South of the border, an entire region is rising, electing radical governments and moving towards integration and genuine independence.Today, “MintPress News” speaks to Ollie Vargas about Latin America and just what is going on in the region President Joe Biden called the U.S.’ “front yard.” Ollie Vargas is an award-winning journalist based in Bolivia. He is the co-founder of “Kawsachun News,” an outlet reporting in the English language on Bolivia and Latin America. He has also contributed to “MintPress.”Key to the latest drive towards Latin America has been the role of Brazil and, in particular, President Lula da Silva, who has taken it upon himself to lead the Global South to take a more active role in world politics.Brazil is currently the only Latin American member of the BRICS economic bloc. However, Mexico, Venezuela, Argentina, Cuba, Nicaragua and a host of other countries in the region have expressed interest in joining, which could turn the tables and provide balance to the U.S. “rules-based international order.”Another key figure providing pushback to American dominance of Latin America is Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador. AMLO, as he is known, has refused to kowtow to Washington. Indeed, at President Biden’s Summit for Democracy in March, he described the U.S. as nothing more than an “oligarch with a façade of democracy.”AMLO has proven very popular in Mexico, thanks to his pro-people policies. These include massively raising the minimum wage and state pensions, allowing tens of millions to live in dignity. All the while, he has kept inflation low. He holds a televised press conference every morning, in which he talks directly with the people. As Vargas put it, “While previous leaders stood above the population, AMLO stands with the people.”AMLO stands, in Vargas’ opinion, in contrast to Chilean President Gabriel Boric. Heralded as a new kind of progressive at the time of his election, Boric has failed to maintain his popularity. Vargas explained that, while Boric has some superficially radical positions, he has changed little about the day-to-day existence of the ordinary people.Vargas also talks about the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on Latin America, about the upcoming elections in Ecuador, and what it was like reporting under the dicSupport the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.

Have you ever wondered just how much of your hard-earned tax dollars go to funding our bloated war machine? On today’s episode of “The MintCast,” Lindsay Koshgarian lays out the staggering expense that American taxpayers fork out each year to keep the U.S. empire going.“The average person is paying over $2300 per year for our military, plus another $700 for veterans’ [benefits]. So that’s over $3000. To put that in some other perspective, that’s more than twice what the median rent is for a two-bedroom apartment is in this country... It’s a really significant expense for individual taxpayers,” she told “Mintcast” co-host Alan MacLeod.Lindsay Koshgarian is the Program Director of the National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies. Her work and commentary have been featured in “NPR,” the “BBC,” “CNN” and “The Nation,” among others.Not only does the United States spend vastly more than any other country in the world on its military, the federal budget continues to become increasingly militarized. For the financial year 2023, $1.1 trillion of the $1.8 trillion total went to purchasing weapons or on militarizing the police or prison systems.If you include veterans’ benefits, then the government spends more on war than anything else, even healthcare. More than $1000 of the average American’s taxes go to Pentagon contractors – four times as much as is spent on K-12 education.Koshgarian’s report, “Tax Day 2023: Where Your 2022 Tax Dollars Went,” even notes that weapons giant Lockheed Martin received $106 per American taxpayer this year. This is compared to just $11 on anti-homeless projects or around $6 to develop renewable energy.The National Priorities Project has proposed a modest spending cut to the military, bringing the budget down to 2018 levels. With that $100 billion saving, they calculate that the U.S. could:-  Provide free tuition for 2 out of 3 public college students in the U.S.- Send every household in the U.S. a $700 check to help offset the effects of inflation- Hire 890,000 Registered Nurses to address shortages- Cover medical care for 7 million veterans, or:- Triple current enrollment in Head Start, from 1 million children and families to 3 million.Support the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.

Americans want change. A December poll found that only 38% of the country is satisfied with the way the political system is working, with nearly two-thirds expressing their discontent. Despite this, it appears that very little change is on the horizon; the 2024 election is looking increasingly likely that the two parties will select aging relics in Joe Biden and Donald Trump as their candidates. In this situation, half of Americans say they would consider voting for a third party, despite the clear drawbacks to this in the U.S.’ two-party duopoly.One candidate who could shake up this cozy system is activist and public intellectual Dr. Cornel West. West’s decades of activism and his natural charisma and speaking abilities could draw large numbers to his message, leaving many in Washington – especially Democrats – worried.West has declared his intention to be the Green Party’s presidential candidate for 2024. Here to speak with us today about Dr. West, the Green Party, and the state of U.S. politics is West’s campaign manager, Dr. Jill Stein.A physician by trade, Stein has been involved in the Green movement for decades. She first ran for office in 2002, attempting to become the governor of her native Massachusetts. In 2012 and 2016, she was selected as the Green Party’s presidential candidate.Democrat-aligned media are already decrying West’s run as a sideshow and as something that will ensure a Republican will be elected in 2024. “The Democrats absolutely do fear [West]. And they should!” Stein told MacLeod, noting that support for the Democratic Party is waning and that there are now as many independent voters as Republicans and Democrats put together:There’s a huge block that doesn’t vote. It’s almost 40%. And who is it? It is communities of color, young people, low-income people, and communities who have basically been thrown under the bus. And that is exactly who Dr. West speaks to. And those are the demographics who are wildly excited about his race. So we could see voting really change.”Support the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.

