Mic Check Radio

This episode takes a look at that elusive idea of defining what art is.  Where does that spark of creativity come from?  What drives human beings to take an idea from our mind and create something in the physical world?  As a starting point for this conversation we take a look back throughout history to see what people far smarter than all of us have to say about art and the role of art within human society. At a very basic level, any art (both good and bad) is just the product of a human being expressing something that first occurred in the mind.  In fact,  the majority of art is never put on display in a gallery.  The society in which we live defines the value of art for us and determines what is displayed in a gallery.  However, maybe the 'value' of art should be a personal definition.We then hear from a working artist on the dilemma between making a living from art, but also being able to artistically develop and explore with that fear in the back of your mind that 'no one will buy this'.  How exactly does tying commerce (capitalism) to art affect the art?  And, on the other end of that question, how does it affect the definition of art in the mind of the consumer of that art?In previous generations, art was produced and boundaries were pushed due to a societal circumstance that we no longer experience - boredom.  When we have the ability to entertain ourselves 24/7, we are never bored.  Without the presence of boredom, we are never forced to entertain ourselves.  To create something from nothing.  There is current scientific data that shows human creativity is on the decline (specifically in the USA) due to our lack of being bored.  The good news is that the solution is simple and fun.  We all just have to play and explore a lot more. Rhyme intended. [Click to Listen]Song Credits:Land of 7 Billion Dances - The CoupCome and Check Your Head - Blue King BrownAll's Fair in Love and Dubstep - SkrillixVitamin C - CanAll That You Paid For - Falling SicknessBoredom - S.T.U.N.Brand New Colony - The Postal ServiceOn the Corner - Miles Davis$o$ - Die AntwoordOnly Getting Younger - Elliphant

We start off the show with some poetry:Bulls On Parade by Rage Against the MachineFor our In The News segment on this show we take a look at the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and the odd circumstances surrounding his death.  We're not talking about who should replace him on the bench or if President Obama should nominate someone or just wait and let President Trump do it after the election in November...we're talking about the actual circumstances surrounding his death as reported on by the Washington Post and how this type of reporting is the breeding ground for conspiracy theories.Next up we have a Holy Shit segment looking at a Q&A that former presidential candidate and revisionist American history author Ben Carson recently participated in at the Pat Robertson founded Regents University (formerly the Christian Broadcasting Network University).  In the brief clip we play, Carson rewrites United States history and then promises to "eliminate the ban on Christianity in public schools". [Click to Listen]

We start off the show with some poetry:Even When There's Little Choice, We Choose by Nicholas GordonFor our In The News segment on this show we take our one and only looks at the Republican and Democrat primary season.  We have a clip from each side that proves the two party political machine is still very much in control and knows what they are doing.  If that isn't convincing enough, we also have an audio clip from Leslie Moonves, the president and CEO of CBS Corporation, explaining to shareholders how Donald Trump is great for business.   Next up we have a quick Activist Cinema segment looking at the #OscarsSoWhite "conversation" surrounding this years Academy Awards and why it's great to draw attention to the racism in the entertainment industry...but it's still and industry and the Oscars are just their Employee of the Year awards.  So don't watch them. [Click to Listen] 

We start off the show with some poetry:Incident by Countee CullenNext up we have and installment of Holy Shit where we take a look at (and listen to) the radio show Fortress of Faith and their list of questions to help figure out whether or not "Your Muslim friend is a terrorist".  It would be a funnier list if it wasn't being taken so seriously by the shows host (and presumably his listeners).For our In the News segment on this episode, we take a closer look at the family that is truly at the center of the Bureau of Land Management occupation and subsequent debacle out in Oregon...the Hammond's.  Ammon Bundy and his group, Citizens for Constitutional Freedom, may have grabbed the headlines in the corporate media, but, the real victims in this case are Dwight and Steven Hammond.  They were re-sentanced back in the fall of 2015 and given longer jail sentences under the Anti-terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996.  [Click to Listen]

