Keeping Democracy Alive with Burt Cohen

There’s a reason the same voters were undecided between Bernie and Trump in 2016. People wanted real change. And in 2024, Democrats walked into a trap. As bad as it looks today, writing in Newsweek, today’s guest Matt Robison argues The post Under Water Now, Democrats Have to Become the Party of Change appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

It’s not just politics but arts and a free culture that makes real change. Sure there are the leaders we all know, MLK and Malcolm X, but in his new paperback edition of The Jazz Men: How Duke Ellington, Louis The post How Their Music Toppled Jim Crow appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Society would rather not see them. Like people in prison, the foster care system makes hundreds of thousands of kids invisible. And the system is doing them great damage for life. On this show, author and foster care, juvenile justice, The post It’s Not the Kids, It’s the Foster Care System That’s Damaged appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Starting a trade war is just stupid. But maybe Trump simply doesn’t really care about tanking the economy. On this show, Washington Monthly politics editor Bill Scher points out that the current president appears to be trying to steer America The post Trade Peace Beats Trade War: Where Are the Democrats? appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

There is in fact great abundance in America. The problem is not just the greed of the top percent but also the 21st century version of real estate redlining. Many are shut out. There is a huge demand for affordable The post We Know What NIMBY means. But Here’s a New Twist: YIMBYism! appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

May is Mental Health Month, and the Trump/Musk regime is pouring gasoline on our already widespread national crisis. The police-state ICE raids are indicative of a strategy to create fear. On this show Mattea Kramer and Dr. Sean Fogler share The post Mental Health Essential for National Security appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

If he really aims to cut waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal bureucracy, there’s a lot of low hanging fruit. But Elon Musk has prioritized eliminating one of the smallest yet most effective programs: USAID.Poverty stricken people of developing The post Musk’s Chain Saw Does Not Think appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

To normalize the horrific, it takes lots of people going along. From the history of leaders lying, the current regime has learned that spewing new lies many times a day works to make reality conform to the lies. On this The post Mindless Banality Spreads Quickly. And It’s Evil. appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Locking people up and deporting immigrants is on the rise. The adults face punishment (as if that works) and their children hide from the judgement and stigma of other kids and school administrators. They are of course totally innocent and The post Addressing the Unique Stigma on Youth Impacted by Incarceration, Detention, and Deportation appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Remember when we could count on the Washington Post to boldly take the lead on political corruption? And can you imagine a newspaper turning down a really big ad buy? Welcome to Trumpworld 2.0. As Common Cause president and CEO The post Washington Post Changes Bigly: Refuses $115,000 Ad appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

We think of it as pure fun but the reality is great pressure and there are overtraining injuries. Coaches often lack crucial training. Non-athlete kids feeling less-than. And since kids don’t have a voice in the matter, the only option The post More Than Play: What’s Wrong With American Youth Sport appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

There are two petrostate oligarchies linking up and gravely threatening what had been a rock solid alliance: Europe and the US. The traditionally shared moral universe of Europe and the rest of the “Free World” is suddenly gone. On this The post Europe Now Squeezed By Trump and Putin’s Pincer appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Kicking out troublemakers. It backfires. It certainly increases the likelihood of negative outcomes. And it is not applied equally. In this discussion author and researcher Aaron Kupnik talks about his new book: Suspended Education. If we want equal opportunity for The post School Suspension: More Often for Black Kids appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

In being careful to avoid a monarchy or dictatorship, America’s founders adamantly insisted on each government agency being independent. The Federal Communications Commission act of 1934 was created to ensure that the public would have access to news without threat The post Is Freedom of the Press Doomed? appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

You may have noticed a continuing trend of Democratic candidates sheepishly rushing to some imaginary center, and how well that hasn’t worked! On this show, Richard Eskow, former head writer for the Bernie 2016 campaign explains how it seems candidates The post The Time is Now. Left-Populists: Unshackle Your Imaginations appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

There are reasons all autocrats need to erase history. Among the flood of executive orders is something called “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.” In other words: erasing history he doesn’t like.  To people like him, history must fit a The post Trump Wants to Abolish the Past. Historians Won’t Let Him. appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

The politicization of the FBI and police is hardly new. The foundation of the law is protecting property not people. Enforcing a racial caste system. Himself a former FBI agent, our guest Mike German in his new book Policing White The post American Police Came to Be As Enforcers of Slave Laws appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

