The Colin McEnroe Show

A lot of people are wondering if it's time to look at "court packing," and other court reforms, to address judiciary dysfunction that we can see playing out during this election and in the confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett.  Look at what's happening with voting rights. The Supreme Court had been asked to intervene in several state decisions that would allow ballots postmarked by Election Day to be accepted in the first days after the election due to the high volume of mail-in ballots cast during a pandemic.  On Tuesday, the Supreme Court ruled that Wisconsin mail-in ballots could not be accepted after Election Day. On Wednesday, they refused to hear a fast-tracked plea from Pennsylvania Republicans looking to block a three-day extension, and refused to block rulings allowing North Carolina to extend their deadlines.  In addition, voter suppression or intimidation tactics are happening in states like Nevada, Texas, and Michigan. And one week before the election, the mail is still slow.  Lastly, states led primarily by Republicans, have been trying to pack their state supreme courts for a decade, mostly for partisan advantage.   Do we need a new amendment to the Constitution that would protect against a minority no longer accountable to the people they serve? GUESTS:  Marin K Levy is a professor of law at Duke University and author of "Packing and Unpacking State Courts," published in the William & Mary Law Review earlier this year. (@marinklevy) Ian Millhiser is a senior correspondent at Vox, where he focuses on the Supreme Court and the Constitution. He’s the author of Injustices: The Supreme Court's History of Comforting the Comfortable and Afflicting the Afflicted. (@imillhiser) Julie Suk is a Florence Rogatz Visiting Professor of Law at Yale Law School and Professor of Sociology, Political Science, and Liberal Studies at The Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Her new book is We the Women: The Unstoppable Mothers of the Equal Rights Amendment (@JulieCSuk) Join the conversation on Facebook and TwitterSupport the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's our annual Halloween special! For this year, the script kind of wrote itself. We look at the way our current, actual horror is likely to affect our future fictional horror through the lens of the genre's past distinct historical eras. Plus: A new study that seems to say that horror fans were better prepared for the pandemic than the wimpy rest of us were. And: Every year on this show, for no particular reason, we look specifically at some classic horror movie that's celebrating its 40th anniversary. Two years ago, it was Halloween. Last year, it was Alien. This year, it's Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. And finally: The always-spooky staff endorsements. Note: This podcast version of the show is nearly four full minutes longer than the show as it's airing on WNPR. We couldn't fit all the good stuff into the constraints of radio, so we present to you here the show as we really wanted to make it. GUESTS: Carmen Baskauf - A producer for Where We Live on Connecticut Public Radio James Hanley - Co-founder of Cinestudio at Trinity College Betsy Kaplan - Our senior producer Ryan Caron King - Visuals journalist for Connecticut Public Megan McCluskey - A reporter for Time magazine Carlos Mejia - Digital audience manager for Connecticut Public David Mikics - The author of Stanley Kubrick: American Filmmaker Ali Oshinskie - A reporter covering the Naugatuck River Valley for Connecticut Public Radio Coltan Scrivner - A PhD candidate in the Department of Comparative Human Development at The University of Chicago Catie Talarski - Senior director of storytelling and radio programming for Connecticut Public 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 wake up to coffee from a pod, listen to music through our EarPods from our iPods, drive our Smart cars and Fiats and other increasingly pod-shaped vehicles, wash our clothes using Tide pods, and while we wait for the clothes to dry, we listen to our favorite podcast through our AirPods from our HomePod. Sound about right? What is it about pods that we're so drawn to? And why do an increasing number of our products and services all feature the word "pod" in their name? Is it possible the pod's slick, liminal aesthetic or the allure of its Pandorian promise holds some sway over our subconscious? Might Freud have something to say about its curvature or its role in nature as a place of transformation, emergence, and ultimately independence? Perhaps it's the pod's minimalism and