The Colin McEnroe Show

Do you talk to yourself? Is it a silent inter-narrative or do you talk aloud? What form of address to you use to yourself? When I'm mad at myself I sometimes address myself as Colin. But, I sense that when LeBron speaks to himself as LeBron, it's more affirming.  I talk aloud quite a bit. A hangover, I think, from growing up as an only child. The Spanish and Argentine novelist Andres Neumann has a new work, "Talking to Ourselves," in which he explores the solitary inner narrative that each of us conducts either silently, aloud, or writing a diary.  Some form of talking to ourselves is universal. You could argue that without it life would be unsupportable, would be lived unconsciously. So, let me ask you again, do you talk to yourself? Yes, you do.  GUESTS: Professor Ethan Kross is Director of the Emotion and Self-Control Laboratory at the University of Michigan Andres Neuman is an author of fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and criticism. He’s the author of several award-winning novels including “Traveler of the Century” and most recently, “Talking To  Ourselves” Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.  Jon Franois produced this show with help from Betsy Kaplan and Chion WolfSupport the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wednesday's insurrection by Trump supporters at the Capitol was the culmination of months of Trump perpetuating the lie that the election was stolen from him. The fire he built might have sputtered without oxygen from Republican colleagues and right-wing media intent on capitalizing on his lies. House Democrats introduced an article of impeachment Monday. It charges President Trump with "inciting violence against the government of the United States," after House Republicans objected to a resolution calling on Vice President Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment. The House will consider the impeachment resolution on the floor if the vice president refuses to intervene "within 24 hours" or if the president refuses to resign. The boundaries between democracy, autocracy, and fascism have blurred in America over the last four years. Is impeachment or the 25th Amendment the best way to put out the fire of Trumpism? We want to hear from you. Call us at 888-720-9677. GUEST: Yascha Mounk - A contributing editor at The Atlantic, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund, and a senior adviser at Protect Democracy; his most recent book is The People Vs. Democracy: Why Our Freedom Is In Danger and How To Save It, and he recently founded the newsletter Persuasion Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last weekend, a little girl asked her father for help opening a can of beans. Rather than help her, Bean Dad left his daughter to figure it out for herself. For six hours (supposedly). And tweeted about it. It was peak internet. Also: This will come as a shock (it probably won't), but Kim Kardashian is rumored to be divorcing Kanye West. Or she's rumored to be about to be divorcing Kanye West. Or she's rumored to be considering divorcing Kanye West. Or something. And finally: Bridgerton is a period drama series on Netflix produced by Shonda Rhimes. It's set in Regency London during "the social season," and you're either super interested in a show with that premise or you aren't. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: The Nirvana of Ben AffleckWe want our stars to be just like us, but ultimately, we want them to be themselves even more Influencers Feuding After Both Naming Their Babies 'Baby' We Need to Bring Back Clowning On Some Guy What's Entering the Public Domain in 2021: The Great Gatsby & Mrs. Dalloway, Music by Irving Berlin & Duke Ellington, Comedies by Buster Keaton, and More 'Calvin and Hobbes' said goodbye 25 years ago. Here's why Bill Watterson's masterwork enchants us still. McDonald's will debut new chicken sandwich Feb. 24New platform will be offered in three versions: crispy, spicy and deluxe What On Earth Happened Here? Grammys Postpone 2021 Ceremony Over COVID-19 ConcernsOrganizers set March 14th as new date, citing "thoughtful conversations with health experts, our host and artists scheduled to appear" Rapper Dr. Dre hospitalized after brain aneurysm"I will be out of the hospital and back home soon," the 55-year-old Beats co-founder posted on Instagram. The Forever Legacy of Alex TrebekThe longtime 'Jeopardy!' host’s final episodes are airing this week. They're a testament to Trebek's profound impact -- on the show he defined, the world it created, and the lives of those who crossed his path. Simon & Schuster Cancels Plans for Senator Hawley's BookThe publisher faced calls to drop the Missouri Republican's upcoming book, "The Tyranny