Free Forum with Terrence McNally

As deadly protests engulf Iran and a mass pro-democracy movement seems the path forward in the US, here’s my 2012 conversation with WAEL GHONIM about his book, REVOLUTION 2.0. Ghonim, a 30-year-old Google manager, unwilling to publicly criticize the Egyptian regime, anonymously launched a Facebook campaign to protest one killing by security forces. How did the Egyptian people finally find their voice and reject 30 years of oppression?} Two reasons I chose this episode: 1) Iran, taking a lesson from the Arab Spring, has cut off the nation’s internet. 2) Though the later Muslim Brotherhood coup was tragic, Egypt’s nonviolent revolution succeeded in toppling an authoritarian dictator and regime. What did it take? How did it build? What can we learn?FF_Ghonim 2012_transcript

I talk with BILL McKIBBEN (The New Yorker), co-founder of both the global climate campaign, 350.org, and ThirdAct.org, for folks 60 & above. I did publish an episode with Bill in the fall, but then I was invited to talk with him in front of an audience for LiveTalksLA. This is that new conversation, including a bit of audience Q&A. In these dark times, Bill’s new book, HERE COMES THE SUN offers hope – not with happy talk but with a clear declaration of facts: Solar and wind are no longer alternative fuels. They are now the cheapest as well as the cleanest. But winning on the science and the economics is not enough. The power of the people must defeat the power of the fossil fuel industry. Learn more: billmckibben.com, thirdact.orgMcKibben-LiveTalk2025-Transcript

Here’s my 2012 conversation with PAUL GILDING, former head of Greenpeace International, about his book, THE GREAT DISRUPTION: Why the Climate Crisis will Bring on the End of Shopping and the Birth of a New World.  GILDING said it was time to stop worrying about climate change and brace for impact. According to him, the coming decades would see loss, suffering, and conflict as our planetary overdraft is paid; however, they will also bring out the best of humanity: compassion, innovation, resilience, and adaptability; and an unmatched business opportunity, as old industries collapse and new companies reshape our economy. In the aftermath of the Great Disruption, he believes we will measure "growth" not by quantity of stuff but quality of life. You can learn more at paulgilding.comFF_Gilding, Paul-06-10-2012_Transcript Gilding 2012 Alternet article - System Failure

As one year ends and another begins, many pause to look backward and forward. We’ll do that on a deep historical scale with today’s guest, PETER TURCHIN, author of END TIMES. In 2010, when Nature magazine asked for a ten-year forecast, he predicted that America was in a spiral of social disintegration that would lead to collapse of the political order. “Political breakdown, from the Roman Empire to the Russian revolution, follows a clear pattern: workers’ wages stagnate while elites multiply.” This echoes Plato’s assertion that democracy inevitably leads to tyranny - the rich always want to get richer and the poor will follow a demagogue who promises to overthrow the rich. You can learn more at peterturchin.com. Turchin-10-01-2025-Transcript

As we celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas, here’s my 2006 conversation with RICHARD DAWKINS on his best-seller, THE GOD DELUSION. I consider myself spiritual, thank the universe daily, and feel myself blessed, but I don’t see an entity directing this unfolding pageant. I invite you to listen with an open mind and spirit. Dawkins and I begin with questions and end with awe. Learn more at richarddawkins.com. I wish you and your loved ones joyous holidays with time and space for reflection and renewal. Alternet ArticleFF_Dawkins_Transcript

This is Ike Wilson episode # 2. Questions about Hegseth, Venezuela, US cities are bigger than when we spoke in October. We make time to discuss other concerns I have about the US military - morale, Christian nationalism, lack of success despite unlimited resources. With 33 years in the field and teaching at West Point, Columbia, Yale, Arizona State, and National War College, Wilson is former Director of the U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute, and led the Commander’s Initiatives Group at U.S. Central Command. He writes Compound Security, Unlocked on Substack and hosts The Civic Brief podcast.Wilson, Isaiah-12-05-2025-transcript

This week when we give thanks, let me say how grateful I am to have these conversations about a world that just might work and that folks take the time to listen, learn, and share. CHUCK COLLINS says a lot of people tell him, “…nothing a billionaire does harms my life.” In response, he wrote BURNED BY BILLIONAIRES: How Concentrated Wealth and Power Are Ruining Our Lives and Planet. Collins directs the Program on Inequality and the Common Good at the Institute for Policy Studies, co-edits Inequality.org and its weekly newsletter, and writes the column, Oligarch Watch at The Nation Magazine.You can learn more at inequality.org and at ChuckCollinsWrites.comCollins, Chuck-2025-Transcript

With family gatherings upcoming over the holidays and emergence of AI everywhere we look, here’s my 2011 episode with Sherry Turkle, Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology at MIT, about her book ALONE TOGETHER Why We Expect More from Technology, Less from Each Other. At that point, Sherry had already been studying the relationships between people and technology for decades, and ALONE TOGETHER signaled a bit of a departure for her. She even called it “a book of repentance.” It was one of the first books to warn about what was being threatened or lost in our headlong rush to 24/7 engagement with screens. 

I’m not an environmentalist, but rather someone who works to move society toward a healthy relationship with the rest of nature. The notion that we are separate makes no sense to me. So I was drawn to this week’s guest, MELANIE CHALLENGER, who writes on the relationship of humans to the living world. She does field research - including in the Arctic and Antarctica, is an award-winning poet, has written librettos for classical choral pieces, has an opera in the works, and is Vice-President of UK’s RSPCA. Her books include HOW TO BE ANIMAL: What It Means to Be Human. You can learn more at melaniechallenger.com

DEBORAH TANNEN, best known for YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND: Women and Men in Conversation, 4 years on the NYTimes bestseller list, 8 months at #1. This conversation is about 2 later books: First, I ONLY SAY THIS BECAUSE I LOVE YOU on why we have so much trouble communicating within families - could be helpful with Thanksgiving coming up. The second, THE ARGUMENT CULTURE focuses on public discourse. Way back in 2002, she made the point that our society had become overwhelmingly adversarial, with consequences not only in our ability to solve problems but also in our personal relationships. We have all been the victims of how that has played out in the two decades since.