symmetry which appeal to us as we negotiate an increasingly chaotic world. Or is it simply an efficient design suited to meet the needs of our busy lives? This hour, we speak with experts and discuss the mystery of the pod in consumer- and pop-culture. We'll also look back over recent history and explore the possibility that we are, and always have been, pod people! GUESTS: Blanka Domagalska - Lecturer at Otis College of Art and Design teaching courses on product design with expertise in art history, media and cultural theory, philosophy, and aesthetic liminality Elvina Beck - Co-founder and CEO of Podshare Kotaro Aoki - Former philosophy major at Wesleyan University Jim Knipfel - A novelist and memoirist; he wrote the feature "The Legacy of Invasion of the Body Snatchers" for Den of Geek Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired December 26, 2019.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Trump Administration continues to downplay the pandemic, Vice-President Mike Pence campaigns even as staff members in his inner circle test positive for SARS-CoV-2, and Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union," that the Administration is no longer going to control the pandemic. Some Americans are beginning to fear a dark post-election America if the other side wins. Fear of the "other" candidate winning is felt by Biden and Trump supporters. Americans usually fear foreign threats, not each other. Does the pandemic have us on edge or is something deeper going on in America? Also this hour: The Trump Administration is counting on a vaccine by the end of the year. But approval of a vaccine may signal the beginning of a long year tracking the safety of potentially multiple vaccines in the absence of a vaccine safety office dedicated solely to leading the effort.  GUESTS:  Yascha Mounk is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Persuasion, an associate Professor of the Practice of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University, and a contributing editor at The Atlantic. His latest book is "The People Vs. Democracy: Why Our Freedom Is In Danger and How To Save It." @yascha_mounk   Carl Zimmer is the author of thirteen books about science. His next book, “Life’s Edge: The Search For What It Means To Be Alive,” will be published in March 2021. He writes the "Matter" column for The New York Times, and is an adjunct professor at Yale. (@carlzimmer) Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It has come to The Nose's attention that you can rent an entire movie theater out for just $99 and have yourself a slightly less pandemic-panicky moviegoing experience. Which got us thinking about, just, going to the movies. Remember going to the movies? And then: "Which of the Hollywood Chrises is the worst Hollywood Chris?" is a question the internet has been grappling with recently. As with all things internet, there's now a bit of a controversy. And: David Byrne's American Utopia is Spike Lee's HBO movie version of Byrne's American Utopia Broadway show, which is a theater version of Byrne's American Utopia tour, which Byrne did in support of his album, American Utopia. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: A Disturbing Twinkie That Has, So Far, Defied Science Alan Arkin on Hollywood success: 'I was miserable pretty much all of the time'In his mid-30s, the actor was living the dream, but was far from happy. As he publishes his memoir Out of My Mind, he talks about turning his life around -- and the disgraced guru he pinned his hopes on Last Week Tonight - The John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant is Here! Mike 'Doc' Emrick retiring from legendary NHL broadcasting career Actor Jeff Bridges Tweets That He Has Been Diagnosed With Lymphoma The Pandemic Lessons From MLB's Surprisingly Successful Season COVID-19 Pauses Production On Joe Rogan's Podcast The Outfield Frontman Tony Lewis Dead at 62 Tom Lehrer Is Releasing His Lyrics and Music Into the Public Domain Apple Launches 'Apple Music TV,' a 24-Hour Music Video Livestream Keith Jarrett Confronts a Future Without the PianoThe pathbreaking musician reveals the health issues that make it unlikely he will ever again perform in public. 