World News of the Week (WNW) with Maya and Dad

After a long hiatus, we are excited to be back for Season 2! In our first episode, we look past the election and imagine what would happen if a winner were declared on election night? Could we expect Kamala to concede the election and do her vice-presidential duty and preside over a congressional session where she certifies herself as the loser? Can we expect a Jan 6th sequel from Donald Trump? Wo...

WNW is going on summer vacation! Maya is off to camp and, let's face it, Maya carries the team!  So, we look back on our favorite of 35 episodes - our favorite guests, our favorites shows, our toughest shows, some stats on the many countries where we have listeners and more. We will see you in late August!  Send us Fan Mail

Donald Trump became the first ex-president to be convicted of a crime and in this case he was found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records...  What does that even mean? What are the consequences? What does Trump do now? How did pundits spin the verdict and does this even matter to voters? We ask these questions and more on WNW! Send us Fan Mail

Beleaguered Red Lobster was once an innovator, bringing seafood to landlocked America. It expanded to 700 locations and is alleged to have gone bankrupt due to a misguided "All You Can Eat" shrimp promotion, but there is more to the story...and we cover it on this week's WNW! Send us Fan Mail

Students protests are national news with students living in camps on many campuses. We decided that we would learn more about what they stood for and journeyed to Harvard and MIT to interview as many as we could. Instead, we found Harvard Yard closed to the public and the protestors impossible to access and then we found an MIT campus open to the public but afraid to speak to a ten year old and he...

For months, aid for Ukraine and Israel has languished in the House. Finally, House Speaker, Mike Johnson saw the light and agreed to let the House vote... what happened? Why now? And... why support Israel and Ukraine altogether? What difference does it make to the United States? We discuss this and more on WNW! Send us Fan Mail

For our 30th episode, we invited friends of the pod to present their  alternatives to Trump and Biden and many guests did just that! Huge  thanks to Uncle Michael Shinewald, Uncle Andrew Cohen, Cousin Alex Garfinkle, Dear friend of the pod Dara Grossman, Margaux "the Goose" Shinewald, Jason Merker, Uncle Zach Sheinberg and Jeremy Wein  for all of their creativity and energy! This was a v...

Beyonce ain't no grizzled old Willie Nelson (we do love Willie!) and she is shaking up country music! We discuss Texas Hold'em, Cowboy Carter and Beyonce's message about and to country music. So, hold onto your cowboy hats, folks, and call all the single ladies. We don't have Beyonce on the podcast, but maybe we have the next best thing! Send us Fan Mail

*(With apologies, Maya's audio cut out near the end!) Conor and Eamon are back on the pod! And, they were all too ready to talk about the big business and also the changing business that is college basketball! Players are getting paid! Female stars are smashing records! College superstars are staying in college longer! Fantastic Ep and at the end, Eamon generously promises to share the winnin...

We need to catch up on our sleep and you might need to as well! Why? We lost an hour. Why do this to ourselves? Why have that one cranky and even dangerous weekend a year, where car accidents go up and people miss appointments? It is not because farmers need more time in their fields! It is because... well... listen to this episode and learn more! And, find out what is being done to return to sani...

Aren't we worried about inflation? Wait... maybe we... aren't? Is the economy in good shape or is it...not in such good shape? And, how does all of that affect the election? We are confused, but we work it out! Listen to the show to understand the confusion! And....Follow the show! And...Tell some friends as we embark on our quest to get to 250 listeners and then our merch giveaway!  Sen...

A somber episode - this week, after the house declined to support Ukraine, an emboldened Vladimir Putin continued to consolidate his power by killing his opponent, Alexei Navalny. We discuss the tragedy, the reactions among Russians and leaders in the two parties in the US. We also opine on the road ahead...   Send us Fan Mail

Donald Trump is famously tight-fisted, but last week, he had a tantrum in court that cost him $83.5 million dollars. He persistently claimed he was a victim, while blaming a woman he was found criminally liable for sexually assaulting. EJ Carroll took the high road and triumphed, and wait until you hear what she is planning to do with Trump's money! What happens now? What if he wins on appeal...

