
podcast
GregGodels
ZZblog
ZZsblog
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Greg and Pat welcomed Brian Becker to discuss the Ukraine situation and his book "Imperialism in the 21st Century.” Brian Becker is the National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition and an insightful journalist on the “The Socialist Program” which is part of the BreakThrough News podcast. His observations on the Ukraine conflict deserve a wide audience.
Book: Imperialism in the 21st Century.
https://www.liberationschool.org/imperialism-in-the-21st-century/
BreakThrough News podcast
https://www.youtube.com/c/BreakThroughNews/featured
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
BrianBecker
Imperialism21stCentury
BreakThrough
TheSocialstProgram
podcast
GregGodels
ZZblog
ZZsblog
PatCummings
Greg and Pat welcome Suzanne Gordon to discuss her book " Wounds of War: How the VA Delivers Health, Healing, and Hope to the Nation's Veterans.” Suzanne Gordon is an award-winning journalist and author of numerous books regarding healthcare systems, teamwork, patient safety, and nursing.
We are also joined today with guest Bob Bonner, a retired VHA nurse and long-time fighter for better care as a local union president representing hospital workers.
Website: http://www.suzannegordon.com
Book: Wounds of War: How the VA Delivers Health, Healing, and Hope to the Nation's Veterans
Advocacy: https://www.veteranspolicy.org
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
SuzanneGordon
WoundsofWar
VHA
VA
BobBonner
GregGodels
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Mark Kruger to discuss his book "The St. Louis Commune of 1877: Communism in the Heartland ." Dr. Kruger is a retired professor that also had a career practicing law and serving as a municipal judge. Dr. Kruger's book tells a captivating story about a little-known chapter of labor history, the first general strike in America that resulted in a major US city being ruled by communists.
Book: https://www.powells.com/book/st-louis-commune-of-1877-communism-in-the-heartland-9781496228130
Articles on" The Veiled Profit" parade in St Louis:
- The Atlantic
- The Nation
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
MarkKruger
StLouis
Commune1877
Communist
VeiledProphet
GregGodels
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Freddie deBoer, to discuss his book “The Cult of Smart: How Our Broken Education System Perpetuates Social Injustice.” Dr. deBoer is a creative essayist and academic whose writings have appeared in such places as The New York Times, Harper’s, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Politico, and Jacobin. He is one of the most original and prolific voices in essays today, and his anti-tribal style has earned him admiration from political thinkers of all quadrants.
Book: https://www.powells.com/searchresults?keyword=Fredrik+deBoer
Substack: https://freddiedeboer.substack.com/
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
FredrikDeBoer
FreddieDeBoer
TheCultofSmart
EducationalReform
Meritocracy
GregGodels
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Greg and Pat welcome Tony Pecinovsky, author and nationally known historian on the Communist Party, USA. Today we discuss two of his books, "Let Them Tremble: Biographical Interventions Marking 100 Years of the Communist Party, USA" and "The Cancer of Colonialism: W. Alphaeus Hunton, Black Liberation, and the Daily Worker, 1944-1946." Pecinovsky has appeared on C-SPAN's "Book T.V." and regularly speaks on college and university campuses across the country.
Books and articles about Tony:
http://www.workerseducationsociety.org/officers/
https://www.peoplesworld.org/authors/tony-pecinovsky/
https://www.powells.com/searchresults?keyword=Tony+Pecinovsky
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
TonyPecinovsky
CPUSA
LetThemTremble
CancerofColonialism
GregGodels
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
PeoplesWorld
Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Jack Rasmus, professor in the Economics and Politics departments at Saint Mary's College of California. Dr. Rasmus is the author of numerous books and articles about the economy. Today we discuss his latest book, "The Scourge of Neoliberalism: US Economic Policy from Reagan to Trump," and other topics related to our present economic and political situation.
