Unf*cking The Republic

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 talk about the FCC, bagpipes and parkways. And nothing else. (Okay, obviously a lie. But tune in to find out what else is discussed!) Listen to Episode 75: The FCC. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Housekeeping: 00:30:00 Emails: 00:15:25 Twitter Shout Outs: 01:13:12 Substack Shout Outs: 01:19:20 Buy Me A Coffee Donations + Memberships: 01:25:33 Reviews: 01:28:07 Outro: 01...

This week we finally heed the call to Unf*ck the Federal Communications Commission (FCC.) We don’t get all the way there (it’s been around since 1934) but we manage to tackle the fairness doctrine, which was intended to provide balance and equal time in broadcasting and was repealed in 1987. Many credit this Reagan-era move as the beginning of the end of civility, leading to the divide in the nati...

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 talk about the future of the enablers “series,” how people like Larry Fink of BlackRock fit into the overall UNFTR ecosystem and how that relates to ESGs + the billionaire class. Plus, there’s some irrelevant movie talk, and reminders to support the Fall Raisers: Friends, Funds and Hell. Listen to Episode 74: BlackRock: The Devil's Banker. Do as I say, not as I do...

Larry Fink is one of the most influential people on the planet. His firm BlackRock mints money. Billions of dollars a year. Their risk management platform handles more than $10 trillion a year. He helped guide the country out of the financial crisis in 2009 and positioned his company to grow unfettered by the very regulatory authorities he advised at the time. He’s by all accounts funny, affable,...

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss the conclusion of the three part Healthcare series, share plans to support two progressive candidates in the upcoming election, and get hyped for the Fall Raisers: Friend, Fund, and Hell. Listen to Episode 73: Hospitals and Healthcare: From Sanatoriums for the Indigent to Citadels of the Elite. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Housekeeping: 00:07:54 Emails: 00:18:...

The third and final installment of our American Healthcare series examines the evolution of the American hospital system. There are more than 6,000 hospitals in the United States and several distinctions among them. After a quick recap of the first two episodes, we look primarily at the peculiar designation of nonprofit hospitals, their relationship to practitioners and their role in driving costs...

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 continue to discuss the healthcare industry—this time with insight from some of the international Unf*ckers. Plus, 99 has the sniffles and sounds like Squidward. And, as always, (somehow) there’s singing. Enjoy! Listen to Episode 72: This Healthcare is Killing Us: The perpetual cycle of money madness. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Emails: 00:06:35 Twitter Shout Outs: 0...

We're re-releasing our Labor Union episode in honor of Labor Day. For Unf*ckers outside of the United States, this is the day government set aside as a token of appreciation to the labor movement for eight hour days, weekends, anti-child labor laws, protection from discrimination and more. (In reality, it was a consolation prize after Grover Cleveland jailed Eugene Debs and sent federal troops to...

The first installment of our healthcare series encapsulated the magnitude of the industry that accounts for 20% of our nation’s GDP and how efforts to pursue universal healthcare were scuttled over the years. Today’s episode examines the role of private insurance in our system and details how Obamacare came to life with little discussion around a public option or the possibility of Medicare for Al...

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 continue talking about the student debt announcement and its impact, address more feedback from the healthcare episode, plus feedback from the last show notes re: Big Pharma, natural medicine and vaccines. Listen to Topical Cream 6: Biden’s Big Student Debt Announcement. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Emails: 00:09:22 Facebook Shout Outs: 01:37:40 Twitter Shout Outs: 01...

Lily Geismer wrote an incredible book called Left Behind . Unf*ckers who listened to our three part series on the Clinton years are familiar with it and know how important it was to framing this series. We had some follow up thoughts and questions for this esteemed author and are thrilled she obliged. Max and Lily have a wide ranging conversation about her book and the long tail effect of Clinton’...

It’s here! It’s finally here! Today we review our predictions for student debt relief and square them with Biden’s proposed plan. There’s a lot to like about the announcement, several unanswered questions and some gaping holes in the plan going forward. Max breaks down the politics, the details and biggest misses of the Biden student debt relief plan and why it’s in danger of being PITOTWIU. Resou...

In today’s Show Notes Max and 99 talk for 30 hours…Okay, exaggeration. But they talk for a long while, because there’s a lot of U.S. healthcare feedback to run through, as the Unf*ckers are so smart and dedicated (as usual). All hail Nettie. Listen to U.S. Healthcare. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 UNFTR Healthcare Update: 00:03:13 Emails: 00:08:13 Facebook Shout Outs: 01:57:12 Twitter Shout Outs: 02:02...