'It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown' won't air on ABC this year, moves to Apple TV+The popular Halloween special, which premiered on CBS in 1966, will instead air on demand on AppleTV+ for free from Oct. 30-Nov. 1. NASA To Make Major Announcement Of 'Exciting News' About The MoonFlying observatory that made new discovery is able to 'pick up phenomenon impossible to see with visible light', space agency notes The 50 Best Movie and TV Show Twists of All TimeFrom 'Fight Club' to 'Game of Thrones,' from 'The Sixth Sense' to 'Lost,' nothing hits quite as hard as a shocking reveal Rethinking Appropriation and Wokeness in Pop MusicOver the last decade, the language and aesthetics of social justice have become the social currency of the music industry (and pop culture at large), ultimately yielding the myth that representation solves everything. This is one story of how we got there, and where we carefully go from here. Artist In Residence Creates Portraits Of Reform At The District Attorney's Office AOC's debut Twitch stream is one of the biggest everAnd she's genuinely pretty good at Among Us Scientists have found a rare half-male, half-female songbird GUESTS: Taneisha Duggan - Producing associate at TheaterWorks Bill Yousman - Professor of media studies at Sacred Heart University Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Eugene Amatruda contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Secession is in the air. Britain withdrew from the European Union, Scotland wants out of the U.K., Catalonia from Spain, and, wait for it, California from the U.S. Yes, the days of our country's states being united may soon come to an end. In fact, not only is California home to active secessionist and separatist movements, but so are Texas, Washington, Hawaii, Alaska, Vermont, and several other states. And with the degree to which our nation seems divided, one wonders if this isn't long overdue. This hour, we speak with legal experts and advocates about the growing calls for secession both here and abroad. Would nations be better off if they allowed their citizens to secede, forming smaller, more like-minded sovereign territories? Would the citizens be better off? And, to be quite frank, would any of this even be legal? GUESTS: Francis H. Buckley - Foundation professor at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University, senior editor at The American Spectator, and the author of American Secession: The Looming Threat of a National Breakup Marcus Ruiz Evans - Co-founder of the Yes California movement and author of California's Next Century Erica Frankenberg - Professor of education and demography in the College of Education at Penn State University and co-author of several books including Educational Delusions?: Why Choice Can Deepen Inequality and How to Make Schools Fair Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired February 27, 2020.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the 1990's, the Southport Sockmen, otherwise known as Steven Bain and Steven Gawthrop, paid drunk people in Liverpool bars and clubs to give them the socks they were wearing. The Sockmen took photos of each “donor,” before placing each sock and its matching donor photo in a plastic bag. The police found 4,000 pairs of socks piled 18 inches deep when they arrived to arrest the pair for "acts of gross indecency." The socks were also hanging from the furniture and lampshades - and some were in the microwave.  Most of us put on a pair of clean socks every morning. Beyond what color and style we choose, we don't give much thought to the history, craft, or fashion of socks. Nor do we think about the intimacy of the sock. Almost half of sexual fetishes are for feet, shoes, or socks. This seemingly boring object that we wear on our feet every day, is really quite interesting. GUESTS: Kim Adrian is the author of the memoir 'The Twenty-Seventh Letter of the Alphabet.' Her most recent book, 'Dear Knausgaard,' was published in September. She teaches at Grub Street in downtown Boston. Kara Mavros is a writer based in New York. Chloe Bryan is the deputy editor for Mashable’s shopping section, covering tech and lifestyle products. Previously, she was a culture reporter for Mashable. (@chloebryan) Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our ancestors viewed sleep as a highly sensual and transcendent experience. Today, about a third of adults have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep or feeling rested. We're becoming a nation of insomniacs. We live in what Rubin Naiman calls, a "wake-centric era,” where sleeping and dreaming are viewed as less important than being awake and on the go. It's hard to come down from the hyperaroused state we whip ourselves into by the end of a day.  It's not surprising that we can't sleep.  Insomnia can be miserable when all we want to do is sleep. But it's more a human condition than a medical condition to be solved by sleeping pills and tech gadgets.  