Guest Bryce Greene, a writer, journalist, activist, and media critic, discusses the lack of objective press coverage surrounding the attack on Nord Stream II. He questions the American position on Russia's involvement and explores other potential culprits. The chapter also delves into the credibility of stories based on anonymous sources and highlights the need for domestic pressure to effect change.

Anti-war activist Medea Benjamin discusses the Biden administration's decision to send cluster munitions to Ukraine and the devastating consequences of these weapons. She also talks about her recent visit to Ukraine and the mentality of many people there. The podcast also covers topics such as US policies in Latin America, Code Pink's mission to promote peace, and the need for US-China cooperation on the climate crisis.

MintPress speaks to James Rehwald. Thanks to his innovative comedy and razor-sharp wit, James has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers across social media platforms, his viral, darkly satirical videos having been seen by tens of millions of people worldwide. James constantly takes aim at the entire power structure to produce explicitly anti-imperialist, radical shorts that cut deep. A frequent target of his is the CIA. "The CIA are basically gangsters for American capitalism,” he told Alan MacLeod, referencing their history of gunrunning and drug smuggling. “I love the new CIA ads. They really lean into identity politics. It feels like satire is dead when I watch their videos. It’s like ‘you too can join the imperialist project, toppling governments!’’ he added.James also spoke about how he got into comedy. Growing up in a conservative household, “The Colbert Report” was a favorite of his. “Just seeing somebody do a satirical mock of the right-wing pundits that I grew up around was genius. But then, of course, it is sad when you see a lot of these guys who don’t point the target at Democrats. There’s no criticism from the left, except from the very obvious ones,” he said.Liberals and liberalism is another primary target of James’ content. But, he said, he treads a fine line, not wishing to be seen as a partisan hack and wanting to explicitly note that both parties are part of the same war machine. “I always feel this pressure when I am making fun of liberals or Democrats in my videos that I gotta, in the same sentence, make fun of Republicans, just to let them know that you are [also] part of this problem!” he said. Referencing the handful of conglomerates that control mainstream media, James notes that, “These are big corporations that have their own interests, as well as advertisers that they need to make sure they’re creating a media environment that is conducive to their profits.” Their whole model is built on ad revenue. They have to maintain relationships, as broadcasters, with advertisers. And the ones that can spend the most are the biggest companies. And you have everybody from fossil fuels, to insurance companies to whatever. The largest corporations keep these channels afloat, and they gotta play a delicate balance and not ruffle their feathers.”Still, that only leaves the lane even more free for comedians like James to make a name for themselves on social media.Support the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.

It ain’t easy being a YouTuber—at least, not a political one. The platform is a giant, Byzantine organization filled with secret rules and algorithms that content creators constantly fall afoul of. This is especially true for radical voices, who are incessantly shadowbanned and suppressed by the Google-owned platform.One person who has broken through the algorithmic barriers better than almost anyone is JT Chapman, host of the Second Thought channel. Chapman makes engaging video essays about some of the most pressing issues of the day, and the quality of his work has drawn 1.6 million subscribers to his main channel. He is also the founder of the YouTube news show First Thought and the co-host of The Deprogram podcast. Today, he discusses his tips for YouTube success, climate change, the economy, and what radicals could learn from Walmart.Having one of the world’s largest corporations (Google) own the global town square poses huge problems for freedom of speech, not least because of the company’s intimate links to the Central Intelligence Agency. Chapman has to tread a careful line on YouTube because of demonetization, age restriction, and other tactics the platform uses to suppress radical voices. All this, he says, “really disincentivizes people like me to produce radical content.” This leads many well-meaning YouTubers to just start chasing the algorithm and become “toxic little clout goblins,” he told “MintCast” host Alan MacLeod.When asked how useful YouTube is for inspiring people and producing societal change, Chapman said,I think investigative journalism that exposes corruption is useful in moving the needle…but on the other hand, I’d say that a large percentage of people doing what I do on platforms like YouTube really aren’t all that useful, unless we are actively driving people to get engaged in organizations and on the ground movements.”On this episode, MacLeod and Chapman also chatted about how we could stop economic recessions entirely if we wanted to, how economies could be planned, and his tips for others wishing to make an impact online.Support the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.

