

Escape From Plan A
Escape From Plan A
Escape From Plan A is an ongoing discussion of life and politics in America from the perspective of Asian people living here.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 14, 2023 • 1h 19min
Ep. 468: The Menswear Guy and Self-Flagellating Asians (ft. Chong, Katrina, and Hen Z)
Teen joins Chong, Katrina and Hen to give our final answers on self-flagellating Asian people who blame Asians for anything and everything - a phenomenon the four of us have spent way too much of life pondering - just so that you the listener don't have to waste a minute more of your life wondering if these political fartguns are loaded with any actual ammunition. The answer, dear friends, is no.
(Sorry for the delay in episodes, it's late summer and we're catching up on fun and recreation after a very busy July)
THEME MUSIC:
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

Jul 31, 2023 • 1h 12min
Ep 467: "I'm Not An Activist" (ft. Dan Chen and Ien Chi)
On the night before the premiere of their short documentary I'm Not An Activist, which follows Dragon Combat Club—a grassroots self-defense organization in NYC, director Dan Chen and producer/editor Ien Chi joined Teen and Chris for an in-person podcast to discuss their reasons for making the documentary and what they hope to accomplish with it.
THEME MUSIC:
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

Jul 24, 2023 • 1h 6min
Ep. 465: Asian American Republican Conservatism (ft. Kenny Xu) Pt. 1
Part One of Two
Jess and Teen sit down with returning guest Kenny Xu ("An Inconvenient Minority") to talk about SFFA's victory in the Supreme Court against Harvard, the state of education in America, and being an Asian American Republican.
Please join us on Patreon to access Part 2: www.patreon.com/planamag
TWITTER:
Kenny (@kennymxu)
THEME MUSIC:
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

Jul 11, 2023 • 1h 11min
Ep. 463: The Sheining (ft. John Pang) Pt. 1
Jess and Teen talk with guest John Pang about the Western tendency to devalue Asian labor -- not just the laborer, but also Asian labor itself and its presumed lack of human qualities -- through the lens of Shein. Shein has pushed selection to a maximum, and price to a new rock bottom, inviting criticisms of labor exploitation in the name of profit. But is that really the whole story?
Please join us on Patreon to access Part 2: www.patreon.com/planamag
REFERENCED RESOURCES
"How the US Lost Out on iPhone Work" https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/business/apple-america-and-a-squeezed-middle-class.html
"A bipartisan group of lawmakers urged the SEC to crack down on Chinese e-commerce giant Shein" https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/01/shein-china-congress-forced-labor-inquiry.html
"Being Like Them: Cultural Exchange As Theft and Honor" https://planamag.com/being-like-them-cultural-exchange-as-theft-and-honor/
"The Wonderful World of Chinese Hi Fi" https://www.theverge.com/2019/11/7/20943377/chinese-hi-fi-audio-chifi-fiio-hifiman-tin-audio
"Made In China, So What?" https://youtu.be/b4c9NbwUz5Q?t=104
THEME MUSIC:
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