of Big Tech," following criticism of his efforts to overturn the presidential election. Shakespeare, Swing and Louis Armstrong. So What Went Wrong?Three theaters are exploring "Swingin' the Dream," which tanked on Broadway in 1939, but opens a window on the racial and artistic dynamics of its time. Wrestler Mick Foley asks Vince McMahon to boot Donald Trump from the WWE Hall Of Fame GUESTS: Theresa Cramer - A freelance writer and editor and the co-founder of Quiet Corner Communications Rich Hollant - Principal at CO:LAB, founder of Free Center, and commissioner on cultural affairs for the city of Hartford Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Trump has gotten away with bad behavior since long before he was elected to the presidency. When faced with an election loss that he couldn't change, he instigated his followers to fight for him. They obeyed his command. He may not be able to get out of the consequences of the actions they took on his behalf.  We talk about the implications of what happened yesterday. And we take your calls. You can reach us at 888-720-9677. GUEST: Ruth Ben-Ghiat - Professor of history and Italian studies at New York University and a frequent contributor to CNN opinion; her new book is Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.  Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As our show starts today, the U.S. Congress will begin the process of officially tallying the Electoral College votes in the 2020 elections for president and vice president. President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris received 306 votes, President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence received 232 votes, and this should be a pretty pro forma exercise. Should be. Instead, scores of congressional Republicans are expected to object to the certified votes from a number of swing states. The president thinks the vice president has the power to pick and choose which votes to count. The vice president reportedly disagrees. In any case, the objections are expected to gum up the works -- probably for hours. All this while House Democrats consider censuring the president, while there are rumors the president is planning to travel to Scotland on the eve of Inauguration Day, while the countdown to Inauguration Day has ticked down to t-minus just two weeks. Oh. And there were two runoff elections in Georgia yesterday to decide control of the U.S. Senate. In other words, all kinds of craziness going on all at once. And so: We want your calls. Join us during the 1 p.m. ET hour. 888-720-WNPR. 888-720-9677. GUEST: Ross Garber - A lawyer specializing in political investigations and impeachment and a legal analyst for CNN Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nietzsche called Richard Wagner "a volcanic eruption of the total undivided artistic capacity of nature itself," and Thomas Mann said he was "probably the greatest talent in the entire history of art." More than a thousand movies have Wagner on their soundtracks, including classic scenes from Apocalypse Now, The Blues Brothers, Bugs Bunny cartoons, and Charlie Chaplin. But, there's a reason Woody Allen says too much of Wagner's music gives him "the urge to conquer Poland." Wagner is nothing if not a problematic figure. As the new book Wagnerism: Art and Politics in the Shadow of Music puts it, "An artist who might have rivaled Shakespeare in universal reach is undone by an ideology of hate." This hour, a look at Wagnerism with New Yorker music critic Alex Ross. GUESTS: Steve Metcalf - Director emeritus of the University of Hartford's Presidents' College Alex Ross - Music critic at The New Yorker and the author of Wagnerism: Art and Politics in the Shadow of Music Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired September 30, 2020.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Trump kept Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on the phone for an hour Saturday, using a combination of cajoling, lies, and threats to encourage him to “find” enough votes to overturn the election.   All 10 living former defense secretaries stressed in an op-ed for the Washington Post published yesterday that: “The time for questioning the results has passed; the time for the formal counting of the electoral college votes, as prescribed in the Constitution and statute, has arrived.” Yet, eleven Republican senators and senators-elect and 140 House Republicans plan to vote against the joint session of Congress scheduled for Wednesday where President-elect Joe Biden’s victory is expected to be certified. Has the Republican Party lost its soul?  