Current Affairs

Yesterday, Current Affairs published an article on the recent failure of two Michigan dams . In conjunction with this article, we thought we would release this bonus episode, originally aired in August 2019, in which Sparky and Vanessa interview the author, Varsha Venkatasubramanian (a.k.a. @varsha_venkat_ ).     This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA.  

The panel answers your questions on democracy in education, progressive prosecutors, protest votes, righteous jobs and monuments. (This episode was recorded before the recent spate of statue topplings.)   Danny Bradley:   https://dannybradleymusic.com/ We Might Not Die (Maybe):   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAF-YUc2_WI What Is Education For? by Sparky Abraham and Nathan J. Robinson:   https://...

The panel discusses the protests, alternatives to policing, and political art. (If you want to know further thoughts on Dave Eggers' "The Captain and The Glory", don't worry—Current Affairs will reveal all soon.) The panel this week was editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson, associate editor Vanessa A. Bee, finance editor Sparky Abraham and host Lyta Gold. Transform Harm: https://transformharm.org/ab...

Lyta Gold speaks to Samelys López, a housing justice activist who is running in the June 23rd Democratic primary in New York's 15th congressional district. (Please note that this episode was recorded before the start of the ongoing nationwide protests against racism and police brutality.) Campaign website: lopezforthepeople.com Twitter: @SamelysLopez This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink No...

Current Affairs interviewer-in-chief Eli Massey speaks to Ilhan Omar, Congresswoman for Minnesota's 5th district. Together, they discuss her new book, This Is What America Looks Like, as well as foreign policy, Israel, drone strikes, Margaret Thatcher, Prince, and more. The book: https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062954213/this-is-what-america-looks-like/ Ilhan Omar's Twitter: https://twitter.com/...

As you may or may not have noticed, a *lot* of the Current Affairs editors work as lawyers for their day jobs. Current Affairs interviewer-in-chief Eli Massey has brought a panel together to ask: can you make a difference as a lawyer? Are there any good reasons to become a lawyer? Can the law ever be a force for good? And what is the point of Ivy League law schools? This is a preview of an episode...

The panel discusses the viability of forming a breakaway third party, things that are secretly political, and our society's contempt for the elderly.   **NEXT WEEK, WE ARE RECORDING A VOICEMAILBAG EPISODE! If you have any questions for the team, or suggestions for topics, please leave us a voicemail at 504-867-8851 and your voicemail may be played on the show! **   The panel this week consisted of...

"Immigration cases are death penalty cases in a traffic court setting."   Current Affairs editors and immigration law superheroes Oren Nimni and Brianna Rennix return to the podcast, to give us an update on how immigration courts and detention facilities have changed—and the ways in which they haven't changed—in the age of the COVID pandemic.     Trump Administration Plans to Extend Virus Border R...

Sparky Abraham speaks to Eric Levitz, writer for New York Magazine's Intelligencer, about the life and times of Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin, from his youth as a student living in a former luxury hotel to his part in the 2008 financial crisis. This is a preview of an episode available in full to our Patreon subscribers. To gain full access to this episode, as well as lots of other brill...

Nathan speaks to Micah Uetricht and Meagan Day, co-authors of the new book Bigger than Bernie: How We Go from the Sanders Campaign to Democratic Socialism. The book: https://www.versobooks.com/books/3167-bigger-than-bernie This is a preview of an episode available now, on early release, to our Patreon subscribers. To gain full access to this episode, as well as lots of other brilliant bonus conten...

The panel discusses the prospect of an alliance between the left and the 'populist right', exposes their complicated relationships with Twitter, and recommends their favorite books for introducing friends to the left.   The panel this week was made up of a series of holograms cleverly designed to imitate administrative maven Cate Root, finance editor Sparky Abraham, and editor-in-chief Nathan J. R...

Our former editor, Briahna Joy Gray (@briebriejoy), has returned to the CA team, after a stint as Press Secretary to the Bernie Sanders campaign. Nathan speaks to Brie about the Bernie campaign, what she would and wouldn't change in retrospect, Warren, Biden and much else. We missed her.   Brie's articles for CA:   https://www.currentaffairs.org/author/briahna-joy-gray Hear the Bern:   https://ber...

