A Couple Thinks Podcast

After a Fourth of July weekend that felt more reflective than celebratory, we found ourselves still struggling with the state of our country in this moment. In this week’s episode, we step back from the daily headlines and take a much longer view of American history. At 250 years old, the United States is still a relatively young nation, and every generation has faced moments that felt overwhelmin...

America turns 250 this week. That milestone feels complicated. Like many people, we’ve been wrestling with what it means to celebrate our country at a moment when so many of us are concerned about its direction. Is it still possible to feel patriotic while we criticize our country and ask it to deliver on its promise? And what does celebrating the Fourth of July look like when the national convers...

In this episode, we explore two very different visions for America: one rooted in hope, community, and shared purpose, and another fueled by chaos, division, and blame. The contrast felt especially sharp this week, from the uplifting celebrations in New York and the opening of the Obama Center to the ongoing turmoil and spectacle coming out of Washington. We discuss why hope is more than just a fe...

In this episode from May of 2025, we take a step back from the chaos of current events and trace our personal paths through politics and activism, from childhood memories to adulthood engagement. If you didn’t catch it the first time around and want to get to know a little bit about each of us and how we found our way to our passion for politics and activism, take a listen! We’ll be back next week...

In this week’s episode, we start by answering “Why does California take so long to count ballots?” It’s a question that comes up after nearly every election, and with several closely watched races still too close to call, we decided to dig into the answer. As it turns out, the delay isn’t a sign of fraud; instead, it’s largely a sign that election officials are doing exactly what we want them to d...

As the midterm campaigns move into high gear, one thing is already clear: the culture wars are back. This week, we explore why so much political rhetoric focuses on topics designed to provoke outrage, fear, or endless debate—and why that often pulls attention away from the issues that affect people’s daily lives. We discuss recent examples of political figures using culture-war attacks as a distra...

This week’s episode is a shorter one for Memorial Day weekend. We start with a reflection on Memorial Day itself — not just the sales and barbecues many of us grew up with, but the original purpose of honoring those who lost their lives in military service, and what it means to think about sacrifice, citizenship, and the state of the country today. From there, we pivot to the topic on many Califor...

We’re coping with a strange balancing act right now. On one hand, the news cycle continues to deliver a steady stream of anxiety, frustration, and outrage. On the other hand, life keeps happening. Summer arrives. Festivals pop up. Families gather. Dessert appears. The sun finally comes out in Berkeley around 1:30 PM. This week on A Couple Thinks, we talk about how we’re trying to navigate that ten...

Another week, another reminder that democracy is not a “set it and forget it” system. This week on the podcast, we talk about the escalating redistricting battles happening across the country, the continued weakening of the Voting Rights Act, and what we can do to help Democrats take back the House (and maybe the Senate). We also dig into: * Why mid-decade gerrymandering feels like a race to the b...

Aaron was out of town for most of the past week so we didn’t record a new episode. So, this is a reprise our most downloaded episode; it is from June 2025 called “Be A Helper; Find the Good”. We hope you enjoy it. We will have a new episode in your feed next week so you can hear about Aaron’s travels, amongst other things! In this episode of A Couple Thinks , we’re doing two things: breaking down...

This week’s episode is a quick one. We touch on two things that are very much on our minds right now: the recent California gubernatorial debate and the upcoming May Day actions. On the debate front, our big takeaway is… cautiously reassuring. If any of the Democratic candidates on that stage becomes governor, we’ll be okay. There wasn’t a single breakout moment that reshaped the race, but there a...

It’s been one of those weeks where the headlines feel less like isolated incidents and more like a pattern you can’t ignore. In this episode, we sit with that discomfort—talking through the latest examples of powerful men facing consequences (finally), and the deeper systems that allowed their behavior to persist in the first place. We get into the frustration of “open secrets,” the power dynamics...

This week, we’re circling back to something we talked about in early March: the California governor’s race — and specifically, the very unique (and slightly chaotic) jungle primary system we use here. A lot has changed since our last conversation. And with ballots hitting mailboxes in early May, the timeline is getting tight. So what’s different now? When we last talked, the field was wide open. N...