We're starting off 2016 with a new format for the show.  Mic Check Radio is now a bi-weekly show.We start off this show with some poetry:Ballad of the Landlord by Langston HughesNext up is an installment of the FBI Files, as we take a look at the sad entrapment case of Emanuel L. Lutchman. You can read the Criminal Complaint against him here.We also bid farewell to 2015 by going over the fascinating results of the Pew Research Center's '15 Striking Findings From 2015'. [Click to Listen]

We finish up our year end wrap up of Activist Cinema from 2015 with a brief discussion of some prominent LGBTQ films (The Danish Girl, Stonewall, Freeheld, Carol and About Ray) and how they were mostly not that good...but that is okay.  We also compare the narrative device used in the film Stonewall with the exact same device used in the film Suffragette and how the critics hated it in one film, but loved it in another.  There were also two notable films, one produced independently (99 Homes) and one produced by Hollywood (The Big Short), that tackle the issue of the housing market collapse of 2008.  Then, we move onto the Activist Film of 2015, Chi-Raq.  Spike Lee has created another brilliant film (see also: Bamboozled) that captures the zeitgeist of the times in a way that few filmmakers working today are capable of doing.  [Click to Listen]

We start off our annual year end wrap up with some news about the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigating the hiring practices of the major Hollywood studios.  Turns out, the entertainment industry is shallow, image obsessed and sexist towards women.  Hopefully this investigation will have better results than the 1969 investigation by the EEOC...or the 1983 class action law suit by the Directors Guild of America. We also take quick look at a few of the essential documentary films of 2015.Merchants of DoubtCartel LandBest of EnemiesHe Named Me Malala[Click to Listen]

It's a really shitty time to be a kid in the world today, especially if you are one of the 250 million girls under the age of 15 who are forcibly married off by their family each year.  UNICEF and Girls Not Brides are trying their best to raise awareness and combat child marriage, but on some parts of this planet a daughter is a commodity to be sold.  Some daughters as young as 8.  Often times to men old enough to be her father or grandfather.  Unfortunately, the boys of Afghanistan don't have it any better.  The centuries old practice of "bacha baazi" ("boy-play") has returned to Afghanistan, essentially making child rape a cultural norm.  Boys, from 9 to 15 years old, dance for "kaatah" ("owners") in large dance hall parties before being sexually abused.  How culturally normal is this practice?  The occupying forces of the US Military are specifically told not to interfere. [Click to Listen].

It's a really shitty time to be a kid in the world today, especially if your family is religious.  Specifically if your family is Catholic and poor.  In this episode we take a look at the abuse of children by degenerate priests, bishops, cardinals...basically white males in positions of power within the Catholic church.  From the 2002 stories published by the Boston Globe Spotlight team to the wonderful work that survivors of abuse are doing to help each other try and heal, the Internet has played a very significant role in exposing the centuries long cover-up by this powerful, worldwide religious organization. [Click to Listen]

It's a really shitty time to be a kid in the world today.  Over 2 million of them will go thru the well oiled machine that is the international sex slave market.  On this episode we look at how a human trafficking bust in New Jersey was a catalyst for Peter Landesman, a journalist, to travel the world and expose the system that keeps this market thriving (Click for Article).  And the humans sold in this market are getting younger and younger.  [Click to Listen]

We are all affected by it...call it advertising, propaganda, programming, social engineering, psychological operations, or whatever other term could be applied.  The act of a force outside of your mind trying to convince you to do something.  In this installment we take a look at the world of propaganda we are currently stuck with.  At this stage, we have to look past political ideologies to the one true underlying factor that guides the programming...money.  Our coverage begins with the good intentions found within the Church Committee.  But, it turned out to just be a bunch of words on pages.  Corporations continued their financial hijacking of democracy.  Now, the CIA has their own Media Liaison Office, the Government of Mexico bought a scene in 007's newest adventure - Spectre, a retired senator is Hollywood's top lobbyist, NPR and CNN are employing active duty Army officers and the First Lady presents Best Picture at the Academy Awards.  Not since late 1930's Germany have the government and the media been so well separated. [Click to Listen]