Web: https://jackrasmus.com/ Twitter: (@drjackrasmus) Alternative Visions on the Progressive Radio Network: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/alternative-visions-progressive-radio-network-RBcaS7f9PWX/ Books: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/447807.Jack_Rasmus
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
JackRasmus
Neoliberalism
Economics
GregGodels
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Tony Monterio, scholar/activist and one of the most cited DuBois scholars in the world to discuss the legacy of Henry Winston. Winston, committed to equal rights and communism, was an advocate of civil rights for African Americans decades before the idea of racial equality emerged as a mainstream current of American political thought.
Anthony Monterio (Key Wiki) : http://keywiki.org/Anthony_Monteiro
Link to Saturday Free School (Website): http://www.saturdayfreeschool.org/
(FaceBook): https://www.facebook.com/TheSaturdayFreeSchool
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
TonyMonteiro
AntonyMonteiro
WEBDuBois
HenryWinston
SaturdayFreeSchool
GregGodels
PatCummings
ComingFromLeftField
Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Walter Johnson, who is the Winthrop Professor of History and Professor of African and African American Studies at Harvard University. Dr. Johnson's work focuses on the history of slavery, capitalism, white supremacy, Black resistance, and US imperialism.
Today we discuss " The Broken Heart of America: St. Louis and the Violent History of the United States (2020). The book analyzes the pervasive exploitation and radical resistance in America told through the turbulent history of St. Louis.
Link to Dr. Johnson's vitae: https://scholar.harvard.edu/wjohnson/biocv Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Gerald Horne, who holds the Moores Professorship of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston. Dr. Horne is the author of more than thirty books and one hundred scholarly articles and reviews. He addresses pivotal points of racism across the gamut, ranging from labor, politics, and civil rights to international relations and war.
Today we discuss "Black Liberation/Red Scare: Ben Davis and the Communist Party," which is a study centered on the life of the remarkable African American leader Ben Davis, Jr. (1904-64). The book analyzes Davis's activism and political progression as the civil rights movement took flight.
Link to Dr. Horne's vitae and books:
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat welcome back Janice O'Mahony and Kevin Miller for a second round pf poetry reading. Also included is special guest, Derek Sheffield, nationally recognized poet, teacher and editor of Terrain.org. In this podcast we put pandemics, politics, and an over-heated planet on the back burner, and engage with some lighter verse.
Poem Index:
(0:16:31_Derek) Transcendentalism by Lucia Perillo
(0:22:57_Kevin) Racehogs by David Lee
(0:27:27_Janice) Patriarch’s Birthday Party Nine Days Away Blues by Janice O’Mahony
(0:31:55_Derek) For Those Who Would See 3 by Derek Sheffield
(0:37:00_Kevin) After Hearing Birdnote on the Song - Sparrow’s Double Scratch by Kevin Miller
(0:42:51_Janice) Year of the Monkey by Janice O’Mahony
(0:54:51_Derek) Sans Teeth by Dennis Held
(1:00:32_Kevin) A Retired Farmer Working as A Greeter at Wal-Mart by Leo Dangel
(1:04:48_Janice) Denim by Janice O’Mahony
(1:09:38_Derek) Ornithology Lesson by Jan Wallace
(1:13:25_Kevin) Sunset Knoll by George Bilgere
(1:15:47_Janice) Just the Facts by Janice O’Mahony
Books by Janice O'Mahony
Whidbey Island: Reflections on People & the Land (2014) by Elizabeth Guss, Janice O'Mahony, Mary Richardson (available at https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/ )
Books by Kevin Miller
Light That Whispers Morning (1994), Everywhere Was Far (1998), Home & Away (2008) and Vanish (2020) (available at https://www.kingsbookstore.com/ )
Books by Derek Sheffield
Through the Second Skin (2013), Dear America: Letters of Hope, Habitat, Defiance, and Democracy (2020) and Not for Luck (2021) (available at https://www.kingsbookstore.com/ )
Link to Greg's blog: ZZ's Blog
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat have a one-on-one discussion about Biden's first six months as president. How is he doing at the end of his first semester? We discuss his executive orders, COVID, border crisis, economics, bipartisan cooperation, foreign policy, defense, media coverage, and a grade.