Why is the New York Times suing OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT? ChatGPT is a large language model which draws from countless sources... including the NYT. Does it legally need the Times' permission to draw from its articles?  Is it unfairly leveraging the NYT's catalogue? If the NYT wins the enormous damages it is asking for...what does that mean for artificial intelligence? Does thi...

There is a first in the nation presidential primary coming up next door to us and we felt we should listen. We went to a Nikki Haley rally in Rochester, New Hampshire and learned a lot. We saw the retail nature of presidential politics - shaking hands and kissing babies -- and we got to interview the Governor of New Hampshire, Chris Sununu and other rally attendees. What a night!  Send us Fan Mail

Who knows what 2024 will bring? Well, maybe all of our guests from 2023 do. We bring back Zach, Ian, Eamon, Hattie, Shelby, Margaux and Leo and welcome Michael, Dan and Uncle Benji, who share their thoughts on everything from politics to sports to entertainment. Here is to an awesome 2024!   Send us Fan Mail

Did you know that in the week after Christmas, US consumers make so many returns that if we had just redirected those funds,  we could have instead built 5 brand new hospitals in each state! Buying stuff online has become so easy, but there are real costs - wasted products and packaging, higher prices and more! With our guest Margaux, we discuss the problem and try to think of some solutions!  Sen...

The Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that Donald Trump is ineligible to be President. Why? Well, Maya once again reads from the constitution (and then translates it into plain English) to explain the law of the land. In this case, the constitution bars an insurrectionist from being President. But, is Trump considered an insurrectionist by the law? Or, must it be proven in court before he can be re...

This week, after much criticized testimony before Congress, University of Pennsylvania President, Elizabeth Magill, was forced to resign. Was this fair? Right? Should it have happened sooner... or not at all? As President, Magill had to walk a fine line between allowing free speech on campus and protecting Jewish students from hate speech. Other President's survived their testimony, but Magil...

The NBA plays 82 games and it crowns a champion. Now, it will also crown another champion earlier in the season? What is going on? Will anyone care? Will this draw more fans earlier and keep them watching? Could this serve as a model to invigorate the grueling 162 game baseball season or 82 game hockey season? Our guest, passionate sports fan, Ian G., shares his firm views and makes some bold pred...

Maya and Dad roamed the streets of Newton and Boston, asking the simple question, "What are you grateful for?" We got some fantastic answers!  Send us Fan Mail

We are joined by Conor & Eamon - brothers and excellent researchers - who helped us delve into the Biden administration's push to get more EVs on the road. Conor, Eamon and Maya explain how the Inflation Reduction Act is creating more supply and providing incentives for consumers as well. We also ask... are EVs truly better for the environment? No easy answers but Conor, Eamon and Maya ce...

There is a teen mental health crisis in America and globally.  Recently, forty three States Attorneys General announced that they are suing Meta, (Facebook, Instagram, and Whatsapp) alleging that it is knowingly contributing to this crisis. With our special guest, Clark, we explain the crisis, the case against Meta and Meta's response. We thank our old friend, Michael Golden, for recommending...

You thought it was just Biden and Trump, right? Well, a new candidate is trying to enter the presidential race! Robert F. Kennedy Jr is running as an independent! Why is he doing this? Why are Republicans donating $5 million to his campaign? What are his chances of succeeding? With our old friend and experienced political hand, Uncle Zach Sheinberg, we discuss the (very!) long shot candidacy of Ro...

What is crypto-currency? What is Bitcoin? Who is Sam Bankman-Fried? And, why is he in jail? We answer these questions and more on this weeks episode of World News of the Week with Maya and Dad! (Sorry we missed last week. Dad was in San Francisco!) Send us Fan Mail