Plus, insomnia can have its upside. Our minds can be more open to insights and new possibilities in the dark quiet of night when our thoughts can wander to unknown places that the conscious mind can’t see.  GUESTS:  Marina Benjamin is a writer and Senior Editor at Aeon magazine. She’s written five books. Her latest memoir is Insomnia. She’s also the author of The Middlepause and Garden Among Fires: A Lockdown Anthology. (@marinab52) Rubin Naiman is a psychologist, clinical assistant professor of medicine and the sleep and dream specialist at the University of Arizona Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine (@drnaiman) Charlotte Jee is a writer and reporter for MIT Technology Review, where she also writes The Download newsletter (@charlottejee) Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Donald Trump asked journalist Tony Schwartz to ghostwrite his memoir, "The Art of the Deal," because Trump liked the unflattering story Schwartz wrote for New York magazine, about Trump's effort to evict rent-controlled tenants from his Manhattan apartment building. Schwartz agreed and has been atoning for that decision ever since.  Also this hour: The Covid Tracking Project shows the US may be entering a third surge of coronavirus infections that is more widespread than the regional spikes we saw last spring and summer. We still don't have a national plan to manage it and Trump officials continue to downplay the risk and spread misinformation about herd immunity.   GUESTS: Tony Schwartz is a journalist and political commentator. His most recent book is Dealing with the Devil: My Mother, Trump, and Me. He’s also the ghostwriter for Donald Trump’s 1987 memoir, The Art of the Deal. He’s the founder and CEO of The Energy Project (@tonyschwartz) Jeremy Konyndyk is a senior policy fellow and pandemic preparedness expert at the Center for Global Development. He was the director of USAID’s Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance 2013-2016. (@JeremyKonyndyk) Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bill Burr hosted Saturday Night Live last weekend, and his monologue -- which included bits about wearing masks, cancel culture, white women in the "woke" movement, Pride Month, and more -- has drawn some criticism. It has The Nose thinking about "How President Trump Ruined Political Comedy." And: The West Wing ran for seven seasons and 156 episodes and ended more than 14 years ago. A new reunion special debuted yesterday, and it's got The Nose wondering how the classic show -- with its Capraesque, idealized vision of American politics -- plays against our present reality. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: Joe Morgan, driving force of Big Red Machine, dies at 77 NY Philharmonic cancels entire concert season for the first time in its 178-year history 20 Notable UConn Alumni Who Changed the World Kate McKinnon breaks character, addresses viewers during 'SNL': 'Such a crazy time'The fourth-wall busting moment summed up this year pretty well. Woman says Southwest wouldn't let her on plane due to 'inappropriate' outfitKayla Eubanks said Southwest Airlines employees told her that she needed to wear a shirt over her outfit in order to board one of their planes. Inside Gravity's daring mission to make jetpacks a realityInventors like Richard Browning have been trying to build jetpacks for a century. Now they're here, what do we do with them? Dying swan or lame duck? Why 'Fatima' the ballerina's next job was tripping up the governmentA new advert suggesting a ballerina retrain for a job in 'cyber' has faced a backlash. What were they thinking? The rise and fall and rise of Kevin Smith's MallratsThe writer-director recalls making his ribald comedy, whose cast includes Jeremy London, Jason Lee, Shannen Doherty, Claire Forlani, and Ben Affleck. Cardi B Breaks Her Silence After Accidentally Posting Private Pic: 'Lord,Why Did You Make Me So Stupid?' 'Jagged Little Pill' leads Tony Awards nominations with 15 J.J. Abrams, Ava DuVernay, Mariska Hargitay Among 100 Top Hollywood Players Protesting NBC's Trump Town Hall The DC Universe is taking a giant leap into the futureDC Comics' next event, Future State, launches in January Tab, Coca-Cola's Diet-Soda Pioneer and a '70s Icon, Is Going AwayThe beverage maker had held on to the fading brand to appease its loyal fan base, but the coronavirus pandemic prompted a culling of the company's products GUESTS: Rebecca Castellani - Handles social media marketing and event planning for Quiet Corner Communications Theresa Cramer - A freelance writer and editor and the co-founder of Quiet Corner Communications 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.