Green & Red: Podcasts for Scrappy Radicals

Green and Red commemorates Labor Day with labor Journalist and founder of "Payday Report" Mike Elk (@MikeElk).  We begin by talking about the historical origins of Labor Day in the U.S. (where Labor Day occurs in September rather than on May 1, like most of the world) and we pay tribute to the late Stanley Aronowitz.      We had a wide-ranging discussion with Mike Elk, who began by giving up updates on the Warrior Met Coal strike in Alabama and the Amazon union drive that took place there earlier this year. After that we spoke about the role of labor in the post World War II period, and discussed the importance of people such as Ed Asner, Walter Mondale, and William Greider. We also talked about what to expect from the AFL-CIO with new President Liz Shuler and the legacy of the late Richard Trumka.  We, again, paid tribute to the brave women who were fired from Collin College and pointed out how the New York Left did nothing to help them. Finally, we talked about the role of "gatekeepers" in labor journalism and education--the way that people who don't have working-class backgrounds have come to dominate the way we on the Left talk about labor. Links//  Payday Report: https://paydayreport.com/  Gallup: Approval of Labor Unions at Highest Point Since 1965 (https://bit.ly/2VfsWe2)  Stanley Aronowitz, Labor Scholar and Activist, Dies at 88 (https://nyti.ms/3DRFqdw) The Nation: Ed Asner, American Socialist (https://bit.ly/3tdJfoe) Follow Green and Red//      Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast       Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed       Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpod...       YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube   Donate to Green and Red Podcast//      Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast       Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR   This is a Green and Red Podcast production. Produced by Bob  (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).  “Green and Red Blues" by Moody.  Editing by Isaac.

Last week, Hurricane Ida, a category four storm, made landfall on the Gulf Coast. Over a million people were without power and 16 were killed. The hurricane then moved up the east coast hitting New York and New Jersey with powerful winds and floods. At least 52 people are reported dead in the Northeast. Ida made landfall on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Katrina was a category 5 storm that caused over 1800 deaths and $125 billion in damage.  An important part of the stories of Hurricanes Katrina and Ida has been mutual aid. During and after Katrina, an anarchist modeled relief effort called Common Ground Disaster Relief began in New Orleans to support impacted communities in the storm's aftermath.  After Katrina and Common Ground, mutual aid networks have been growing to mobilize support those suffering from hurricanes, wildfires and various other disasters.  To talk about Ida, Katrina and mutual aid, we are joined by two co-founders of Common Ground- Suncere Ali Shakur and scott crow With them, we discuss hope, community, disaster response by just regular people (not bureaucrats or professional non-profits) and becoming experts in the impossible.   Suncere Ali Shakur.  Originally from NW DC around 7th Kennedy St . Activists fronts include far housing , homeless, police brutality, anti-war and globalization. Gay rights, Education and co founder of Common Ground Relief New Orleans Mutual Aid Disaster Relief, Cleveland Ohio’s Wolfpack Gunshot Response Team . A disciple of the black Panther party and a self proclaimed George Jacksoness. scott crow (@scott_crow) is an anarchist, speaker, author, organizer, musician and  story teller. He's author of Black Flags and Windmills:Hope, Anarchy and  the Common Ground Collective (PM Press) and a number of other books. scott has co-founded a number of diverse projects, businesses and organizations rooted in cooperative power sharing models including the Common Ground Collective, the largest anarchist inspired organization in modern US history, Treasure City Thrift, an anarchist worker coop,  Red Square, an art coop, Century Modern, an antique coop and UPROAR, a community based organization, Dirty South Earth First! and the Radical Encuentro Camp. Outro music is Stealth Empire (feat. Mark Stewart) by Nun Gun on the Emergency Hearts label.  Links// 'Human toll was tremendous': Ida's death count rises while 600,000 still lack power (https://reut.rs/3tmwqI8) Suncere Shakur Reporting back from Far Rockaway, Queens (https://bit.ly/3thqTTq) scott crow: www.scottcrow.org/ Mutual Aid Disaster Relief:https://mutualaiddisasterrelief.org/ Mutual aid groups give personalized help after Hurricane Ida (https://abcn.ws/3BMPzGh) Follow Green and Red// Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).  “Green and Red Blues" by Moody. Editing by Isaac. Special thanks to our Executive Consultant Jeff Ordower.