In the second episode of this series, Eli speaks to Current Affairs senior editor Brianna Rennix about their life. Topics include mindgames with nuns, mythology, monasticism, the immigration system, law school, authority, suffering, guilt, and rollercoasters.     This is a preview of an episode available in full to our Patreon subscribers. To gain full access to this episode, as well as lots of ot...

Sociologist Zach Wehrwein returns to talk to Pete about one of the most underrated factors powering our society—social networks. Together, Zach and Pete explore how mapping people's social connections can explain everything from political radicalization to the modern impact of slavery. This is a preview of an episode available in full to our Patreon subscribers. To gain full access to this episode...

Our former editor, Briahna Joy Gray (@briebriejoy), has returned to the CA team, after a stint as Press Secretary to the Bernie Sanders campaign. Nathan speaks to Brie about the Bernie campaign, what she would and wouldn't change in retrospect, Warren, Biden and much else. We missed her. This is a preview of an episode currently available in full to our Patreon subscribers. To gain full access to...

Rargh. In this bonus episode, Sparky, Lyta, Allegra and Nick are joined by animal rights lawyer and Current Affairs contributor Asher Smith, to discuss what the hit new docuseries Tiger King got right—and what it might have got wrong. Asher tells us what it's like to work with Carole Baskin, the truth about roadside zoos, how to tell if a sanctuary is legit, and the team discusses the power and al...

The panel snaps on the gloves and attempts a Bernie campaign postmortem, considers voting for "the lesser of two evils", and shares what they've been cooking in quarantine (after they've taken off the postmortem gloves). Musical interludes were written and performed by the fantastic Danny Bradley—if you've found his music as lethally infectious as we have, please note you can purchase "We Might No...

Pete Davis speaks to prison journalist John J. Lennon (@JohnJLennon1), who writes and acts as contributing editor for Esquire magazine, all while incarcerated in Sing Sing. John J. Lennon's podcast is available here: https://www.podcastone.com/This-Is-A-Collect-Call-from-Sing-Sing Website here: johnjlennon.org This episode was made available earlier to our Patreon subscribers. To gain early access...

Sparky speaks to Lev Menand, academic fellow and lecturer at Columbia Law School, who answers all Sparky's questions about the Federal Reserve: what it is, what money is, how banking works, Modern Monetary Theory—and, of course, whether money printer go brrr. This is a preview of an episode available in full to our Patreon subscribers. To gain full access to this episode, as well as lots of other...

Rargh. In this bonus episode, Sparky, Lyta, Allegra and Nick are joined by animal rights lawyer and Current Affairs contributor Asher Smith, to discuss what the hit new docuseries Tiger King got right—and what it might have got wrong. Asher tells us what it's like to work with Carole Baskin, the truth about roadside zoos, how to tell if a sanctuary is legit, and the team discusses the power and al...

The team tackle the coronacrisis—how we got here, what comes after, and how to cope in the interim. The panel this week was finance editor Sparky Abraham, newsletter editor Nick Slater, amusements and managing editor Lyta Gold and editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. Your host is Pete Davis. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of Pink Noise Studios in Somerville, MA. Music: Alexander Blu

Nathan speaks to Doug Henwood (@DougHenwood)—journalist, radio host and author of Wall Street: How it Works and for Whom amongst others—about the current health crisis, its economic impact, and where to go from here. This is a preview of an episode available in full to our Patreon subscribers. To listen to this episode, as well as lots of other brilliant bonus content, please consider becoming one...

In this particularly special episode, Pete Davis speaks to prison journalist John J. Lennon (@JohnJLennon1), who writes and acts as contributing editor for Esquire magazine, all while incarcerated in Sing Sing. This is a preview of an episode currently available in full to our Patreon subscribers. To listen to this episode in full, as well as lots of other brilliant bonus content, please consider...

Nathan and Eli speak to former city health director, epidemiologist, public health doctor and commentator Abdul El-Sayed (@AbdulElSayed) about 2020's rudest uninvited guest. You can preorder Abdul's book here: https://abdulelsayed.com/healingpolitics We've made this episode public, given the importance of the subject. This episode was recorded on March 20. This episode was edited by Dan Thorn of P...

Once again, we're answering your voicemails! If you want to send us a voicemail, call us anytime on 504-867-8851. Topics include both the expected and the unexpected. The panel this week was legal editor Oren Nimni, finance editor Sparky Abraham, senior editor Brianna Rennix, amusements and managing editor Lyta Gold, and editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson. Your host is Pete Davis. This episode was...