In this fifth and final episode of the Mic Check Radio Book Club series we conclude with the final chapters of the audio book, Propaganda by Edward L Burnays, published in 1928.  Noam Chomsky has called this book "the main manual of the public relations industry".  It may be 87 years old, but the ideas and concepts are still used (and successful) today.  This book explores the psychology of manipulating the masses in order to influence consumerism, politics, social change and gender dynamics.  On this episode we will hear Chapter 8: Propaganda for Education, Chapter 9: Propaganda in Social Service, Chapter 10: Art and Science and Chapter 11: The Mechanics of Propaganda. [Click to Listen]

We are all affected by it...call it advertising, propaganda, programming, social engineering, psychological operations, or whatever other term could be applied.  The act of a force outside of your mind trying to convince you to do something.  In this installment we take a look at a perfect storm that developed starting in the 1950's.  After WWII, there was a mass exodus of white citizens leaving the major cities of America and settling in the newly created suburbs.  This is the birth of the 'cute' little suburban home with the white picket fence and 2.5 kids.  We look specifically at a place called Levittown as well as just how powerful "car culture" became, economically speaking.  Once everyone is sectioned off in their suburban homes...along comes TV.  Literally, a box of bright, flashing, blinking images set to audio is sold to the American public - and we all wanted one.  What better device than this to sell the idea of the "American Dream".  The TV was specifically used as a psychological weapon to target Women.  There was a concentrated effort to get Women into the kitchen, to stay put in the home and be grateful to have found a man to provide everything.  I suggest standing up for the last few minutes of this show as we will be playing audio from advertisements trying to sell consumer goods to women and the sexism will make you want to pace and curse. [Click to Listen]

As we work thru some serious computer issues, here is a rebroadcast from the archives.  It dovetails perfectly with the upcoming Episode 6 in our We Are Being Programmed series.Sunday, August 11, 2013Way back in 1987 a government funded study, Perception of Risk, was published in the journal Science.  While the study is officially a look at how the general public evaluates and perceives risk, it also reads as a manual for the manipulation of the public's fear and the unrealistic desire to live in a "zero risk society". [Click to Listen]

In this fourth episode of the Mic Check Radio Book Club series we continue with the audio book of Propaganda by Edward L Burnays, published in 1928.  Noam Chomsky has called this book "the main manual of the public relations industry".  It may be 87 years old, but the ideas and concepts are still used (and successful) today.  This book explores the psychology of manipulating the masses in order to influence consumerism, politics, social change and gender dynamics.  On this episode we will hear Chapter 6: Propaganda and Political Leadership & Chapter 7: Women's Activities and Propaganda. [Click to Listen]

We are all affected by it...call it advertising, propaganda, programming, social engineering, psychological operations, or whatever other term could be applied.  The act of a force outside of your mind trying to convince you to do something.  In this installment we take a look at what happened to the enormous propaganda machine after WWII was over.  Once the Office of War Information was disbanded in 1945, the Central Intelligence Agency took over the domestic operations and "assumed many of the information gathering, analyzing and disseminating responsibilities".  So, what would the CIA use its new found domestic propaganda powers for?  In the early 1950's, Frank Wisner (head of the Directorate of Plans for CIA), Allan W. Dulles (Director of Central Intelligence) and Cord Meyer (Office of Policy Coordination) started Operation Mockingbird.  By 1953, Operation Mockingbird had "major influence over 25 newspapers and wire agencies".  We also touch on the House Un-American Activities Committee and the CIA's Project MK Ultra program.  [Click to Listen]

In this third episode of the Mic Check Radio Book Club series we continue with the audio book of Propaganda by Edward L Burnays, published in 1928.  Noam Chomsky has called this book "the main manual of the public relations industry".  It may be 87 years old, but the ideas and concepts are still used (and successful) today.  This book explores the psychology of manipulating the masses in order to influence consumerism, politics, social change and gender dynamics.  On this episode we will hear Chapter 5:Business and the Public. [Click to Listen]

