The Collateral Banter Podcast

Colette, Sue, and Dan debate the pitfalls and promises of self-interest and the Common Good. How Government Can Help Americans Find the Common Good Again | Time

Please be advised that this episode contains language that some may find upsetting starting at 37 minutes.   The Vaya con Muñoz team takes over Collateral Banter on this special episode. They cover Joe Biden's reelection announcement, the recent Supreme Court decisions (and scandals), and the brouhaha engulfing Easthampton's (MA) Schools. A spirited debate breaks out on trans rights in female sports among progressives.  Complex questions are raised but few answers are provided.                

Sue, Col, and Danny on the "ladies" controversy out of Easthampton, MA. The panel then tackles the urgent questions of artificial intelligence--should we fear it or respect it? Will it destroy jobs? Which jobs? Is A.I. making us smarter or stupid? The conversation ends bring up Tarfdigrades! If you start this episode, you must listen until the end.      

Will SCOTUS obliterate Section 230? Danny T fears for the future of free speech online with Sue T. and Matt Szafranski, from Western Mass Politics and Insight. 

Danny T asks Sue and Colette to share their stories about the decline of free speech in the western Massachusetts.      

In recaping the latest stories, Danny T reacts to the mid-term election results, Trump's presidential announcement, Boris Johnson's speech to Asian business leaders, and Iranian protests. 

Danny continues the conversation with public anthropologist Jon Zibbell, discussing how material relations is at the core of our understanding of race, gender, and the revanchist politics found in America today.      

For the 100th episode, Danny T. chats with Jon Zibbell, a behavior scientist trained in anthropology.  He is one of the foremost urban and rural anthropologists in America who worked under President Obama's drug czar, the Center for Disease Control (CDC), and is a researcher at RTI.   Their conversation connects the current opioid crisis to urban and rural deindustrialization in America.       

Danny T shares his thoughts on January 6th and on the political crisis growing in America.    US could be under rightwing dictator by 2030, Canadian professor warns | US politics | The Guardian

Danny T goes off the deep end on this episode.  He talks about the power of governments to manipulate the weather and a report confirming that the Department of Homeland Security spies on journalists.   Chernobyl’s disastrous cover-up is a warning for the next nuclear age | Kate Brown | The GuardianChina ‘modified’ the weather to create clear skies for political celebration – study | China | The GuardianOperation Whistle Pig: Inside the secret CBP unit with no rules that investigates Americans (yahoo.com)Exclusive: U.S. directs agents to cover up program used to investigate Americans | Reuters