Unf*cking The Republic

Rashid Khalidi is the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University. Professor Khalidi received his BA from Yale in 1970, and Doctor of Philosophy from Oxford in 1974. He's co-editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies and was president of the Middle East Studies Association, and an advisor to the Palestinian delegation to the Madrid and Washington Arab-Israeli Peace negotiat...

The final installment of our series on Israel/Palestine covers the Arab Revolts of the late 1930s through present day, highlighting the agreements, wars, uprisings and accords that explain how the chasm widened between Jews and Palestinians, and why every attempt at reconciling the two sides has failed. It’s a sweeping narrative that involves generational actors, imperial interests of neighboring...

Today's Show Notes features more Palestine Series feedback, some punch ins from Manny Faces, and a smattering of Max and 99 tangents. Enjoy! Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:17:00 Emails: 00:31:02 Instagram Shout Outs: 01:06:50 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:08:37 Outro: 01:09:56 Resources Fall Fund-Friend-Hell-Raiser: Leave us a review . It really helps people find the podcast!...

Part Two of our series on Israel/Palestine turns back the clock to examine the time period from Part One but from the Palestinian perspective. By establishing the foundation of the conflict in parallel, it helps organize internal and external events that explain sympathies toward Jews and Palestinians alike. This episode digs into the cultural underpinnings of Arab society in the 19th and early 20...

Today’s Show Notes covers all the feedback Max and 99 received from the Palestine: Part One episode. Give it a listen, Unf*ckers! Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:05:18 Emails: 00:26:13 YouTube Shout Outs: 01:11:53 Reviews: 01:22:16 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:22:35 Outro: 01:23:07 UNFTR Episode Resources Palestine: An Introduction. The Land Imperialism Left Behind. Palestine...

Every story has a beginning. Every conflict has its roots. For some, the Israel/Palestine conflict is rooted in scripture and written in blood. Others claim it boils down to a deadly dispute over real estate. There’s a reason why “peace in the Middle East” feels out of reach and why so many have thrown their hands up. It’s complicated. But it’s not impossible to understand. We begin our journey in...

Max and 99 catch up in today's Show Notes, discussing Palestine intro feedback, why Boomers love their generation, and the canon of UNFTR songs. Enjoy! Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:23 Emails: 00:39:37 Facebook Shout Outs: 00:59:53 Instagram Shout Outs: 01:08:54 YouTube Shout Outs: 01:12:08 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:32:31 Reviews: 01:33:29  Outro: 01:34:52 Headlines The...

You've heard him on the pod. You know the magic of his sound design. But do you really know "Manny Faces?" Long-time, award winning Hip-Hop journalist and activist Manny Faces joins Max in studio to talk about Hip-Hop culture and its underreported influence on education, the criminal justice system and activism. If you listen/watch you’ll also be introduced to the coining of the phrase, “pimping o...

Max finally takes aim at the Israel/Palestine conflict with an introduction that frames the approach for the mini-series and sets guardrails for what will undoubtedly be an emotional journey for many UNFTR listeners. This episode answers why we decided to tackle this issue and how we’re examining it through a socioeconomic lens and Marxist view of history. It also dismisses two foundational decept...

Max flies solo while 99 goes on a long distance mission from god. Left to his own devices, Max dips his pinky toe into the Palestinian conflict to set the table for our upcoming series and responds to listener feedback from the last couple of episodes. Seems like Pitchfork Nick was particularly well received so cheers to the Pitchfork Economics crew for playing in our sandbox. -- If you like the p...

Max interviews Nick Hanauer, co-host of the Pitchfork Economics podcast and founder of Civic Ventures. They discuss Nick’s work at Civic Ventures to promote the $15 minimum wage among other initiatives and have a wide ranging discussion about the power of neoliberal messaging, Bidenomics and the struggle to break through the “pack of lies” we’ve been sold by corporations to maintain the status quo...

In this episode of Show Notes, Max and 99 lightly discuss Israel/Palestine in preparation for a future episode, continue with some Socialism feedback, and 99 makes an admission about shoelaces. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:26:43 Emails: 00:34:22 Facebook Shout Outs: 01:09:54 YouTube Shout Outs: 01:11:38 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:13:12 Reviews: 01:15:02 Outro: 01:15:44 H...

Max struggles to understand exactly what Matt Gaetz is after, but has his suspicions. Regardless of the right-wing endgame, this week’s fiasco was made possible by Newt Gingrich in the 1990s. Gingrich’s run marked not only the end of civility, but the beginning of a GOP hostile to anything that impedes the complete destruction of the welfare state. We look at how this came to pass and who is the c...