We are all affected by it...call it advertising, propaganda, programming, social engineering, psychological operations, or whatever other term could be applied.  The act of a force outside of your mind trying to convince you to do something. In the forth episode of this series we take a look at the Golden Age of Propaganda, World War II.  We do this by analyzing several audio clips from films played in motion picture theaters during the 1940's.  The clips include: Education for Death (made by Walt Disney), The Batman - The Electrical Brain (an 8-part serial), Japanese Relocation (Office of War Information), Our Enemy - The Japanese (United States Navy Training Film), Remember Pearl Harbor - Buy War Bonds (again, the US Government), Wartime Nutrition (Office of War Information) and It's Your War Too (made by the War Activities Committee of the Motion Picture Industry and the US War Dept.).  [Click to Listen]

In this second episode of the Mic Check Radio Book Club series we continue with the audio book of Propaganda by Edward L Burnays, published in 1928.  Noam Chomsky has called this book "the main manual of the public relations industry".  It may be 87 years old, but the ideas and concepts are still used (and successful) today.  This book explores the psychology of manipulating the masses in order to influence consumerism, politics, social change and gender dynamics.  On this episode we will hear Chapter 3: The New Propagandists and Chapter 4: The Psychology of Public Relations. [Click to Listen]

We are all affected by it...call it advertising, propaganda, programming, social engineering, psychological operations, or whatever other term could be applied.  The act of a force outside of your mind trying to convince you to do something. In the third episode we play a couple of clips of commercial radio from the 1940's, then we enter 'The Lab'.  Once sound film is perfected (more or less), Hollywood productions are now the great laboratory of for propagandists experimentation.  Any good propagandist would look at the sheer numbers, up to 90 million moviegoers each week, and start drooling at the possibilities.  One homogenized audio/video message seen in just one week by 90 million people?!  This had never been an option in all of human history before motion pictures with sound were invented.  Brave new world.  American politics took notice of the potential for reaching so many people with one homogenized message and took action.  Those white men in power in Washington D.C. started hanging out with those other white men in power in Hollywood...a lot.  This is the moment when American politics had to first, and evermore, deal with what they will look like to the public.  People in politics/industry quickly figured out how to sell the image needed to get citizens/consumers to choose their product.  Oh, and then WWII started and the Golden Age of Propaganda was about to begin. [Click to Listen]

On this supplemental episode we kick off a series of the Mic Check Radio Book Club.  It's the audio book of Propaganda by Edward L Burnays, published in 1928.  Noam Chomsky has called this book "the main manual of the public relations industry".  It may be 87 years old, but the ideas and concepts are still used (and successful) today.  This book explores the psychology of manipulating the masses in order to influence consumerism, politics, social change and gender dynamics.  On this episode we will hear Chapter 1: Organizing Chaos and Chapter 2: The New Propagandists. [Click to Listen]

We are all affected by it...call it advertising, propaganda, programming, social engineering, psychological operations, or whatever other term could be applied.  The act of a force outside of your mind trying to convince you to do something.  In the second episode of this series we take a look at the early, early days of advertising...before cars took people to stores miles from their house.  Back in this time period, the merits of a consumer good or service were believed to be enough to sell the item.  At the turn of the century (1900) we were still considered 'citizens' by those in positions of power (government and industry), but this was all about to change.  After the success of the Committee on Public Information, a WWI organization in charge of swaying public opinion to support the war, the same techniques used to sell the war to the citizens of the US were adapted by big business to more effectively sell their goods and services.  Edward Burnays was a member of the CPI and the leading proponent of switching the citizenry into consumers in the post WWI years. In the mid 1920's, he successfully combined the philosophy of Wilfred Trotter (and his idea of "herd instinct") with the writings of his uncle, Sigmund Freud.  The successful techniques pioneered by Burnays are still being used to sell us consumer goods today; press release, celebrity endorsement, testimonials, sex, product placement and the idea that buying a consumer good that we don't need will fill that empty hole in our lives. [Click to Listen]