Jessica Reznicek is a land and water defender who worked with the Catholic Worker Community in Des Moines, IA. In 2016, she began to organize against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline in Iowa.  When the regulatory, political and even civil disobedience channels didn't work, she concluded the system was broken. Then, she, and a fellow Catholic Worker, began to disable construction machinery along the pipeline route. No one was injured by their actions, and the land was protected from the flow of oil for an additional six months. Months after that, she and her collaborator publicly confessed to their sabotage actions. In February, Jessica pleaded guilty to one count of Conspiracy to Damage an Energy Facility. In June, the court designated her a "terrorist" and sentenced her to eight years in prison.      We speak with Alex Cohen of the Free Jessica team (@FreeJessRez). Alex is a climate justice organizer and rabble rouser.     More from Green and Red//  Support Jessica: https://supportjessicareznicek.com/   Des Moines Register: Iowa climate activist sentenced to eight years in federal prison for Dakota Access pipeline sabotage (https://bit.ly/3Do0FTK) Greenpeace: Pipeline exec says whoever vandalized Dakota Access Pipeline should be ‘removed from the gene pool’ (https://bit.ly/3mJmRlg) Follow Green and Red// Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Please follow us on Medium! (https://medium.com/green-and-red-media). Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).  “Green and Red Blues" by Moody. Editing by Isaac.

America's forever war in Afghanistan ended with the withdrawal of U.S. troops after a twenty year war and occupation. A speedy summer offensive by the Taliban through quickly led to the fall of Kabul. Images of the Taliban in the Afghan presidential palace, crowds running after departing American aircraft and frightened Afghans remembering earlier Taliban rule pervade our screens. Since the terror attacks on September 11th, the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and the never-ending Global War on Terror, the U.S. has spent great amounts of "blood and treasure" to only make matters worse.  Now there seems to be a reckoning with a war many tried to forget. Scott talks with anti-war veteran of the war in Afghanistan Graham Clumpner about the legacy of the war, the threat of the new Taliban regime, what the anti-war movements got wrong, the true costs of war and about the impacts of the end of the war on its veterans. Graham Clumpner (@turncoatveteran) is an libertarian socialist, anti-war U.S. military veteran of the war in Afghanistan, environmentalist and direct action organizer in the Pacific Northwest. This is the third of three episodes focusing on the forever wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan.More// ‘Why did my friend get blown up? For what?’: Afghanistan war veterans horrified by Taliban gains (https://wapo.st/37UWel3) About Face: https://aboutfaceveterans.org/ Veterans for Peace: https://www.veteransforpeace.org/ HELPING HERE IN U.S.// If you want to volunteer for airport pickup, apartment setups, and/or meals for Afghans, go to https://t.co/bw2zeqFzQL?amp=1 If you want to help provide transportation, housing, and other basic needs for Afghans at Fort Lee in Virginia, go to https://t.co/Z8lV7hJrnQ?amp=1 If you are an attorney and you would like to help with Afghan pro bono cases, please sign up here: https://t.co/MWzKmRr6tN?amp=1 Here are NGOs/charities working in Afghanistan you can support: https://t.co/CnqMuWdY8q?amp=1 MONITORING THE SITUATION: Go to No One Left Behind and join their mailing list. Follow the #SaveOurAllies hashtag to monitor updates and potential resources.More from Green and Red// Buzzanco (2001): Five reasons why America should not be at war (https://bit.ly/3mjjJfR) Green and Red on the anniversary of September 11th (https://bit.ly/911GandR) Green and Red w/ Graham Clumpner on "War is a Racket." (https://apple.co/37VsAMo) Graham on Green and Red Media: https://greenandredpodcast.org/graham-clumpner/Follow Green and Red//🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/greenandredpodcast🌐 Website: https://greenandredpodcast.org💬 Join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/M24GyqrS📰 Follow us on Substack: https://greenandredpodcast.substack.com🌌 Follow us on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/podcastgreenred.bsky.social Donate to Green and Red Podcast//🎉 Become a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast☕ One-time donation: https://bit.ly/DonateGandRThis is a Green and Red Podcast production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).  “Green and Red Blues" by Moody. Editing by Isaac.