A note for one of our original Unf*ckers. Sending our love, light, and thank yous to Nettie for being the patron saint of this show, and making us all better. If you're able, please consider donating to Nettie's fund: www.facebook.com/donate/1765854323761747/2174011309435518. Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we’re doing some level setting on healthcare in the U.S.—a long requested topic. We navigate this unf*cking based on direct queries from the Unf*ckers, creating a baseline that helps establish a foundation for related features down the road and an understanding of the moving parts and shared language for the challenges we face. Stay tuned, as next week we’re going to delve deep into the Affo...

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 shoot the shit and catch up on what the world’s been up to since they took a lil vacation. Listen to Max Unfiltered. Listen to A Chat with Tom McGovern. Listen to UNFTR x Best of the Left. Listen to The Clinton Years (Parts One, Two, and Three). Listen to UNFTR X News Beat. Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Emails: 00:18:00 Facebook Shout Outs: 01:25:54 Twitter Shout Outs:...

Countless Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit people go missing or are murdered across Canada and the United States in an ongoing genocide receiving inadequate attention from media, governments, and law enforcement.  Who’s taking and killing them, and why isn’t more being done?  News Beat podcast— Manny’s other love —speaks with Native women on both sides of the border who break down the cause...

This episode is a re-release of sorts. Due to the amount of positive feedback we received on our Clinton Years series, we decided to put the series together into one seamless episode to make it easier to share. Access the essays for Parts One , Two , and Three . Chapters Special Intro: 00:00:06 Prologue: 00:02:53 Chapter One: 00:07:36 Chapter Two: 00:32:26 Chapter Three: 00:40:31 Chapter Four: 00:...

If not for Best of the Left, we are not. The person who put UNFTR on the map has graciously allowed us to drop his very special 1,500th anniversary show on our feed. The episode is titled “America, A Beginner’s Guide” and it’s an earful. A masterpiece written, crafted and produced by our friend and mentor Jay Tomlinson, one of the pioneers of political podcasting. Access the transcript here . Reso...

The man behind the curtain. The fifth Beatle. The ace up our sleeve. Max interviews UNFTR’s ultimate secret weapon, Tom McGovern. Tom is the genius behind the show’s myriad theme songs, signature parodies like Oh, Canada and Independent Platform Man and the musical touches sprinkled throughout our episodes. We convinced Tom to come out of the recording booth long enough for us to praise him. Then...

We bid Unf*ckers adieu for a couple of weeks with some quick ruminations about from whence we came and where we’re headed. In this brief reflection, Max and crew address the cacophony of issues swirling about in our heads as we head toward the midterms. There are countless battles to be fought and won in service of the planet. But for now, Max puts down the brushes and canvas and saves the hat for...

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss the finale of The Clinton Years and review Unf*cker feedback, share some book love and we hear from Manny Faces about his other project, News Beat. Listen to The Clinton Years (Part One). Listen to The Clinton Years (Part Two). Listen to The Clinton Years (Part Three). Chapters Intro: 00:00:00 Emails: 00:04:13 Facebook Shout Outs: 01:02:48 Manny's Corner:...

Part One of “The Clinton Years” examined Bill Clinton’s legacy through the lens of their foundation work and stubborn insistence on the private sector’s ability to cure everything from poverty to climate change. Part Two went back to the beginning to uncover the roots of Clinton’s neoliberal philosophy that would guide his decades in public service. In this final episode of the series, the rubber...

In today's Show Notes, Max and 99 discuss listener feedback from Part Two of The Clinton Years, the powerful Jesse Jackson tie-in (including the incredible audio treatment courtesy of Manny Faces) , and Max hinted at how this three-part series was going to culminate. Listen to The Clinton Years (Part One). Listen to The Clinton Years (Part Two). Chapters Intro: 00:00:00 Emails: 00:10:23 Twitter Sh...

In Part One of “The Clinton Years” we started our journey in the present day by examining the structure and programs of The Clinton Foundation. Many of Clinton’s earliest ideas in public service remain very much a part of the Clinton ethos and belief system to this day. Early evidence of the reliance on public/private partnerships and adherence to free market ideology can be found in Clinton’s for...