We are all affected by it...call it advertising, propaganda, programming, social engineering, psychological operations, or whatever other term could be applied.  The act of a force outside of your mind trying to convince you to do something.  In the kick-off episode of this series we go over the etymology and definitions of the above terms and then get into an example of how 'conversations' on this topic usually play out within the corporate media [hint: they suck].  We also take a listen to some shitty pop music and ask 'how do the lyrics affect the human brain', mainly in an unconscious way.  We conclude part 1 with an adaptation of the Zen TV Experiment and how it could be used with any kind of screen, to the benefit of us all.  [Click to Listen]

Here's the initial news headline that caught my attention "FBI Arrest Ohio Man in ISIS Inspired Attack on US Capitol Building".  This headline caught my eye for a number of reasons; I live in Ohio, the FBI has a track record of coaxing isolated individuals into "plots" like this and the idea of attacking the US Capitol sounds terrifying.  So, in this episode was track down the publicly available paperwork the FBI filed on Christopher Lee Cornell to see what the reality is behind this kind of headline. [Click to Listen]

More details on Police State tactics of surveillance. The FBI (and the court system) has determined that there is no reasonable expectation of privacy once a citizen has left his or her home.  So, if you are outside of your house, you will be monitored.  How?  Two of the new surveillance weapons used by the United States Intelligence Community are the DRT Box and the StingRay.  They both work in similar ways.  They are "cell-site simulators" or "ISMI catchers".  From the ACLU website:"Stingrays, also known as "cell site simulators" or "IMSI catchers," are invasive cell phone surveillance devices that mimic cell phone towers and send out signals to trick cell phones in the area into transmitting their locations and identifying information. When used to track a suspects cell phone, they also gather information about the phones of countless bystanders who happen to be nearby.Law enforcement agencies all over the country possess Stingrays, though their use is often shrouded in secrecy. The ACLU has uncovered evidence that federal and local law enforcement agencies are actively trying to conceal their use from public scrutiny, and we are continuing to push for transparency and reform."The DRT Boxes are now being used in the air (plane, drone, helicopter, etc.) to sweep up even more information from cell phone users.  It doesn't seem like there is even an expectation of privacy within the walls of your home anymore.[Click to Listen]

A look at some of the great examples of Activist Cinema from 2013: No,99%: The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film,Fruitvale Station,Free Angela and All Political Prisoners,A Fierce Green Fire,The East,GLOW: Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling,Dallas Buyers Club,Let the Fire Burn,The Ghosts in Our Machine,GMO OMG,A Place at the Table[Click to Listen]

A look at some of the great examples of Activist Cinema from 2014, and a little bit of behind the scenes information about the 'Sony Hack'.No No: A Dockumentary,The Internet's Own Boy,The Unknown Known,Citizenfour,Night Moves,Selma.[Click to Listen]

Eric Garner, killed by a cop in Staten Island, NY.  John Crawford, killed by a cop in Bevercreek, OH. Michael Brown, killed by a cop in Ferguson, MO.  Tamir Rice, killed by a cop in Cleveland, OH. Is there some sort of racist-cop trend that has cropped up recently around the country or is there a larger issue here?  If we have a half-asses compulsory school system in this country that barely educates the masses, then what happens when a certain portion of those masses become cops?  In this episode we look closely at a recent Department of Justice investigation into the Cleveland Police Departments' 'use of force policies' over the past few years and how the findings within that report apply to most police departments across the country.  What happens when poorly educated, poorly trained people are armed and given military weapon hand-me-downs and told to go police the streets of America?  [Click to Listen]

