Last Born In The Wilderness

In this episode, I speak with eco-radical philosopher, writer, and poet Julian Langer.  We begin this discussion by addressing Julian's recent essay The Whole is Less than the Sum of its Parts, in which he redefines what we commonly understand "collectivism" and "individualism" to be. Also, we address themes addressed in some of his other writings, including his thoughts on solitude in A Thought On Solitude, as well as his recent reviews of the journal Against Green Reactionaries and my new book We Live in the Orbit of Beings Greater Than Us. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/julian-langer-2 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this interview, I speak with political commentator Jared Yates Sexton, author of the upcoming book American Rule: How A Nation Conquered The World But Failed Its People. As I remark on in this discussion, I first became aware of Jared and his work from his analysis of the QAnon conspiracy theory. I ask him to expound on the tenets of this alarmingly popular and increasingly pervasive belief system (which we characterize as having the attributes of a pseudo-religious cult), its roots on the anonymous online forum 4chan, as well as the impacts this reality-bending narrative is having on contemporary politics in the United States. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/jared-yates-sexton // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this episode, I speak with anti-racist and environmental activist Hilary Moore, author of Burning Earth, Changing Europe: How the Racist Right Exploits the Climate Crisis–And What We Can Do About It, and co-author of No Fascist USA! The John Brown Anti-Klan Committee and Lessons for Today’s Movements. In her booklet Burning Earth, Changing Europe, Hilary examines how right wing ideology, in its various forms, reacts to, co-opts, and inserts its agendas into the discourse and activism surrounding climate change and environmentalism at large. As she points to in this interview:  1. Climate change is not an inherently progressive issue. 2. How you think and talk about climate change may prop up racist right-wing positions. 3. The far right does not need to govern to influence. With these truths in mind, Hilary points to how social justice itself must be central to any environmental and climate movement. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/hilary-moore // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this interview, I speak with journalist and author Vincent Bevins, author of The Jakarta Method: Washington’s Anticommunist Crusade and the Mass Murder Program That Shaped Our World. The events that have shaped our world, particularly in the post-Cold War era, are often unexamined and under-appreciated. This is especially true in a time of rising right wing populism and reactionary violence in nations around the globe, with the rise of such far-right leaders as Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil and Donald Trump in the United States, as well as the growing concentration of wealth by the global capitalist elite, facilitated by decades of neoliberal economic policies and austerity. How did we get to this point? // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/vincent-bevins // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this episode, I speak with Bayo Akomolafe, author of These Wilds Beyond Our Fences. We begin by discussing Bayo's recent essay, I, Coronavirus. Mother. Monster. Activist. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/bayo-akomolafe-3 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this episode, I speak with dear friend, healer, and counselor Barbara Cecil. This is a griefful time. We are witnessing systems fail and a deep fracturing of our collective shared experience of reality, particularly for those embedded within the dominant culture of North America, to which many of us are tied to. More and more, time seems to be quickening and grinding to a stuttering halt, all at once. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/barbara-cecil // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this episode, I speak with feminist writer and teacher Silvia Federici. We discuss the themes of her new book, Beyond the Periphery of the Skin: Rethinking, Remaking, and Reclaiming the Body in Contemporary Capitalism, published through PM Press.  The body—our sense of “self” in relation to others—has been restricted, reduced, and mutilated under Capitalism and the impositions of the State. This is particularly true with women, as Federici has thoroughly examined throughout her decades of research, in particular with her seminal work Caliban and the Witch, which lucidly explores the brutal transformation European populations were forced to endure as these societies began to transition to the social order of Capitalism, now global in scope and reach. Occurring over centuries, this transition—with the enclosure of the Commons and the femicidal witch hunts—dramatically restricted of the sovereignty of the peasant class and brutalized the bodies of women. This process was fundamental in the constriction of the individual and its relations “beyond the periphery of the skin,” the consequences of which we can see up to the present moment. // Episode notes + transcripts: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/silvia-federici-2 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this episode, I speak with award-winning journalist and author Dahr Jamail.  I can imagine most of you listening to this episode will recognize what Dahr and I both feel and know in this time we are in. Many of us are beginning to come to terms with the reality we have been dealt — a global predicament that includes a pandemic that won’t soon leave us, economic crisis and social unrest that will only worsen as the months pass on, and nonlinear climate disruption that continues to rear its ugly head, portending horrors that are only beginning to make themselves a reality. And we know, from these trends, this breakdown will only accelerate as the months and years pass. As Dahr states, citing his time in Iraq, “today is better than tomorrow.” // Episode notes + transcript: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/dahr-jamail-5 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this interview, I speak with meteorologist and geoscientist Nicholas Humphrey.  As the nations of the world continue to confront the challenges of a global pandemic, and as the United States experiences the worst economic crisis in its history and convulses in the wake of accelerated social breakdown and civil unrest, the global climate crisis continues unabated. I ask Nicholas to provide his insights into the profound climate shifts the Arctic region has experienced in the past several months (since the recording of this interview, a region in Siberia recorded a record-breaking temperature of 100.4°F/38°C). (https://lat.ms/2VnnYsG) This includes the impact these changes are having on the ocean currents and atmospheric jet streams—amplifying the severity of storms and nonlinear weather events around the globe, as well as triggering more tipping points and feedback loops in the climate system. We also examine how thawing permafrost in the Arctic is leading to infrastructural collapse, coastline erosion, and methane release, with the notable case of 21,000 tons of oil spilling into the Ambarnaya River in Siberia on May 29th, a potent example of the environmental consequences of this trend. (https://bit.ly/2VmnOlj) We then tie the roots of this particular crisis with the history of racial terror and economic exploitation inherent in a global capitalist system, reflective of the ecocidal relationship the dominant culture has with the natural world at large. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/nicholas-humphrey-2 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this episode, I speak with journalist and activist Arun Gupta. We discuss several of his recent articles published at The Raw Story, addressing the rise of far-right violence by counter-protesters and agitators at dozens of Black Lives Matter protests over the past several weeks. In particular, we discuss what he addresses in his piece, Trump supporters are attacking and killing Black Lives Matter protesters — and getting away with it. After describing the severity of these acts of terror and the conditions that have given rise to them, Arun discusses the labor conditions of migrant farmworkers in the U.S. Along with living under constant threat of detainment and deportation by agents of the Department of Homeland Security, farmworkers and meatpacking plant workers are extremely vulnerable to infection from Covid-19. Arun discusses these exploitive conditions in detail, and how the explosion of infections is impacting food production and distribution across the nation. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/arun-gupta // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast