The Lean to the Left Podcast

Would you buy into a plan to reduce violence & crime and make our streets, schools, workplaces, and homes safe again from an ex-con who spent nearly five years in prison for defrauding investors? Well, that’s our guest on the Lean to the Left podcast. Herbert Kay spent nearly five years in prison for defrauding investors, convincing them that risks were fall smaller and rewards far greater than th...

According to the National Institutes of Health, 20 million Americans suffer from substance abuse at some point in their lives. Mary Beth O’Conno was one of those, but since 1994 has been sober from methamphetamine use disorder. She wrote about her journey in an award-winning memoir, “From Junkie to Judge: One Woman’s Triumph Over Trauma and Addiction.” Mary Beth shares her story with us in this ep...

For baseball fans, October is a great month. It’s the month when the best teams – after a grueling 162-game schedule – are fighting to get into the World Series, which begins October 27. So, today we’re talking baseball with author William R. Douglas, who’s written a captivating book, “The Death and Resurrection of Baseball.” So, stay with us, because this episode will answer the question, can bas...

"The risk of climate change is substantial, and it puts people's lives at risk. We need to stop talking about it, and we need to take real positive action."Those are the words of energy scientist and renewable energy advocate Jack Kerfoot on the Lean to the Left podcast as he wrapped up a five-part series of episodes analyzing regional progress as states establish and implement policies in varying...

We are all living in the aftermath of January 6, 2021, the day that an angry mob of thousands of Trump supporters violently attacked the U.S. Capitol, the symbolic seat of democracy, and tried to stop the certification of Joe Biden as president of the United States. Our guest today was there – not as a protestor, but as a historian, and the result is his fascinating book, “Sorry Guys, We Stormed t...

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s deal to prevent shutting down the government omitted a $6 billion request for aid to support Ukraine in its war with Russia. Today on the Lean to the Left podcast we have a guest who will describe her parents’ experience in Nazi slave camps and who is writing a book drawing parallels between WWII and the Russo-Ukraine war today. Oksana Kukurudza’s parents were in Naz...

Today we’re talking politics, and with me are Arthur Hill, from North Carolina, and Robert Thompson, from Georgia. I’m a Maryander transplanted into South Carolina, and together we’re the Dixie Dems. There is a ton to talk about today, from the debacle of the second Republican presidential debate, to Trump, his indictments and all that, Joe Manchin and the No Labels party, lewd public activities b...

In today's podcast, we delve into the vital aspects of a Women and Power and explore Helping women master power and achieve success. Our guest is Nicole Devlin, life coach and host of the From the Nth Power podcast, and we talk about power and how it relates to us in our careers and personal lives. Nicole Devlin's passion comes from 30 years' experience guiding and coaching intelligent people. Her...

John Neral was 10 years old when his mom told him not to go to bed with a woman until he was married. 18 years later, he came out to his parents as gay. Today, he stresses that how we "show up matters. So Neral coaches clients on strategies to “get unstuck” and achieve their potential. He's our guest on the Lean to the Left podcast. A certified professional coach, Neral helps mid-career profession...

It's a common experience for a woman to look a man in the eye, and tell him "no." Regardless of her reason, "no" should be a simple word that carries little weight beyond the moment. Unfortunately, for too many women simply saying "no" can put them at risk of verbal abuse, online harassment, or even physical violence. Our guest today, Dr. Pamela Gurley, says that's toxic behavior that needs to sto...

Today we’re focusing on the environmental challenges facing our world today with Rebecca Bratspies, founding director of the Center for Urban Environmental Reform. She’s the author of an award-winning environmental justice comic book series, The Environmental Justice Chronicles. The three books, Mayah’s Lot, Bina’s Plant, and Troop’s Run, are designed to bring environmental literacy to a new gener...

What are individual states doing to reduce reliance on fossil fuels by turning to renewable resources like the wind and the sun? As we see in this episode with energy scientist Jack Kerfoot, that North Carolina and Virginia are making remarkable progress, while Florida and West Virginia continue to pretend that climate change is a hoax, while Kentucky is making some progress but has a long, long w...

Do you believe equity has finally come to the workplace; that women are now being treated equally with men in business today? This episode of the Lean to the Left podcast features Dr. Regina Lark, author of the new book, Emotional Labor: Why a Woman’s Work Is Never Done and What to Do About It. In the interview, conducted by Lean to the Left host Bob Gatty and Mark M. Bello, host of the Justice Co...