[Rebroadcast: Episode from February 9th, 2013]From push notifications, corporate news channel tickers, billboards, newspaper headlines, blog titles, Facebook updates and twitter posts - the depth of our information diet is getting smaller and less diverse.  In this episode we take a look at alternative ways to expand the mind with in depth information.  From concerts and films to just plain old up all night passionate conversations with friends and family, there is no need to limit ourselves when it comes to the amount and type of information we are putting in our brains. [Click to Listen]

FBI - Spying - US Citizen's.  It's a simple set of search terms.  If you search it every six weeks or so you will find no shortage of reasons to be pissed off.  This weeks tale includes an internationally know non-profit organization that is funded by "donations" from the top corporations in the world and how they hosted the current head of the FBI and his speech - Going Dark: Are Technology, Privacy and Public Safety on a Collision Course?  [Hint: it's a trick question] This from a guy who oversees a system called the Digital Collection System Network, which is connected directly into the switches for virtually all of the major network providers.  What does it say about our society when the second reason to monitor everyone, second only to terrorism, is consumerism? Market research, in order to figure out how to more effectively sell us shit we don't need.  [Click to Listen]

Activist Cinema 11: We're trying something new with this episode of Activist Cinema...we're discussing a film that I hate.  The term 'Citizen's United' is very familiar to most activists these days, but it's mainly due to the infamous Supreme Court case. In the case the court decided:"that the First Amendment prohibited the government from restricting independent political expenditures by a nonprofit corporation. The principles articulated by the Supreme Court in the case have also been extended to for-profit corporations, labor unions and other associations."It's a landmark piece of law that has ruined the electoral process in the United States.  However, Citizen's United is more than just a court case, it is a production company for political documentaries.  In 2012, director Stephen K. Bannon teamed up with Andrew Breitbart (two darlings of the Corporate version of the Tea Party) and put together this documentary. From the films website:"The Occupy movement is sinister, violent, and organized with the purpose of destroying the American government. The film also discusses allegations of rape, drug use, and property destruction at the Occupy encampments."I would suggest refreshing your memory by reading the brief Timeline of Occupy Wall Street over at Wikipedia (click here) before watching this film as the filmmakers go into quite a bit of detail about some of the events that may have faded from your memory.  Then get ready to yell at your TV...a lot. [Click to Listen]

Here we (U.S.A.) go again.  Remember during Gulf War II, George W. Bush famously used the term Coalition of the Willing when it came to the invasion and occupation of Iraq?  According to W's administration, these 48 countries were essential partners in this illegal war.  However, countries like Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau and the Solomon Islands didn't (and still don't) have standing armies to help out in the war effort.  Now, Barack Obama has gathered his own Coalition of the Willing II, this time with the war directed at ISIL.  But what exactly are the new coalition members doing in this vague, new chapter in the War on Terror? [Click to Listen]

Anastasia Pantsios published a fantastic article at EcoWatch about Ohio's shameful role at the forefront of the fracking industry.  The article is based in part on the U.S. Government Accountability Office report, Drinking Water: Characterization of Injected Fluids Associated with Oil and Gas Production (also known as GAO-14-957R) that examined the fracking industry in seven states. The good news is that the report documents the horrific conditions now present in Ohio due to the booming fracking industry.  The bad news is that there is 0 chance that the politicians in Ohio will do anything about this issue.  Why is that?  Because the American Legislative Exchange Council has helped the oil and gas industry pass laws in Ohio that will need repealed before any action can be taken. One law in Ohio classified solution injected into the Earth as a 'trade secret', so no one knows exactly what is seeping into the groundwater.  [Click to Listen]

In part 3 of our series on the education system in the United States of America, we take a look at the continued influence of Foundations - mainly the ones started and funded by the Carnegie and Rockefeller.  We also discuss the Columbia Teachers College and their project, the Lincoln Experimental School.  Then we look at the effects of the Progressive Education Associations "Eight-Year Study" and how it started the concept of the segmented school curriculum.  And let's not forget the power of uniform textbooks - and how Harold Rugg (through the Columbia Teachers College) was so well funded that 5 million of his textbooks were distributed nationwide.  Eventually, in 1952, the Reece Committee started investigating Foundations and their influence on public life.  When their report was published in 1954, it was summarily ignored.  Why was it ignored? Because, a scathing indictment of the power of capitalists in the United States and how they were (and are) warping the public education system for their own benefit wasn't a report those capitalists wanted anyone to know about.  Sound familiar? [Click to Listen]