Lastly, how will the political power dynamics in Washington play out in 2021? GUESTS: Peter Wehner is a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and a contributing writer at The Atlantic and The New York Times. He’s the author of The Death of Politics: How to Heal Our Frayed Republic After Trump. He served in the three previous Republican Administrations.  John Harris is the co-founder of Politico and the author of The Survivor: Bill Clinton in the White House. He writes the Altitude column for Politico. Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To round out the year, we round up the best jazz of the year. We've done this every year for at least the last seven years. Here are our 2020 picks: "Kurinji" by Jen Allen featuring Kris Allen, Marty Jaffe, and Kush Abadey, from Sifting Grace "The Sidewinder" by Artemis, from Artemis "Dream Without Me" by Noah Baerman & Friends, from Love Right "Inner Child" by Chris Dingman featuring Linda May Han Oh and Tim Keiper, from Embrace "The Well" by Endless Field, from Alive in the Wilderness "AKA Reggie" by Wayne Escoffery, from The Humble Warrior "I Can't Remember Love" by Anna Hauss, Robert Wienröder & William Horberg, from Music from the Netflix Limited Series The Queen's Gambit "La Mesha" by Jimmy Heath featuring Wynton Marsalis, from Love Letter "Spiral" by Dan Liparini, from Tessellations "Data Lords" by Maria Schneider Orchestra, from Data Lords "More?" by Joel Ross, from Who Are You? "Piggy Bank for Charity" by Sax & Taps, from Intersplosion! (Live at Dizzy’s Club) GUESTS: Jen Allen - A pianist, composer, arranger, and educator; her new album is Sifting Grace Noah Baerman - A pianist, composer, and educator; his new album is Love Right Gene Seymour - A film, television, and music critic Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2020 was … not great. But, from a pop culture point of view, it wasn't so bad either. I mean, we got the Hamilton movie, The Queen's Gambit, the final season of Schitt's Creek, David Byrne's American Utopia, the Borat sequel, "WAP," I May Destroy You, Tiger King, two new Taylor Swift albums, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom… The list goes on. This hour, The Nose looks back at the year in pop culture that was 2020. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: French designer Pierre Cardin, licensing pioneer, dies at 98 What the Hole Is Going On?The very real, totally bizarre bucatini shortage of 2020. This Lawsuit Goes to 11The creators of This is Spinal Tap, the most influential mockumentary ever made, have been paid almost nothing. The rock gods are angry. Wait, What's Going on With Hilaria Baldwin? The 16 Best Ambient Albums of 2020Whether offering solace, transport, or simple numbness, these albums perfectly suited a year of lockdown. The 15 Best Crime Movies of 2020Heists, embezzlement attempts, and temporally-warped espionage will help end the year on a good note. The 39 Most Anticipated Movies of 2021 GUESTS: Rebecca Castellani - Handles social media marketing and event planning for Quiet Corner Communications Taneisha Duggan - Artistic producer at TheaterWorks Sam Hadelman - Host of The Sam Hadelman Show at Radio Free Brooklyn Irene Papoulis - Teaches writing at Trinity College Mercy Quaye- Founder and principal consultant for The Narrative Project and a columnist with Hearst Connecticut Media Group Bill Yousman - Professor of Media Studies at Sacred Heart University Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We tend not to think much about that pat of butter we put on our morning toast, including how the store-bought sweet cream butter we're eating likely pales in comparison to the rich, nutty flavor of  the cultured butter not found in many stores. Nor, do we think about butter sculpture, butter bogs, pleasure dairies, or the dairymaids, those once respected and well-paid artisans and economic powerhouses of our nations earliest days.  We definitely don't think about the nationwide 'war' between butter-loving dairy farmers and the margarine industry. It led to smear campaigns, state laws against margarine, and a ruling by the Supreme Court that led to pink margarine. You may not even know it's okay to eat butter again after decades of being told to stay away from the death-inducing fats found in butter. So, go ahead and eat that toast with butter.  Today, a show about butter.  GUESTS: Elaine Khosrova - Author of Butter: A Rich History, a former pastry student at Culinary Institute of America and a former test kitchen editor at Country Living magazine Doug Moe - Wisconsin-based author and journalist who has written for newspapers and magazines for almost 40 years Adeline Druart - President of Vermont Creamery. Adeline brings her knowledge of butter-making to Vermont from her home country of France You can join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.