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat welcome noted author, Geoffrey Fox, to discuss his soon-to-be-released book, "Rabble!" about the Paris Commune. The demise of the commune was both tragic and predictable. The events of 150 years ago lit a fire of reform and hope that still burns.
Some pictures of the Paris Commune 1871 from the Library of Congress:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/KZNWxJHEP5eB3wkE6
Geoffrey's new book, "Rabble!":
https://www.troubador.co.uk/bookshop/historical/rabble/
Background on the Paris Commune:
https://geoffreyfox.com/2021/05/the-paris-commune-and-the-crisis-of-imperialism/
Other books by Geoffrey Fox:
https://go.authorsguild.org/members/854
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat welcome friend of the show, Richard Hollwedel, to discuss the Sven Lindquvist 1992 book, “Exterminate All the Brutes” which was recently made into a HBO four-part documentary series directed by Raoul Peck. The book and documentary delves deeply into the legacy of European colonialism from the Americas to Africa.
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat welcome Kay Tillow, a veteran union activist from Louisville, is executive director of the Nurses Professional Organization. She and the NPO have spent 21 years battling to organize nurses who work for Louisville-based Norton Healthcare, Kentucky's most extensive health care system. Most recently, Kay has turned her attention to supporting a single-payer health care system.
Link to Kentuckians for Single-Payer Health Care: http://kyhealthcare.org/author/kay
Information on July 24, 22021 March for Medicare for All: http://kyhealthcare.org/posts/louisville-and-20-other-cities-plan-march-for-medicare-for-all-july-24-2021
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
Errata: (25:00) Pat said "63% of doctors support a public option". The correct percent is 73%.
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Greg and Pat welcome Stephen Gowans, an independent political analyst from Ottawa and author of several acclaimed books: Washington's Long War on Syria (2017), Patriots, Traitors and Empires: The Story of Korea's Struggle for Freedom (2018) and Israel, A Beachhead in the Middle East: From European Colony to US Power Projection Platform (2019)
Link to Stephen’s blog: https://gowans.blog/
Stephen’s books: https://www.barakabooks.com/?post_type=dd-product&s=Stephen+Gowans
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
Errata: (17:32) Pat sai: "We must stand AGAINST Israel against terrorists." It should have been: "We must stand WITH Israel against terrorism."
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Greg and Pat welcome the poets Janice O’Mahony and Kevin Miller for conversation and reading of selective poems that cover current events, politics, and other matters.
Books by Janice O’Mahony
Whidbey Island: Reflections on People & the Land (2014) by Elizabeth Guss, Janice O'Mahony, Mary Richardson (available at https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/ )
Books by Kevin Miller
Light That Whispers Morning (1994), Everywhere Was Far (1998), Home & Away (2008) and Vanish (2020) (available at https://www.kingsbookstore.com/ )
Poem Index:
(05:24_Kevin) Alive So Who Is Complaining
(09:08_Janice) Just Wondering
(15:58_Kevin) After Pogroms Ending In River
(19:10_Janice) Intake At The Veterans Center
(26:00_Kevin) The United State Of Dog Fish
(30:56_Janice) Selma 1986
(36:08_Janice) I Got Nothing
(40:10_Kevin) Consider Religion
(42:11_Janice) The Poem That Led To My Arrest
(52:07_Kevin) Vanish
(53:52_Janice) Our Place
Poem Greg mentioned: Bertholt Brecht: Concerning the Infanticide, Marie Farrar (1922)
https://muvs.org/en/topics/literary-quotes/bertolt-brecht-concerning-the-infanticide-marie-farrar-1922-en/
Link to Greg's blog: ZZ's Blog
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Toni Gilpin, author of "The Long Deep Grudge: A Story of Big Capital, Radical Labor, and Class War in the American Heartland." Dr. Gilpin is a labor historian, writer, and activist who holds a Ph.D in American History from Yale University. Her writing has been published in progressive media outlets and labor-connected journals like Jacobin and In These Times, and she was the recipient of the 2018 Debra Bernhardt Award for Labor Journalism.