No question, it’s all about re-connecting with the working class: People without a college degree, lowering the cost of health care, championing the self-employed, addressing the transportation problems of the heartland. Our guest  today Paul Glastris Washington Monthly editor in The post Time for Democrats to Post a Clear Agenda for America appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

More and more women are steering great philanthropies. In the current Chronicle of Philanthropy, Christine Ahn is co-author of this article: To Fight Growing Militarism, Philanthpy Should Embrace a Feminist Playbook. The subtitle is  Around the world, feminist activists have The post Feminism and Philanthropy: Powerful Combination appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

In her new book titled Is It Racist? Is It Sexist? Why Red and Blue White People Disagree, and How to Decide in the Gray Areas co-author Betsy Leondar-Wright, through remarkable research, found Trumpists are not all racist and sexist The post We Thought We Knew Racism and Sexism appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

When did politics and trash TV become one in the same? According to author Ross Benes, no question: it was the 1990s. As one reviewer said: “this book helps to explain the election of Donald Trump in ways that most The post The Trashing of Tastes: When Did It Begin? appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

The reason we have minimum wage laws is to ensure a basic standard of living. But in America, the federal minimum wage is still what it was in 2009: $7.25. And in developing nations to which big corporations outsource jobs, The post A Global Minimum Wage = a Stronger Worldwide Economy appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Democrats seem to always pay attention to the top, the federal races. But what worked for the right wing in 2010 can work for us: Our guest Eric Schmeltzer writes, in The New Republic, that to take power away from The post Republicans Got It: Bottom Up Works. Wake Up, Democrats! appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

    You've probably heard of the famous Christmas Truce of 1914 between the trenches of the British and German soldiers. These were indeed brave men. But that was not the only such event: there were desertions, mutinies, and fraternizations. The post Christmas Truce of WWI: Not So Isolated, Really appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

For decades, millions of Americans have urgently sought to bring sanity to the defense budget. They propose a new  nongovernmental “Dept of Government Efficiency.” And military waste is the low hangng fruit. On this show, expert William Hartung says maybe The post Could These Guys Actually Cut Military Waste? appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Just the threat of prosecution can be a violation of our First Amendment rights. Look for the fascistic right under Trump to try to impose by force what they failed to win in the culture war. On this show, investigative The post Will There Be A Way to Stop Him? appeared first on KDA Keeping Democracy Alive Podcast & Radio Show.

Populism is the common language of America. Author and Georgetown University historian Michael Kazin notes people were not inspired by Harris’s “opportunity economy” talk. People feel disconnected and want a sense of membership, a sense of power, which unions used The post Toward a Revival of Left Populism: What It Takes To WIn appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Just as it is with inflation, some immigration is good for the economy. It strengthens the economy and helps rural America. But as with inflation, immigration has to be kept under control. On this show Washington Monthly politics editor Bill The post Immigration Was Played Dishonestly. The Truth is It’s Like Inflation appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Storytelling is a venerable and often the most accurate way to teach history. Our guest co-author of the new A Line In the Sand, Miles Spencer, traveled with his partner along the 1100 mile trail of clues left by TE The post One Eternally Explosive Line in the Sand appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Playing defense defines the playing field. Shall we just accept a world run by international mega-billionaires? On this show, Sam Pizzigati of Inequality.org argues now is the time to get ready to go on offense against what Trump Musk and The post To Win, Go on Offense appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

From the proposed Department of Government Efficiency to possible invocation of the Insurrection Act of 1807 to the Espionage Act of 1917 to the proposal to take away the non-profit status of organizations alleged to have ties to terrorists, there The post The Many All-American Tools Trump Can Use To Chill Freedom appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

In the wake of the shocking presidential election, we Democrats now have an opportunity and an obligation. Once again, the heartland of America saw the Democratic Party as two-coast elitists. Our guest today, veteran political organizer Bob Creamer says despite The post “Defending Democracy” is Fighting for You, Not the Status Quo appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Can we ever learn from history?  November 11 is celebrated as the end of “the war to end all wars.” But in reality it was a peace that ended peace. Listen in as eminent historian Adam Hochschild cuts through the The post 11/11 Armistice: The Germans Were Ambushed, A Peace That Ended Peace appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

You remember: “that’s not who we are,” related to January 6, 2021? Turns out, maybe it is who we are. Was this too an outlier: Greensboro North Carolina November 1979 when the KKK shot and killed five people demonstrating for The post Greensboro ’79: “White Supremacy Done Correctly” appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