Jul 4, 2023 • 1h 16min
Ep. 461: A Non-Vibes, Legally-Based Discussion of Affirmative Action's End (Pt. 1)
Part 1 of 2
Jess, Chris and Teen discuss the Supreme Court opinions on the SFFA lawsuits over race-conscious admissions systems, and provide commentary on the reactions from the Professional Asian Person industrial complex.
Please join us on Patreon to access Part 2: www.patreon.com/planamag
REFERENCED RESOURCES
"Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College" https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/22pdf/20-1199_l6gn.pdf
(By Tyler Austin Harper) "I Teach at an Elite College. Here’s a Look Inside the Racial Gaming of Admissions." https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/29/opinion/college-admissions-affirmative-action.html?searchResultPosition=36
(By Sarah Mervosh and Troy Closson) "The ‘Unseen’ Students in the Affirmative Action Debate" https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/01/us/affirmative-action-students.html?searchResultPosition=18
(By Jay Caspian Kang) "Why the Champions of Affirmative Action Had to Leave Asian Americans Behind" https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/why-the-champions-of-affirmative-action-had-to-leave-asian-americans-behind
(By Jeanne Suk-Gersen) "The Secret Joke at the Heart of the Harvard Affirmative-Action Case" https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/the-secret-joke-at-the-heart-of-the-harvard-affirmative-action-case
(By Janelle Wong and Viet Thanh Nguyen) "Affirmative action isn’t hurting Asian Americans. Here’s why that myth survives" https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2023-06-14/affirmative-action-supreme-court-harvard-case-asian-americans
(By Bertrand Cooper) "The Failure of Affirmative Action" https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/06/failure-affirmative-action/674439/
(by Chris Jesu Lee) "Don't Trust An Asian American Who Went To Harvard Who Defends Harvard" https://salieriredemption.substack.com/p/dont-trust-an-asian-american-who
THEME MUSIC:
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

Jun 22, 2023 • 1h 6min
Ep. 459: Real Estate and Wealthy People Mindsets (ft. Mike and Steve) Pt. 1
Part 1 of 2
Mike, Steve and Teen unwind after a busy-ish summer Wednesday to talk about rich guys stuck in an ocean capsule, real estate prices, and the mindsets people have around money, status and privilege.
Please join us on Patreon to access Part 2: www.patreon.com/planamag
THEME MUSIC:
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

Jun 13, 2023 • 1h 59min
Ep. 458: The Little Mermaid and Box Office Politics (ft. Trevor Beaulieu)
Jess and Chris are joined by Trevor Beaulieu (from Champagne Sharks) to talk about all the drama surrounding The Little Mermaid's box office, including blaming Asians as racists for not seeing the movie enough, the "woke" power struggle going on in Hollywood, and why corporations make us believe we need to support their movies to feel good about ourselves.
Please join us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/planamag
REFERENCED RESOURCES:
The Man Reimagining Disney Classics for Today’s World | NY Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/04/business/media/disney-sean-bailey-live-action.html
THEME MUSIC:
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

Jun 8, 2023 • 1h 19min
Ep. 456: Should Asian Americans Leave America For Asia? (Part 1)
Jess and Teen talk about the growing phenomenon of Asian Americans saying goodbye to America and expatriating to Asia due to a number of factors in America all pointing to general social decline. How serious is this decline and is leaving America a good idea at this point?
Join us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/planamag
Check out the new Plan A merchandise shop: planamag.com/shop/
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

May 29, 2023 • 3h 5min
Ep. 454: UFOs, Prehistoric Civilizations, and Fringe Beliefs
Adam, Mike and Teen spend the Friday before the Memorial Day long weekend talking about their fringe beliefs and why it's important to have some.
00:00:00 Intro
00:04:40 Prehistoric civilizations
00:11:08 Tic-Tac UFO
00:18:55 Phoenix Lights
00:28:00 Direct contact events
00:41:35 Panspermia origin of life
00:52:50 Prevalence of pyramids
01:21:48 Belief vs Proof
01:36:10 Appreciating kooks
01:39:35 Avi Loeb and Oumuamua
02:00:40 Government recovery of crashed UFOs
02:22:56 A.I. weirdness and Geoffrey Hinton
02:44:50 Conscious v. unconscious intelligence
02:47:40 Psychedelic drugs
Join us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/planamag
Check out the new Plan A merchandise shop: planamag.com/shop/
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)

May 22, 2023 • 1h 18min
Ep. 453: Filip Has A Baby
In this episode, Filip talks about being a dad to a newborn baby, and Adam and Teen shoot the shit and ask him questions. It's a good time.
Join us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/planamag
Check out the new Plan A merchandise shop: planamag.com/shop/
EFPA Theme:
"Escape From Plan A" by Ciel (@aerialist)