Today's Show Notes is brought to you by: Hip-Hop! Max and 99 get an assist from Manny Faces who responds to an Unf*cker, and DJs while Max and 99 sing. They also discuss capitalism, the working class and Max's new haircut. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:05:22 Emails: 00:10:02 Instagram Shout Outs: 00:46:09 YouTube Shout Outs: 00:49:59 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 00:51:56 Outro...

The final, final (no really) installment in our series on socialism looks narrowly at the period between World War One and the Russian Revolution to identify factors that contributed to the Bolshevik departure from Marxist theory and how nationalism squashed any hope for an internationalist movement. We revisit the words of the theorists and activists we covered in the series from Jeremy Bentham t...

99 is back in this episode of Show Notes; her and Max talk Taylor Swift, unions + strikes, and read some opposing view feedback from Unf*ckers. Enjoy! Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:17:43 Emails: 00:42:42 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:28:04 Outro: 01:30:55 Headlines The Intercept: House Republicans Are Hurtling Toward the Most Pointless Shutdown Ever Resources UNFTR Facebook...

Strike! Union actions are everywhere. High profile work stoppages from the Screen Actors Guild to the United Auto Workers have put the labor movement front and center in ways we haven’t seen for decades. How powerful is the impact of these actions? You’re not going to like my take on it. But we need to have some authentic dialogue about the labor movement, the corporate class and new strategies re...

Max flies solo in this episode of Show Notes while 99 is out with consumption (COVID). He covers AOC + Socialism feedback, goes on a Boebert rant, and reads tons of Unf*cker feedback. Enjoy! Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:02:54 Emails: 00:07:41 Facebook Shout Outs: 00:33:03 Instagram Shout Outs: 00:41:13 YouTube Shout Outs: 00:41:43 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 00:54:13 Outro:...

This is technically the final installment of our series “Understanding Socialism” where we cover the period between the Paris Commune in 1871 and onset of World War I, which precedes (and leads to) the Russian Revolution in 1917. We’re going to cover the Russian Revolution briefly in an epilogue that speaks to the divergence from classical Marxism from the Revolution forward and where socialist mo...

AOC. The country continues to obsess over the bright light of the progressive caucus and most high profile member of “The Squad.” From day one, AOC has been the subject of harsh criticisms steeped in misogyny and class resentment; mostly from the right. Oftentimes, however, the criticisms have come from inside the Democratic Party establishment. Recently, however, she’s been in the crosshairs of t...

Max and 99 are reunited in this episode of Show Notes! They talk Bidenomics, Phone A Friend, and sharting. (Sorry.) Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:16:41 Emails: 00:27:51 Facebook Shout Outs: 00:47:00 Buy Me A Coffee Memberships + Donations: 01:04:24 Reviews: 01:06:04 Outro: 01:06:21 Headlines HRW: “They Fired on Us Like Rain”: Saudi Arabian Mass Killings of Ethiopian Migrants at the Yemen-...

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” “Is there life after death?” “If the POTUS says the economy is great but no one feels it, is it really a recovery?” I’ll leave the first two for philosophy majors. On the third question, I have some thoughts. The administration is touting what it calls, “Bidenomics.” Much like Obama chose to own “Obamacare” and tu...

Francesca Fiorentini is a journalist, activist, comedian and host of the popular Bitchuation Room podcast and YouTube channel. Max and Francesca talk swimming pools, presidential politics, California candidates and the liberal obsession with tearing down AOC & the squad. Watch the interview on YouTube. Resources Francesa on YouTube The Bitchuation Room Podcast Francesca on Twitter Francesca on...

Happy Max-less Show Notes to all who celebrate! 99 is joined by Manny this week and they discuss Socialism Part Four, Barbie, Hip-Hop and podcasts! Chapters Intro: 00:20:00 Start Barbie Spoilers: 00:07:37 End Barbie Spoilers: 00:10:56 Emails: 00:12:14 YouTube Shout Outs: 00:22:08 Reviews: 00:25:27 Podcasts: 00:27:43 Outro: 00:45:51 Resources Bernard E. Harcourt: Critique and Praxis News Beat: Invi...

Nathan J. Robinson is the author of 10 non-fiction books and four illustrated books. He defied modernity by launching a magazine (yes an actual physical magazine), called Current Affairs which blends eye-popping and fun illustrations with scathing prose and real, authentic journalism. Nathan and Max have a wide-ranging conversation from education to socialism in our Phone A Friend. Resources Curre...