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

Air Date: 3-3-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - why men struggle with friendship  - why men and boys are lonelier than ever - the impact of different masculine identities on relationships - something The Beatles apparently did that no one seems to talk about REFERENCES: Why Men Struggle With Friendship  Boys and men are lonelier than ever. What can we do about it?  3 'Masculine Iden...

Air Date 3/1/2024 We don't have to think too hard to understand the fears of a world in which work, and the ability of millions to support themselves, are lost to automation and artificial intelligence. But that is only a capitalist future in which the benefits of technological advancement are hoarded by the already-wealthy. Today we imagine a different path. Be part of the show! Leave us a messag...

Air Date 2/28/2024 AI-generated deepfakes, entirely fabricated audio and video of recognizable people, are here. They have been on the horizon for years but they have finally arrived during the biggest global election year in history which may prove to be a make of break year for democracy itself as we struggle to separate fact from fiction and autocracy is on the rise around the world. Be part of...

Air Date: 2-25-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, and Deon discuss: - authoritarian Technocracy - and why interoperability may be one of the best weapons against it REFERENCES: THE RISE OF TECHNO-AUTHORITARIANISM Big Tech Won't Let You Leave. Here's a Way Out The Great Interoperability Convergence: 2023 Year in Review   Join our Discord Server Leave a message at 202-999-3991 Produced by: Jay! Tomlinson Thank...

Air Date 2/23/2024 2024 is already shaping up to be even more of a disaster than expected. The causes for anxiety are many and varied, leaving many of us with questions. We generally try to avoid topics and commentaries that lean into the realm of pure speculation but today we decided to lean all the way in to answer your most pressing questions. What about Biden's support of Israel? What about hi...

Air Date 2/20/2024 "Luddite" should never have become the epithet that it is as the Luddites were never afraid of or opposed to technological advancement, they only opposed the exploitation of workers and the degradation to society that came with the unfair distribution of the benefits of the targeted technology. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTh...

Air Date: 2-19-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda and Deon discuss: - how augmented reality and the Apple Vision Pro affects the human brain  - how algorithms are changing and flattening our culture - how to take back your life from algorithmic choices REFERENCES: The Vision Pro's scary side effect Why Tim Cook Is Going All In on the Apple Vision Pro We've Forgotten How to Use Computers Have Algorithms Ruined...

Air Date 2/17/2024 The debate over education has been derailed from the legitimate concerns of the past focused on the downfalls of No Child Left Behind and Common Core policies into a cul-de-sac of ignorance over opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion programs and the teaching of critical race theory. Not to mention the new McCarthyism that has sprung up to squash any criticism of Israel's...

Air Date 2/13/2024 The entire political system has lurched to the right on immigration as Democrats adopt the talking points of the Republicans and the MAGA Republicans put Trump's election chances over the policies they claim to support. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and...

Air Date 2/10/2024 Continuing to tell the stories of those directly impacted by abortion bans is important to demonstrate the extreme stances taken by anti-choice politicians but we also look ahead to potential ways the situation could be made even worse as well as efforts to relieve the suffering. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Trans...

Air Date 2/7/2024 Loneliness is an epidemic that long-predates the COVID lockdowns that only made things worse but it's not primarily cultural or even technological in origin. The issue largely has to do with how our built environment is designed and then social and technological aspects compound the problem. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLef...

Air Date: 2-6-24 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - The impacts of the myth of the model minority - Haley and Ramaswamy Denying America's racism as they both experience and use racism during the Republican primary race BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Hear the full Bonus Shows! + No Ads!) REFERENCES: Vivek Ramaswamy and the lie of the "model minority" Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy Can't Esc...

Air Date 2/3/2024 We attempt to understand as many of the interlocking elements as possible in the current Middle East conflicts sparked most prominently by the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Clips and Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community ! SHOW N...

Air Date: 1-28-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - Boardgames Ritual - Making kids cry buy taking their phones away at school - Making kids sad by never buying them phones in the first place REFERENCES: It Sure Looks Like Phones Are Making Students Dumber Schools don't want kids on cellphones. Is banning them the solution? Birmingham head calls for ban after pupils 'in tears' when pho...

Air Date 1/26/2024 In an election year where, more than ever before, democracy itself is on the ballot, there is less democracy happening in the lead-up to the election than at any time in recent memory. And with two profoundly disliked candidates running, the supporters of democratic ideals have a hard uphill push ahead of them. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or e...

Air Date 1/23/2024 The recent discovery of hundreds of bodies buried behind a jail in unmarked graves sparks a renewed discussion about the futility and counter-productiveness of our system of incarceration and the context of our history that has brought us to this point. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript Join our Discord comm...

Original Air Date 12/3/2022 Today, we take a look at the mega-companies that touch all of our lives and the monopolistic practices that have been developed to keep power and wealth concentrated with the few while the rest of us get screwed. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows and Bonu...

Air Date 1/17/2024 It is evident that the immigration debate is more about acquiring raw power than about immigration as demands from the Republican Party change along with whatever strategies they feel are most likely to get Republicans elected and in the age of Trump, that means the most draconian, harmful and, ultimately, pointless demands to date. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or tex...

Air Date: 1-15-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - why one of the last isolated tribes in the world desperately wants to stay that way - why we know that women also hunted, counter to what all the male archeologists would have us believe  REFERENCES: Why Uncontacted Tribes Want to Stay Uncontacted They choose to live in isolation—but the world won't leave them alone The Mission Docume...

Air Date 1/13/2024 The Supreme Court began to lose its legitimacy in the eyes of many when President Obama wasn't allowed to fill the open seat left by the death of Antonin Scalia but, in truth, the scandal and manipulation of the nation's highest court go back much, much farther than that. However, in a bygone age, scandal was handled much differently than today, putting our current state of disf...

Original Air Date 1/7/2023 Today, we take a look at the criminal charges against Donald Trump that the January 6th Committee has referred to the DOJ but examine them through the lens of past presidential crimes that have gone unpunished from Nixon to George W. Bush Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (G...

Air Date: 1-7-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon and Erin discuss: - the little bit of Paganism that's in all of us - the Christian priests who want to reform the church through psychedelic mushrooms REFERENCES: The Return of the Pagans God, Magic Mushrooms, and Me Join our Discord Server Leave a message at 202-999-3991 Produced by: Jay! Tomlinson Thanks for listening! Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Foll...

Air Date 1/5/2024 As the war in Gaza drags on, accusations of genocide by Israel have been filed by South Africa at the International Court of Justice and we are reminded that the tactics and technology that Israel develops and tests against Palestinians are sold around the world. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript BestOfTheLef...

Air Date 1/2/2024 Trump's greatest impact has been to bring the fringes of the conservative movement into the center and, by strongly courting the Evangelical Christian vote, helped accelerate the Christian Nationalist movement to merge religion with patriotism Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Membe...

Air Date: 12-31-23 Today, Jay!, Amanda, and Deon discuss: - how Italy is making it harder for same-sex partners to have children by making it harder for everyone to have children - how well-meaning advocates in the US are putting same-sex families at risk - why Christian homophobia may just be based on a mistranslation of the Bible REFERENCES: 'The state says our kids don't exist' - how LGBT life...