Last Born In The Wilderness

I speak with author, journalist, and political researcher Shane Burley. We discuss the recent mass shooting in Christchurch, New Zealand, in which an Australian white supremacist targeted Muslim worshipers at two separate mosques, killing 50 people—the largest in the nation’s history. We place this event within Shane’s larger analysis of far-right ideology and insurgency, which has been thoroughly examined in Shane’s journalism on the subject, as well as in previous interviews I have had with him. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/shane-burley-3 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

I speak with sociologist Milton Bennett, director of the Intercultural Development Research Institute and the creator of the Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (also known as the “Bennett Scale”). I was introduced to Milton and his work by journalist Dahr Jamail, after a private discussion Dahr and I had about the dynamics of cults and "culting" within certain political groups, in particular between President Donald Trump and his base of supporters, as explored in Dahr's interview with Milton in the Truthout article, Is There a Cult of Trump? // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/milton-bennett // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

I speak with Bayo Akomolafe—lecturer, activist, and the author of These Wilds Beyond our Fences: Letters to my Daughter on Humanity’s Search for Home. We pick up where we left off from when we last spoke over one year ago, and get into some of the overlying (and underlying) themes of his work, which includes a radical reshaping of the understandable, but often unexamined, sense of urgency we feel in a time of accelerating change and ecological collapse as we fully enter into the Anthropocene, "the human epoch." // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/bayo-akomolafe-2 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

I speak with economist and cryptocurrency/blockchain specialist Alex de Vries. We discuss his research into the energy consumptive cryptocurrency Bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency in the world at the present moment. I ask Alex to elaborate on how Bitcoin and blockchain works (in particular how Bitcoin “mining” and transactions work), Alex's research into the disturbing amounts of energy required to keep Bitcoin functioning and growing, Bitcoin's growing environmental footprint, as well as what these trends mean for the future for Bitcoin and decentralized cryptocurrencies more generally. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/alex-de-vries // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

Alexander Koch joined me to discuss the groundbreaking new scientific paper, Earth system impacts of the European arrival and Great Dying in the Americas after 1492, which he is a lead author of. As the title suggests, the research indicates that dramatic global climatological changes resulted from Indigenous peoples first contact with Europeans in the Americas in 1492—an event that resulted in massive population decline across the continents. Koch and his colleagues’ research has been making the rounds in the media, getting extensive coverage at The Guardian, BBC, The Hill, and numerous other outlets. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/alexander-koch // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

I speak with Clare Farrell, co-founder and spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion (XR), a nonviolent international social movement that aims to drive radical change to minimize species extinction and avert climate breakdown. This discussion includes an overview of the principles and the proposed demands of this movement, the global implications of climate change and environmental disintegration and how it informs the activism of those involved in the movement, and how XR engages in ground-level organizing in communities across the United Kingdom and internationally as well. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/clare-farrell // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In my second joint interview with RS, we speak with Shane Burley​, journalist and author of Fascism Today: What It Is and How To End It. Our discussion covers numerous topics, including the "Intellectual Dark Web" (or, as Shane says, "the academics that circle around Joe Rogan​ for some reason"); the pseudoscientific claims surrounding race, ethnicity, and IQ; and an examination of observable patterns within far-right insurgency, as detailed in his recent Commune Magazine article,​ A History of Violence. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/shane-burley-2 // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

In this episode, I speak with independent political analyst Eric Draitser. He expands upon his analysis of recent events in Venezuela, expressed in his piece in CounterPunch, Trump’s Coup in Venezuela: The Full Story, in which he lays into the recent decision by the Trump Administration to back “interim president” Juan Guaido as the rightful leader of the nation. Eric Draitser defines the celebrated successes of the ongoing Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela under the successive governments of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro, the legitimate criticisms of the current Maduro-led government, the colonial legacy of the United States’ relationship with Latin America in general, and what this ongoing incursion by the United States into the Venezuelan government and economy will ultimately lead to in the future. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/eric-draitser // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

I speak with Michael Laufer, chief spokesperson for the Four Thieves Vinegar Collective. Four Thieves is a network of individuals that seeks to make commonly inaccessible medicines affordable and accessible to the public. We tackle the ethics behind the project, the anticapitalist/anarchist structure of the network, and the various DIY technologies the Collective has been able to make more affordable and accessible to those who need it most. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/michael-laufer // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast

Indigenous artist, activist, and author Gord Hill—also known as Zig Zag—joined me for this episode. He has authored and illustrated numerous books and graphic novels, including the excellent The 500 Years of Resistance Comic Book and The Antifa Comic Book. A major theme that runs through this discussion is the recognition of the growing intersection between traditionally Eurocentric leftist political theory and praxis with anti-colonial Indigenous resistance throughout the so-called American continents, from North to South. // Episode notes: https://www.lastborninthewilderness.com/episodes/gord-hill // Sustain + support: https://www.patreon.com/lastborninthewilderness // Donate: https://www.paypal.me/lastbornpodcast