The United States is an empire, even if its citizens don’t all realize it. That is the conclusion from historian and political scientist Aaron Good, who joins Alan MacLeod on this week’s edition of “MintCast.” Today, Good walks us through the history of how the United States came to dominate the world and the organizations it uses – especially the CIA and NATO – in order to enforce its control over the planet.He notes that as Europe and Asia were destroying themselves in conflict, the U.S. gave the powerful business think tank, the Council on Foreign Relations, the task of planning America’s entry into World War II.Enter the war, win it, and establish dominion over global capitalism. They are going to essentially take control of Western imperialism. It’s not stated that way, but that’s what ends up being the consensus of people at the top of the U.S. And that consensus of the U.S. as the global hegemon of capitalism worldwide is the story of our time.”In this, the U.S. has been very effective dominating the planet for the past 75 years, although Good does later note that China’s growing role is loosening the American grip on the world.  Good describes the U.S. as a “paper tiger,” explaining that:In a sense, the U.S. is musclebound to the military, meaning that we may have all these bases and all these billions. But there are two things that the U.S. does not have the ability to do. One is actually using its nuclear arsenal because it would kill everybody. It is a non-starter.”“The other…is fielding a military. When they talk about the U.S. potentially entering a war in Ukraine. Good luck with that!... Who in the world is going to fight in some World War One-style battle?! In Iraq, the U.S. lost fewer than 10,000, and that was very unpopular. By some estimates, 400,000 have died in Ukraine. How could you possibly expect Americans or Europeans to want to die in that way?”Today, Good and MacLeod also chat about the power and purpose of the CIA, how the United States laid the groundwork for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the use and misuse of the term “the deep state.”Aaron Good is a historian and former political organizer. His book, “American Exception: Empire and the Deep State,” was published in 2022. He is also the host of the American Exception podcast, which can be found on most major podcast platforms.Support the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.

Last month, on his way back to Great Britain, MintPress contributor Kit Klarenberg was detained and interrogated. The investigative journalist was met at the airport by six anonymous plainclothes counter-terror officers, who seized his electronic devices, and memory cards and took his fingerprints and DNA. Under Schedule Three, Section Four of the U.K. 2019 Counter-Terrorism and Border Act, they grilled him for over five hours, asking probing questions on everything from his opinions on the current British leadership to Vladimir Putin to 9/11.For Klarenberg, the real reason he was being targeted had nothing to do with terrorism and everything to do with his investigative reporting that has exposed the machinations of the British state. In recent months, this has included revealing that British spies plotted to bomb the Kerch Bridge in Crimea, how the U.K. government is constructing a “secret terror army” in Ukraine, and how British intelligence seemingly worked with state broadcaster, the BBC to smear anti-war academics. While the United Kingdom continues to enjoy a reputation for being an island of relative freedom, prosperity and democracy, Klarenberg challenged this idea, pointing to several Draconian laws passed under the guise of keeping the public safe. As he told Adley: Britain has, for a very long time, had the most sweeping counter-terror laws in the Western world and arguably in the world. They have overturned centuries-old and hard-fought-for rights, protections and freedoms that average citizens enjoy, and have granted police sweeping and disturbingly vague powers.” Klarenberg’s reporting has also uncovered many connections between established corporate media and the U.K. national security state, to the point where it is sometimes hard to ascertain where one ends and the other begins. As he said:For many, the Klarenberg case seems eerily reminiscent of the treatment of another journalist forgotten by his mainstream colleagues: of Julian Assange. Assange remains confined in Belmarsh high-security prison in London while British authorities negotiate with their American counterparts on whether to send him stateside.What is clear is that critical investigative journalism is under attack and that those who value a free press must stand together to fight against it.Support the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.

Amid an ongoing crisis in recruitment, the military has found a novel way of enticing teens to enlist: thirst traps. “MintCast” co-host Alan MacLeod joins Mnar Adley for an in-house edition of the podcast to describe how the military is using young teens’ horniness against them, utilizing an army of attractive women posting sexually suggestive content on social media – in effect, turning a generation of young men from simps into soldiers.Alan MacLeod is senior staff writer and podcast producer for MintPress News. He has worked at the company since 2019. Before joining MintPress, he was an academic and freelance journalist specializing in Latin America and in analyzing media and propaganda. In recent months, he has specialized in analyzing U.S. military propaganda and exploring the national security state’s ties to big social media organizations. His latest investigation, “From Simp to Soldier: How the Military is Using E-Girls To Recruit Gen Z Into Service,” can be read exclusively at MintPress News.Chief amongst these new Army e-girls pushing their followers to join up is 21-year-old Hailey Lujan. In recent months, Lujan’s social media profile has exploded, with the young star now boasting nearly three-quarters of a million followers on TikTok alone. In between posting highly sexually suggestive content and zany memes, however, are subtle and not-so-subtle commands to her army of loyal followers to join up. “Don’t go to college; become a farmer or a soldier instead,” she says in one recent video.The plot thickens, however, when we look into Lujan’s background. She is a member of the Army’s psychological operations division, whose job it is to carry out online propaganda and influence operations. Despite constantly hinting that she is a “psyop” herself, Lujan strenuously denies that the Army controls her content.MacLeod told Adley that it is almost a moot point whether the Army is actively directing Lujan, stating:I think if you were [psychology expert and father of modern propaganda] Edward Bernays, you might say that it doesn’t really matter whether she is or isn’t being supported by the military, because, ultimately, what this is doing is getting people who look at this content – and there are millions of people watching this stuff – to associate lustfulness and horniness with joining the military. It’s literally making them horny for war.”Support the showMintPress News is a fiercely independent. You can support us by becoming a member on Patreon, bookmarking and whitelisting us, and by subscribing to our social media channels, including Twitch, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to MintCast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. Also, be sure to check out the new Behind the Headlines channel on YouTube and subscribe to rapper Lowkey’s new video interview/podcast series, The Watchdog.