This weekend, we saw the Taliban seize Kabul ending the 20 year war and occupation of Afghanistan. Afghan president Ashraf Ghani fled the country. The sudden and dramatic Taliban gains came as the U.S. withdrew its ground troops from Afghanistan. Aid groups are warning of a humanitarian crisis unfolding. Since January, nearly 400,000 have been displaced. Over 1,000 civilians have been killed or injured in fighting over the past month. The images of U.S. helicopters flying over the U.S. embassy brought back memories of the April 1975 evacuation of the U.S. embassy in Saigon.   Bob and Scott bring you a deep background on U.S. involvement in Afghanistan. We talked about several issues, including the interventions by the Cold War hawk administrations of Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, the importance of resources like Rare Earth Minerals in the U.S. mission in Afghanistan and the "blowback" in Afghanistan of the U.S. funding of the mujahedin to fight the Soviets that led to the emergence of the Taliban and Al Qaeda. As well as the costs of the war in Afghanistan since 2001.  This is the second of three episodes focusing on the forever wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan.  More// VIDEO Blinken: This is not Saigon. (https://cnn.it/3k51OqC) Costs of the Afghanistan War, in Lives and Dollars (https://bit.ly/3svpFU5) Brown University: Costs of War.  (https://bit.ly/3y19rTI) Professor David Gibbs’ Publications on Afghanistan. (https://bit.ly/3D1nAEo) Why Biden was so set on withdrawing from Afghanistan (https://bit.ly/2XtfsvV) How the U.S. Got Involved in Afghanisgtan (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGE3pQejpo4&t=10s) More from Green and Red// Buzzanco (2001): Five reasons why America should not be at war (https://bit.ly/3mjjJfR) Green and Red on the anniversary of September 11th (https://bit.ly/911GandR) Green and Red on Cold War hawk Jimmy Carter (https://apple.co/3sucF0V) Buzzanco: Jimmy Carter is a Liberal Saint Now, Was a War Criminal Then….. (https://bit.ly/2R0cU5m) Follow Green and Red// Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Please follow us on Medium! (https://medium.com/green-and-red-media). Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).  “Green and Red Blues" by Moody. Editing by Isaac.

Last month, whistleblower Daniel Hale was sentenced to 45 months in prison after pleading guilty to violating the Espionage Act in March. During his time in the Air Force from 2009 to 2013, Hale worked with the National Security Agency and the Joint Special Operations Task Force at the Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, where he helped identify targets for assassination. He later worked as a contractor for the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency.  After leaving the Air Force, Hale became an outspoken opponent of the drone program, U.S. Foreign Policy and vocal supporter of whistleblowers.  In 2019, Hale was arrested and indicted for leaking classified documents about the U.S. drone assassination program. He's believed to be the source for the Intercept's series called "The Drone Papers." We speak with Noor Mir (@thedronalisa), a close friend of Hale and a member of the Daniel Hale Support Team (@TeamDanielHale), about Daniel's story. She talks about Daniel's background, how he came to be a whistleblower and his current status in federal custody. We also discuss the Espionage Act, Obama's drone wars, and responses to his case on the left, right and in the media.  Noor is a DC based organizer, anti-imperialist and rabble-rouser. She was the anti-drone campaigner for Code Pink. This is the first of three episodes focusing on the forever wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan. More// Support Daniel Hale: https://standwithdanielhale.org/ New York Magazine: Call Me a Traitor. Daniel Hale exposed the machinery of America’s clandestine warfare. Why did no one seem to care?. (https://nym.ag/3ANYeYD) Daniel at the 2013 Code Pink Drone Summit. (Daniel's talk begins at the 29 minute mark.) (https://bit.ly/3m74re9) WaPo: Daniel Hale, who leaked information on U.S. drone warfare, sentenced to 45 months in prison. (https://wapo.st/2W3XhfP) Groups Daniel is asking us to support// Sister Reach (https://bit.ly/3CXJ58U) Free Black Mamas (https://bit.ly/3sotieF) Follow Green and Red// Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Please follow us on Medium! (https://medium.com/green-and-red-media). Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).  “Green and Red Blues" by Moody. Editing by Isaac.

Since the protests in Cuba on July 11th, the U.S. media has been promoting aggressive action if not intervention against Havana.  But even segments of the self-described Left, especially social democrats in New Politics magazine, have been attacking the Diaz-Canel government, supporting the protests in Cuba, and dismissing the larger political-cum-power issues at play in this episode. Scott and Bob broke down the background to the protests and the Left abandonment of socialist solidarity, talking about Cuba's health system, its life span and infant mortality rates (which compare favorably to the U.S.), its educational system, its world-best sustainable environmental system, and its role in defending Left movements in Latin America, South Africa, Vietnam, Palestine, and elsewhere. We also talked about the inherent role that Miami plays in any "dissident" movement in Cuba. And we'll send you out with some salsa music from a Havana bar. See also// "Cuba Has Trained 170 Doctors from the U.S. for Free"   (https://bit.ly/3CGAMhC) Vijay Prashad, "Why Cuban Doctors Deserve the Nobel Peace Prize"  (https://bit.ly/3AC1Tsf) "Cuba Ranks as World's Most Sustainable Developed Country"  (https://bit.ly/2VEgh4L) World Bank data on Cuban Life Expectancy (https://bit.ly/3jKJlQ3) Bob Buzzanco, "Fidel Castro (1926-2016) and Global Solidarity"  (https://bit.ly/3fUWqVI) Bob Buzzanco, "Cuba, Race, and African Liberation" (https://bit.ly/3AAttGm) Bob Buzzanco interview on "Flashpoints" on Cuba  (https://bit.ly/3AyJ2i2) Follow Green and Red// Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Please follow us on Medium! (https://medium.com/green-and-red-media). Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast   production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).     “Green and Red Blues" by   Moody. Editing by Isaac.

