To normalize the horrific, it takes lots of people going along. From the history of leaders lying, the current regime has learned that spewing new lies many times a day works to make reality conform to the lies. On this

Locking people up and deporting immigrants is on the rise. The adults face punishment (as if that works) and their children hide from the judgement and stigma of other kids and school administrators. They are of course totally innocent and

We think of it as pure fun but the reality is great pressure and there are overtraining injuries. Coaches often lack crucial training. Non-athlete kids feeling less-than. And since kids don’t have a voice in the matter, the only option

In her new book titled Is It Racist? Is It Sexist? Why Red and Blue White People Disagree, and How to Decide in the Gray Areas co-author Betsy Leondar-Wright, through remarkable research, found Trumpists are not all racist and sexist

When did politics and trash TV become one in the same? According to author Ross Benes, no question: it was the 1990s. As one reviewer said: “this book helps to explain the election of Donald Trump in ways that most

Oppression and mass murder did not defeat a culture; the Nazis tried but did not erase peoplehood. They certainly destroyed millions of Jews and others, but they did not destroy Yiddish. On this Keeping Democracy Alive, talking about her new

Some might call it “cruel and unusual punishment,” arresting, sweeping the parks, bulldozing homeless encampments. Others believe if people are poor it’s their own fault. On this show, the Reverend Dr. Liz Theoharis of The Kairos Center discusses an essay

They weren’t there for Biden. A large chunk of young men are for Trump, but with a new presidential candidate, the Democratic Party is connecting with young people. One millennial voice is Josh Lafasan, on today’s show he says the

Now with the nomination of not just a woman, but a woman of color,  they feel even more threatened. Today’s right encourages and seeks to use men’s anger in the culture war, even though those very policies actually harm working

Colonialism: Now it’s called corporate globalization. As the energy appetite of the west continues to accelerate, so does extractivism,  without the consent of the people directly affected. In this revealing discussion, Professor Avi Chomsky explodes the many myths we white

We assume our picture of romance and marriage has always been there, but according to our guest author and professor Sabrina Strings, it was invented in the 12th century as a myth about Sir Lancelot. Marriage was about power, domination,

Today’s guest is Dr. Rachelle Winkle-Wagner, author of the new book The Chosen We. She’s a professor of Educational Leadership and Policy a U.Wisconsin-Madison. Over a period of ten years she interviewed 105 Black women from five selected cities about

In his new book The Jazzmen: How Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie Transformed America, prolific author Larry Tye shares what he learned about the lives of the three men, now recognized as great Americans. The racism they faced

America is an outlier: here it’s commonly accepted that if you succeed or fail you deserve it. We believe we make our own luck. And we blame ourselves for what’s really random bad luck. But that’s counterproductive, according to the

Democracy is itself largely improvisation. Pushing back against the powers that be; the mainstream. Our guest Randy Fertel, author of the new book Winging It; Improv’s Power and Peril in the Age of Trump, says rationality alone is not enough;

We’ve built all the dams we need and that nature can handle. Development in flood zones is still happening faster than more sustainable locations. In his new book; Seek Higher Ground, The Natural Solution to Our Urgent Flooding Crisis, award

Most of us can guess but there’s nothing like serious scientific research when it comes to understanding political change. In her forthcoming book  How the Heartland Went Red, Harvard’s Stephanie Termullo shares her findings from extensive field research in three

They claim loudly they’re protecting freedom and innocent children, but the truth is the right is oppressing both. On this show psychoanalyst Avgi Saketopoulou, co-author of Gender Without Identity, argues there is not one true and immutable authentic identity with

And what is the effect on democracy? Playing to the camera makes advertisers happy. Truth? How one would govern? Fall by the wayside are how one might govern. On this show associate professor of history Kathryn Cramer Brownell sheds light

At this Christmas time of year, we all think about giving. But what are philanthropists all about? To launder a plutocrat’s reputation, preserving great wealth and maintaining dominance and control. Our guest Edgar Villanueva has a new book, a second

 You may have heard the story: King Cnut sat on the seashore and tried to command the tide not to touch his feet, yet the sea ignored him. Such may be the case with the right wing’s war against unmarried

Democracy and oligarchy: since our founding it’s been a long balancing act. In his new book Realigners: Partisan Hacks, Political Visionaries, and the Struggle to Rule American Democracy, author historian Timothy Shenk tells of how such incredibly diverse people as

It’s not the way it’s supposed to work. Our founders fought for self-government to replace the distant authoritarian system. As Justice Brandeis said; states are the laboratories of democracy. But they are withering from lack of public awareness of their

The right says let the market be in charge. Privatizing and commodifying our essential human needs is OK with them. Should we just accept the normalization of hundreds of millions of plastic bottles, for corproate controlled water that is no

So many mass shootings; how did the gun culture become so powerful? Look to the Civil War: Militarily devastated, the angry Confederate culture transformed guns into a totem. In this revealing discussion, U of Wisconsin-Madison professor Nick Buttrick reveals the

Liberals usually fail to connect and inspire people of the rural mid-west. And we lose elections. But if we’re true to tradition, we should take the lead in solving rural alienation.  Our guest today Jessica Corbett explains a new report

The writers and screen actors strike is an example of what’s happening to working people: the rents are too damn high. Housing is at the root of so many issues of the 2020s, including a stagnation in the arts. On

Overwork, uniquely stressful conditions, patients suffering.  Blaming individual caregivers with personal failures results in fewer and fewer professionals when the need by boomers is growing exponentially. On this show, David Schenck author of two previous books on ethics and healing

Imagine being a judge and having a mandate to break up families! Today’s guest, noted children and family lawyer Jane Spinak talks about her new book The End of Family Court: How Abolishing the Court Brings Justice to Children and

Many of those of us who have homes wish the homeless were invisible. Unknown, clearly on hard times, why isn’t it done, why is it in all of our interest to prevent homelessness? Noted psychiatrist Dr. Robert Okin lived for