#1744 Sell Outs, Shills, and Scandals: Saudi Arabia and Israel are buying the credibility they can't earn honestly
Release Date: 10/15/2025
SOLVED! SAMPLE! #27 - Watch what you say! How weaponized language changes our reality
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date: 11-10-25 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon, and Erin discuss: Ch. 1 - “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps” Ch. 2 - “Politically correct” Ch. 3 - “Ethnic cleansing” Ch. 4 - “Meritocracy” Ch. 5 - Our current “wealth pump” crisis and how it has been solved throughout history BACKSTAGE! Beyond the Algorithm (Members Only!): The best words to articulate the current moment FOLLOW US ON: (This full episode premieres on YouTube on Friday - please share!) REFERENCES - Huffington Post - NPR - Mondo Weiss - Lucid (Substack) - Michael Sandel - Kottke ...
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#1752 Reigniting the Nuclear Arms Race: Fat Man, Little Boy, and Donald Trump
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date 11/7/2025 The most dangerous part of nuclear weapons has always been the people in charge of them. As we potentially enter a new arms race, some of the worst people in the world are in charge of the vast majority of nuclear weapons. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Check out our new show, SOLVED! on ! (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop and for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! ! KEY POINTS KP 1: KP 2: KP 3: KP 4: KP 5: KP 6: (00:44:32)...
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#1751 Monthly-ish Mix: Institutions Fall, Reality Breaks, Empire Rises
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date: 11/11/25 The Monthly-ish Mix™ is here to get you caught up on recent news without being overwhelming! This month we examine how power is being quietly consolidated across institutions, how propaganda and AI are reshaping our sense of reality, and how division and fear are fueling both domestic repression and global aggression. From the Supreme Court to state media manipulation, from dismantled voting rights to foreign influence campaigns, we trace the machinery of authoritarian control—and spotlight the journalists, educators, and activists still pushing back to keep truth and...
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#1750 "America's Backyard" - The War on Terror Meets the War on Drugs
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date 11/7/2025 The United States claiming a divine (and imperialist) right to tamper in the politics of South American countries is nothing new. As is so often the case with Trump, the biggest difference is that he’s doing proudly and in the open what used to be done only shamefully and in secret. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Check out our new show, SOLVED! on ! (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) ! KEY POINTS KP 1: KP 2: KP 3: KP 4: KP 5: (00:53:59) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR On the...
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SOLVED! FROM THE ARCHIVES - “Transgressive Thoughts in a Villain Era” (Original Air Date: 1-6-25)
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Re-Air Date: 11–6-25 Unless you were a member in January of 2025, this episode of SOLVED! will be brand new to you! We’re slowing down production for a little bit to reorganize our production processes, so enjoy this episode from our archives (and B.Y: before YouTube) where Jay!, Amanda, Deon, and Erin discuss: Ch. 1 - Why people love villains Ch. 2 - How plutocracy kills Ch. 3 - Why the path forward is through membership organizations FOLLOW US ON: (This full episode premieres on YouTube on Friday - please share!) Nostr public key:...
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#1749 Democracy: In Theory, In Practice, and Under Threat
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date 11/4/2025 Elections are always coming up, some sooner than others, so we thought we would take a look at the state of our democracy and what we must do to maintain it in the face of the greatest direct assault on our institutions we've seen in our 250 year history. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Check out our new show, SOLVED! on ! (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) ! KEY POINTS KP 1: KP 2: KP 3: KP 4: KP 5: KP 6: KP 7: KP 8: (00:49:12) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR On the willingness...
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#1748 Patriotism in Peril: Democracy, the Military, and the Fight Over What America Means
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date 11/02/2025 A lot of people on the left aren't feeling the love for their country right now and that's understandable but we have some thoughts on more productive ways to channel those conflicting feelings toward a country that is currently falling far short of living up to its founding ideals. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Check out our new show, SOLVED! on ! (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) ! KEY POINTS KP 1: KP 2: KP 3: KP 4: KP 5: KP 6: KP 7: (00:59:59) NOTE FROM THE...
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#1747 Racism in the United States, it turns out, is a problem
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date 10/28/2025 As we were looking for episode topics, I came across an article making the case that racism is a real problem in the country and that there were lots of recent examples that proved the point. And I was like, "Racism? In the US?! In Trump's Republican Party?? That doesn't sound like the country I've heard of." (sarcasm) But then we looked into it and it turns out racism is everywhere and also quite bad. (true) Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Check out our new show, SOLVED! on ! ...
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#1746 What an actual attack on free speech looks like
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Air Date 10/25/2025 Trump's attacks on free speech, particularly with the use of the Federal Communications Commission, goes far beyond the Jimmy Kimmel story. We're in the middle of an all-out assault on freedom of speech, a free and unbiased press, and freedom of association. Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Check out our new show, SOLVED! on ! (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop and for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! ! KEY POINTS KP 1: KP 2: ...
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#1374 Tell Stories, Not Myths: Columbus and the Centrality of Colonialism (Throwback)
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Original Air Date: 10/13/2020 Today we take a look at the myths of Columbus and American Exceptionalism™ that we cling to and turn our gaze to some of the less-understood but more accurate and important aspects of our collective history Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Check out our new show, SOLVED! on ! (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) ! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Ch. 2: Ch. 3: Ch. 4: Ch. 5: Ch. 6: Ch. 7: Ch. 8: Ch. 9: SHOW IMAGE | | Modifications: Cropped ...
info_outlineAir Date 10/15/2025
It's said that money can't buy a variety of things like peace, happiness, loyalty, and, relevant for today; integrity and trust. But in a world in which impressions (a very multilayered word, in this case) can be bought and sold on the open market and an audience's loyalty to influencers, entertainers, and athletes can be leveraged in an attempt to transfer the credibility from the talented to the tyrannical... you better believe places like Saudi Arabia and Israel are going to try.
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KEY POINTS
KP 1: How We Stopped Caring About "Selling Out" - Current Affairs - Air Date 8-18-25
KP 2: Comedians Hold NOTHING Back While RIPPING Fellow Comics to Shreds - TYT Sports - Air Date 10-1-25
KP 4: Why I Became a Crypto Shill - Adam Conover - Air Date 5-23-25
KP 5: The Secret Role Of Influencers In Global Propaganda - Taylor Lorenz's Power User - Air Date 9-24-25
KP 6: US and Saudi Arabia Sign 'biggest Arms Deal in History' - DW News - Air Date 5-13-25
(00:48:45) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
Explaining that influencers are just infomercial hosts
DEEPER DIVES
(00:55:11) SECTION A: SELL OUTS & SHILLS
(01:35:50) SECTION B: INFLUENCERS
(01:58:52) SECTION C: SAUDI ARABIA BUYING SOFT & HARD POWER
SHOW IMAGE CREDITS
Description: Composite image of a microphone in a spotlight against a red curtain with burlap sacks overflowing with money at the base with the Israeli and Saudi Arabian flags on them.
Credit: Internal composite design. Multiple images from Pixabay | Pixabay License
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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