In this clip show, we take a look at how the Corporate Media (CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, etc.) have used ISIS (or ISIL or IS) as the new international 'boogie man' in order to amp up the feelings of terror on the public and justify more military action in the Middle East.  The result is eerily similar to the build up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003.  The rhetoric used in these clip would be hilarious, if the end result wasn't death and destruction. [Click to Listen]

In part 2 of our series on the education system in the United States of America, we take a look at how compulsory schooling was legislated into existence and then financed.  From 1889 to 1906 William Torrey Harris was the Commissioner of Education for the United States of America.  That is an uninterrupted, 17 year stretch in which he shaped the teaching philosophy and legislation of an entire nation.  During his tenure there was an average of one high school opened per day.  That is a massive education boom.  But, what was his philosophy of education? And, who was helping to subsidize this massive infrastructure of new buildings, textbooks and teacher training?  The noted humanitarians (sarcasm) John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie, to name just the two main wealthy white guys we take a look at in this episode.  We wrap up part 2 with some choice quotes from a 1913 Special Commission appointed by the 62nd Congress to investigate the entity know as a "Foundation", both as a business model and the power it wields within society.  Hint: It's not good and it hasn't gotten any better in the 101 years since this report. [Click to Listen]

In the kick off episode for a series on the education system in the United States of America, we take a look at the Prussian education system that was established after that country's devastating defeat at the hands of Napoleon's military in 1806.  Decades after that system was up and running, Prussia was a serious force to be reckoned with in Europe.  The notoriety of their education system had piqued the interest of an American, elite, Protestant, politician named Horace Mann.  So much so, that Mann went to Prussia in 1843 to see how this "Three Tiered System" worked.  Upon his return, Mann (who was Secretary of the Massachusetts State Board of Education at the time) pushed very hard to implement what he had seen in Prussia.  The effects of which are still alive and well in today's compulsory public school system. [Click to Play]

Activist Cinema 10 - It's a double feature today as we take a look at two documentary films that compliment each other quite well.  The Weather Underground (2002) uses archival footage and interviews to look at the actions taken by the Weather Underground in the late 1960's and early 1970's.  A hardcore group of activists committed to the violent overthrow of the US government.  The second film is Pickaxe (1999), an on the ground look at the activists who took a stand to protect an old growth forest from logging at Warner Creek in the Willamette National Forest of Oregon, blockading the logging road and repelling the State Police.  A hardcore group of activists committed to non-violent resistance of US government policy. [Click to Listen]

In our third and final episode in the World Cup 2014: Capitalism, Corruption and Protest series we address the lack of protests in Brazil during the World Cup.  We also take an extensive look at the police state tactics of Brazil and what it means for a country to host a "mega event" such as the World Cup or the Olympic Games (for Brazil, this will be in 2016).  Surprise, surprise, United States private contractor extraordinaire Academi (formerly Xe and before that Blackwater) helped out with anti-terror training and Israeli security (NICE) firms help install and program an all seeing all spying system called "The Situator".  There is also the matter of how sovereign nations change their laws to suit the profit motives of this massive, massive non-profit known as FIFA.  [Click to Listen]

In part II of our World Cup 2014 series we take a look at the initial proposal the government of Brazil presented to FIFA and how the reality has shaped up all these years later...here a hint, the budget more than quadrupled. We specifically take a look at the construction at three of the 12 stadiums and the pit corruption, extortion and over billing they have all become.  We also touch on similar stadium projects from the World Cup 2010 in South Africa and the preparations for the upcoming World Cup 2022 in Qatar (which has already killed hundreds of workers).  [Click to Listen]