Here we are in the middle of a ton of political news with a bunch of GOP wannabes challenging Trump for the nomination, Trump’s four indictments and upcoming trials, the Republicans going after Hunter Biden…and what are we going to talk about today on the Lean to the Left podcast? Rock ‘n Roll, time travel, and baseball. Great to have Andy Frye with us today. Andy’s the author of the novel "Ninety...

Do you want to live to 100? That's the goal of Mark Barnes, co-author of Hacking Life After 50: 10 Ways to Beat Father Time and Live a Long, Healthy, Joy-Filled Life. He’s a longtime educator, entrepreneur, and not only does he hope to live past 100, he wants to bring anyone interested along for the ride. Mark is our guest on the Lean to the Left podcast, and his episode will stream on YouTube and...

Hey guys, welcome to the Lean to the Left podcast, where we talk about progressive politics and the important social issues of our time. Today we’re looking at leadership and what some might think is an unlikely resource – the LGBTQ+ community. Our guest is Dr. Joel A. Davis Brown is the Chief Visionary Officer of Pneumos LLC, a management consulting and coaching firm based in San Francisco, USA,...

The renewable energy industry -- wind, solar, and geothermal energy -- generates far more jobs than coal, and those jobs pay well and won't end when the coal mines are depleted and shut down. That's the conclusion of energy scientist Jack L. Kerfoot in this, the third in a series of podcasts exploring climate change progress in five states in the southwest. Episode one, focusing on four Northeaste...

To counter negative stereotypes afflicting probation clients across the country, award-winning filmmakers/editors, Jonathan Fisher and George Carrano handed cameras to people in the probation system including its officers. What transpired was an exercise in "participatory photography*" now represented in a book and PBS documentary called, In A Whole New Way: Undoing Mass Incarceration By A Path Un...

Hey guys, welcome to the Lean to the Left podcast. Today we’re talking politics, and with me are Arthur Hill, from North Carolina, and Robert Thompson, from Georgia. I’m a Maryander transplanted into South Carolina, and together we’re the Dixie Dems. Arthur is communications chair of the Brunswick County, North Carolina, Democratic party. Robert is based in Atlanta and founded Peach News Now and i...

A couple years ago, a long-time labor activist, Dan McCrory, wrote a book called “Capitalism Killed the Middle Class: 25 Ways the System is Rigged Against You.” He firmly believes that a strong labor movement is the key to saving the middle class. McCrory has been a labor activist for 30+ years and a writer even longer. “Capitalism Killed the Middle Class” was a finalist in the UK’s Page Turner Aw...

When Shana Francesca, our guest today, was just three years old, she was raped by her babysitter's boyfriend. When she was older, she was the victim of attempted sex abuse by her father, an evangelical minister. Today, Shana has turned those experiences into a mission of helping others cope with life's challenges and achieve joy in their lives. You’re rolling along with your life, busy with work,...

As a single mom to her only child, Barbara Legere journeyed alongside her son through his mental health issues and addiction. She wrote a memoir about her son’s suicide, called “Keven’s Choice: A Mother’s Journey Through Her Son’s Mental Illness, Addiction and Suicide.” And, she’s just written a second book, "Talk to Me I'm Grieving - Supportive Ways to Help Someone Through Grief.” We have Barbara...

Warning that the environmental consequences of climate change are already upon us, energy scientist Jack Kerfoot and Maya van Rossum, originator of the Green Amendment, are calling upon voters to elect state and federal legislators who recognize that challenge and are determined to take concrete action. Speaking on the Lean to the Left podcast with host journalist Bob Gatty, Kerfoot and van Rossum...

Our guest today is author William C. Judge, whose new book “The Wonder of it All” shares the inspirations of his life experiences and profound reflections that shape his view of the world. As the Foreword by Linda Gardner Crandall states, “Judge writes poignantly about his hopes and past disappointments, his travels and the people in his life who have influenced him in unique ways.”Bill is a veter...

Can you be a big-time Trump supporter and still lobby to protect animals and family farmers at a right wing organization? In the case of our guest today, the answer is no, and it’s cost him the leadership of FreedomWorks, the conservative group that came to symbolize the tea party movement. But he’s not fading quietly into the sunset. Marty Irby, former COO of the right-wing lobbying group, Freedo...