Order the book: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/1383-the-long-deep-grudge
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat welcome Dr. Jennifer Berkshire, co-author with Dr. Jack Schneider of "A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door: The Dismantling of Public Education and the Future of School." Dr. Berkshire writes about education and politics for the Nation, the New Republic, the Baffler, and other publications. She and Dr. Schneider are co-hosts of the educational policy podcast "Have You Heard."
A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door: The Dismantling of Public Education and the Future of School: https://thenewpress.com/books/wolf-schoolhouse-door
Have You Heard Podcast: https://haveyouheardblog.com/have-you-heard/
Link to Greg's blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com
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Greg and Pat welcome an American historian Dr. Roger Keeran. Dr. Keeran is now Professor Emeritus of the Empire State College at SUNY after retiring in 2013. He has taught successively at Cornell, Princeton, Rutgers, and the New York State University. A specialist of Labor and Policy studies published, in 1980, The Communist Party and the Auto Workers Unions. Dr. Keeran demonstrates the extent to which the very formation of a solid and permanent industrial union in the automobile industry depended upon the dedication of a cadre of individuals whose own social vision far transcended the union movement itself.
- Dr. Keeran's book, The Communist Party and the Auto Workers' Union, is available from International Publishers
- 1976 BBC documentary regarding the Great Sit Down against General Motors in February 1937. Included: women's roles in settling the strikes.
- Link to Greg's blog: ZZ's Blog
Greg and Pat welcome good friend Richard (a.k.a “Hoss”) Hollwedel. We discuss Bessemer Alabama Amazon warehouse workers making a final push toward unionizing, Jeff Bezo’s business blueprint that is sorting our country into “winner-take-all” and “left-behind” places, some thoughts of unions, capitalism, and a little Karl Marx for good measure too. Hoss brings to the conversation a few decades of competing with the Amazon model in book sales and distribution and a rich family history of working in union shops.
Link to Greg's blog: ZZ's Blog
Greg and Pat welcome retired newspaper editor and journalist Jim Painter to discuss "The Media," including broadcasting, publishing, and the internet. Jim made a career in newsrooms as a reporter, photographer, opinion column writer, and newspaper editor. Jim is also the author of The Black March, a novel of World War II, based on his father's experience, as a crewman in the Eighth Air Force, flying B-17s.
Link to Jim's book, The Black March
Link to Jim's photography: Fine Art America
Link to of Jim's photography from his college and reporter days in Arizona: photography
Greg (co-host of the podcast) is a prominent scholar of the communist-socialist labor union movements of the post-New Deal communist movement from a Marxist-Leninist perspective. His writings have appeared in numerous publications in the US and internationally. In this episode, Pat (co-host) interviews Greg on Karl Marx, his influence on philosophy, economics, political change, and current relevance.
Link to Greg's blog: ZZ's Blog
Link to Marxism-Leninism Today ML Today is an electronic journal containing articles and commentaries on the theory and practice of Marxism-Leninism contemporary dialectical and historical materialism. https://mltoday.com/
Greg and Pat welcome author and human rights lawyer Dan Kovalik to discuss “cancel culture”, a modern form of ostracism. The timing is right because, on April 27, 2021, Dan will be releasing his latest book, “Cancel This Book; The Progressive Case Against Cancel Culture.”
Link to more on Dan’s book, Cancel This Book Link to Greg’s blog: ZZ’s Blog
Greg and Pat discuss the 2020 book “The People, No: A Brief History of Anti-Populism” by historian Thomas Frank.
Link to Greg’s blog: ZZ’s Blog
Greg and Pat discuss the 2018 book “How Democracies Die” by political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt.
Link to Greg’s blog: ZZ’s Blog