This week’s episode is a bit of a mixed bag . It’s been a few weeks since we last recorded, and a lot has happened—some frustrating, some deeply concerning, and some… actually encouraging. And honestly? That mix feels like the moment we’re in. We start with a conversation about what Aaron calls “selfish voters.” The idea that many people only engage politically when something affects them directly...

Happy week after No Kings Day #3! Travel, family visits, protests, and holiday prep held our focus this week- plus Lisa is fighting a rough cold. So, we’re bringing back a previous episode in which we discuss framing and frameworks through which folks see the world and how that impacts our decision-making. Do you lean towards the hierarchical or solidarity model? Or the Strict Father vs. Nurturing...

We recorded this as a kind of pep talk for this coming Saturday’s No Kings Day (on March 28) . It’s your reminder that showing up always matters. Momentum is building. Not just from one event to the next, but from everything happening around us. The courts, the protests, the pushback—it all adds up. And while it can feel exhausting (because it is), it can also be energizing to stand shoulder to sh...

In this week’s episode of A Couple Thinks , we talk about something that’s been surprisingly energizing for us lately: hyperlocal organizing. Not giant movements. Not national organizations. Just neighbors — getting together. Recently, Lisa helped organize the first meeting of a new local “pod” here in Berkeley. The idea is simple: gather people who live near each other so they can share informati...

The escalation of the U.S.–Israel war against Iran has made for a heavy and chaotic news cycle. Between breaking updates, speculation, and viral social media posts, it can be hard to know what’s real—and even harder to keep your sanity while trying to stay informed. In this week’s episode of A Couple Thinks , we talk about how to protect your peace without checking out completely. Aaron opens with...

Before we dove into California politics this week, we acknowledged something much bigger: the beginning of the U.S.–Israel war against the Iranian regime. It’s possible to hold more than one truth at the same time. You can oppose war and still be glad that the Iranian people are one tyrant further away from authoritarian rule. The world is complicated right now. And speaking of complicated… This w...

Some weeks feel like one big headline. This one felt like ten. In this episode of A Couple Thinks , we unpack a week that revealed multiple fissures inside the MAGA coalition. The Supreme Court delivered a 6–3 ruling limiting Trump’s use of emergency powers for tariffs—an unusually clear moment of institutional guardrails holding. Trump quickly pivoted, adjusting percentages and leaning on tempora...

This week we’re talking about elections and voting rights because a lot is swirling right now. We focused mainly on the proposed SAVE Act (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act), which would require proof of citizenship at registration and when voting, including for mail-in ballots. It would also take effect immediately. That “immediately” part matters. States would need to create systems to pr...

This week on A Couple Thinks , we found ourselves talking about something that feels both personal and civic: the unraveling of one of America’s most important newspapers. Lisa was in her last two years of high school in the DC suburbs in the late ’70s, when the Washington Post was the local paper and a powerhouse investigative paper. It covered local school boards and sports scores alongside nati...

This week on A Couple Thinks , we did something both sobering and clarifying: we went through our Constitution’s amendments. And then we asked a simple but unsettling question: Which of these constitutional protections are being violated right now? As it turns out… more than you might want to sit with all at once. In this episode, we walk through several amendments, including the First, Second, Fo...

This week’s episode is different. Usually, we come to the microphone with an outline and some scripting to help us make sense of the moment we’re living in. But on Saturday, January 24th, that didn’t feel possible or honest. We were still processing the news out of Minneapolis: another protester killed by ICE agents. As the day went on, more videos surfaced. More angles. More details. And instead...

This week on A Couple Thinks , we spent some time sitting with a question that’s been hovering in the background for a while now: what is going to happen between now and the post-Trump era? Our conversation was sparked by a New York Times opinion piece by conservative column by Ross Douthat titled “ Trump’s Second Term Has Ended the Conservative Era .” This particular piece caught our attention be...