Sarah Koster is Green and Red's public health guru and most frequent guest and we just had another great discussion about COVID with here.  Despite government and media claims in June that the crisis of COVID was ending, we're seeing a resurgence in cases, especially due to the Delta variant, lagging vaccination rates, and less mask wearing.  Sarah breaks down the nature of the new variant, the health risks it poses, and what we need to do to be as safe as possible.  Prof. Sarah Koster is a Family Nurse Practitioner and also has Masters in Public Health from the University of Washington in Seattle. Sarah worked in research and program evaluation for about 7 years with the Infectious Disease Division at the University of New Mexico Medical School and completed a fellowship in Infectious Disease Epidemiology with the University of Alabama at Birmingham while living in Southern Africa. Read more// NY Times: Delta Variant in Schools (https://nyti.ms/2Vjesdd) 7 Bay Area counties mandate masks indoors for everyone because of delta variant (https://bit.ly/3ylntke) Vaccinated People With Breakthrough Infections Can Spread The Delta Variant, CDC Says (https://n.pr/37iEmQy) Follow Green and Red at: Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Please follow us on Medium! (https://medium.com/green-and-red-media). Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast  production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).    “Green and Red Blues" by   Moody. Editing by Isaac.

Woke Up This Morning, Got Myself a Podcast!  Madison Lynn (@dickexpert) and John Palmucci (@gabagoolmarx) of the new "Fresh Kills" podcast (@freshkillspod), which  features "garbage takes by garbage guidos," joined us to talk about  their new entry into social media, their takes on left politics and  cancel culture, among other issues, and whether New Jersey or Youngstown Italians drop more "F Bombs."  We also were excited to discuss John's creation, "Socialist Sopranos  Memes" on Facebook, which is a brilliant fusion of Sopranos scenes with Left politics, and we finished with a spirited analysis of the  anti-capitalist themes in so many Sopranos episodes and we all weighed  in with our opinions on whom the "Most Psychopathic" Sopranos character  was and gave our opinions on the controversial ending .     Watch this show, Don't fughgettaboutit! Madison Lynn and John Palmucci are two longtime leftists (whatever that means) from NY/NJ who believe they bring a little something different and much needed to the existing discourse. With "garbarge takes" from these two "garbage guidos", they hope to remind everyone that the best part of ruthless criticism of all that exists is being ruthless. Fresh Kills is currently available on Spotify, Apple, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts.  Links and shit// Fresh Kills Podcast: https://linktr.ee/freshkillspod Socialist Sopranos Memes: https://www.facebook.com/socialistsopranos Follow Green and Red at: Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Please follow us on Medium! (https://medium.com/green-and-red-media). Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast  production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).    “Green and Red Blues" by   Moody. Editing by Isaac.

It's our hundredth episode. We've done a lot in the 17 months (to the day) since we launched Green and Red.  The themes of our scrappy little show include lifting up movement organizing and direct action; critiques of corporate liberalism and reformist politics, the far right & the status quo; sharing people’s history; poking at the sacred cows of the “left” (NGO industrial complex, Brooklyn hipster socialism, Democratic hacks like Pelosi, Schumer, Obomber and Biden); and doing it with humor, wit and a few laughs at our own expense.  We've talked with radical thinkers (including the biggest of them all- Noam Chomsky!!), journalists, radical podcasters, writers, filmmakers and, importantly, organizers and campaigners working on direct action, anti-capitalist, radical environmental campaigns and movement organizing.   We've also raised up analyses, situations and issues, at first, ignored by the liberal-left circles and then embraced by the same circles (ex: the ruling class vs. Trumpworld, the firing of Texas community college professors, the non-threat of a Trump coup, etc.).  This is the kinda stuff you hear first with us.  In our 100th episode, we decided to talk about how far we've come, our dreams and visions for the Green and Red Podcast in the beginning and how far we've come.  We've got a lot more to come.  So keep listening.  This episode includes "Los Cuarto Generales," a resistance song from the Spanish Civil War. Sung by the late great Pete Seeger. Follow Green and Red// Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GreenRedPodcast Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PodcastGreenRed Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenredpodcast YouTube: https://bit.ly/GreenAndRedOnYouTube Please follow us on Medium! (https://medium.com/green-and-red-media). Donate to Green and Red Podcast// Become a recurring donor at  https://www.patreon.com/greenredpodcast Or make a one time donation here: https://bit.ly/DonateGandR This is a Green and Red Podcast  production. Produced by Bob (@bobbuzzanco) and Scott (@sparki1969).    “Green and Red Blues" by Moody. Editing by Isaac.