You know the saying “hurt people hurt people.” Well, our guest argues “healed people heal people.” Most of us look away from the terribly failed system of justice, but Notre Dame Professor Jason Springs offers us a new path that The post Restorative Justice Works Where Retribution Fails appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

There’s a mountain of electoral gold which, for the first time, is being mined: graduates of regional public universities. Many of them men. Colleges with “state” in their name. Our guest Washington Monthly editor in chief Paul Glastris talks about The post Tim Walz’s Unique Appeal to Young Men’s Masculinity appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Reagan, Clinton, and Obama all boosted neoliberalism. But Biden is showing that he's on a different track. Democrats in the 90s moved away from FDRs liberalism only to solidify Wall St's hold on our economic life and political power. In The post The Demise if Neoliberalism. At Last appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

In a democracy, we expect to have our own say over how we are governed. There's a great grumbling throughout America because many don't feel listened to. That's the impetus behind today's Trumpist populism. This populism is the voice of The post Heather Cox Richardson: Yes Democracy IS Awakening appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Wisconsin is a key swing state in the upcoming election, with traditions of both real right and real left. On today's show on-the-ground journalist Christina Lieffring tells us about realities in that 90% rural state. She says to win voters, The post Wisconsin Rural Voters: Challenge and Opportunity for Democrats appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Many Americans were appalled at the violent January 6th assault on the capitol. The thought was: “That's not who we are.” But in truth, throughout our history, a great number of Americans have supported hierarchies and authoritarianism; freedom for us The post The Deep Roots of American Illiberalism,Yes Illiberalism appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

In light of the Israeli state's massive assault on Gaza, and now Lebanon, the question comes up: What does it mean to be a Jew? Our guest veteran New York Times sportswriter Robert Lipsyte says being a Jew entails certain The post On Rosh Hashanah: Netanyahu, The Israeli Right, and Jewish Identity appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Corporations have their own interests at heart. From post-Civil War America through to Germany in 1933 to America today. And knowing public image counts, many try to have it both ways: bragging that they support reproductive and LGBTQ rights as The post Is Corporatocracy Unstoppable? appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

“People think of Nelson Rockefeller as the epitome of moderate Republicanism.” But what appears to be a clean break from this tradition is really an evolution. Author Professor Marsha E. Barrett explains how the shift to the right was something The post From Rockefeller Republicanism to Trumpism: How Did We Get Here? appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

It was only discovered in an architectural trade journal: Netanyahu’s “Gaza 2035.” Architects were hired to provide models of a new Gaza , the old one having been flattened. Steel and glass high risers being erected where once a people The post Architecture as the Ultimate Expression of Power: Gaza 2035 appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

As Americans, we want what we want right now. But it doesn’t work that way to make real political change. As with any mechanism, there are certain things that must be learned to make it work and achieve our goals. The post Nuts and Bolts: What Needs to be Learned to Make Our Agenda Reality appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

Some might call it “cruel and unusual punishment,” arresting, sweeping the parks, bulldozing homeless encampments. Others believe if people are poor it’s their own fault. On this show, the Reverend Dr. Liz Theoharis of The Kairos Center discusses an essay The post Criminalizing The Unhoused Gets Us Nowhere appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

They love to say America has the strongest military of any nation ever. But boasting usually leads to disaster. On this show, we hear from William J. Astore,  a retired lieutenant colonel of the US Air Force and professor of The post A Military Security State and the Erosion of Freedom appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

History professor Matt Warshauer argues in his new book that the 9/11 generation is the most unique in American history, and he explains how. The title is Creating and Failing the 9/11 Generation. This generation has seen a nonfunctional government, The post What is the 9/11 Generation? appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

He got 81% of the evangelical vote in key swing states in 2016. Our guest today the Reverend Doug Pagitt is exceptionally familiar with what goes on with evangelical Christians, and he says he expects Trump to get less than The post Evangelicals Souring on Trump: Why It Took So Long. appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

They weren’t there for Biden. A large chunk of young men are for Trump, but with a new presidential candidate, the Democratic Party is connecting with young people. One millennial voice is Josh Lafasan, on today’s show he says the The post Gen Z, Millennials and The 2024 Presidential Election appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.

It may have the word “liberal” in it but it’s anything but. Until the Biden/Harris years, the corporate wing of the Democratic Party had its deserved image of serving the richest among us. Trump understood raw populist anger to win The post Waving Goodbye to Neoliberalism? appeared first on Keeping Democracy Alive.