Our introductory episode covering the most watched (and most corrupt) sporting event in the entire world, the FIFA World Cup.  We start off looking at why soccer can and is an important sport, especially on the world stage.  Then we move into a brief overview of what has been going on in Brazil - both in the streets and within the halls of the Brazilian government at the request of FIFA officials - in the lead up to the World Cup of 2014, focusing on the Confederations Cup of 2013 and the corruption and protests that occurred during that event.  [Click to Listen]

Activist Cinema Episode 9 - Collapse (2009) was directed by Chris Smith and is essentially a monologue film.  There haven't been too many of these kinds of film made, but within this small sub-genre of films, Collapse is one of the best.  We choose this film as a nice end cap to the We're So Fucked series of episodes as most of the ideas and sentiments from that series are well represented in this documentary about the late, great Michael C. Ruppert. [Click to Listen]

The fourth and final in episode in our We're So Fucked series  (We're So Fucked - We're So Fucked 2: Bringing Down the System - We're So Fucked 3: Don't Do Anything) ends on a happy note, sort of...We start the discussion with the idea that there are no easy fixes for all of the worlds problems and how personal a choice it is to actually get up everyday, take in air and keep trying to function as a human being on a fucked planet.  What do you spend you time working towards?  Everybody's answer is different, so we attempt to discuss the big picture issue that can apply to everyone...the potential of the human brain and the wonderful, creative, artistic impulses that reside inside of us all.  Especially the youngest human beings among us, kids.  Before their brains are taught all that social baggage we adults carry around in our brains, they are (or can be) free to explore, create, question and express themselves in the most spectacular ways imaginable.  It might not save all of us humans, but it will help create a fantastic generation to keep the human species experiment going after the collapse of civilization as we know it...that's the 'sort of' happy ending we like here at Mic Check Radio.[Click to Listen]

On this episode we discuss the four steps the State has already set up that allow them to kill activists.  Step 1: Redefine and/or blur the lines of definitions (ex. Terrorism, Domestic Terrorism, Eco-Terrorism)[Link].Step 2: Create a precedent for killing US civilians [Link].Step 3: Federal authorities are already cool with targeting activists [Link 1] [Link 2]. Step 4: Get pundits on corporate news shows to tell us why this is a great idea.[Click to Listen]

On May 26th, 2013 we put out an episode called The FBI Creates Terrorists - which was, itself, a follow up to What is Terrorism? - and just about one year later...not a single thing seems to have changed.  On this weeks episode we take a look at a few specific cases.  Farooque Ahmed, Liberty City Seven, James Cromitie, Derrick Shareef and Nicolas Michael Teausant. [Click to Listen]

The wonderful folks over at CrimetInc have posted a superb article about how the current Ukrainian Revolution is/was hijacked by the Fascist and Nationalist of that particular country.  The example used in this article is specific to Ukraine, but the details will sound familiar to anyone who has read a news story in the past three years about similar uprisings in Spain, Turkey, Tunisia, USA, Venezuela, Brazil, Egypt, etc.  If you don't get off the couch and into the street, your ideas will not be heard -  and you never know what ideas will be presented in your absence. [Click to Listen]

It's that time of year again...the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was re-uped for another year.  What devious items were snuck in this year?  In the last two years, indefinite military detention of United States citizens (NDAA 2012) and overturning the 63 year old Smith-Mundt Act which prohibited domestic dissemination of government propaganda (NDAA 2013) were just two of the highlights.  This year, the war rhetoric is amped up to get the Department of Defense ready for the coming (or currently raging) cyber war by not only creating another government database for storing digital information, but laying out the rules for selling and exchanging that information with other governments and individuals all over the world. [Click to Listen]

This episode follows We're So Fucked and We're So Fucked 2: Bringing Down the System.  On today's installment of this sporadic series we look at one of the two options that are laid out before us: Do Something or Don't Do Anything.  The later is the focus for this episode.  Doing nothing has never been easier or more entertaining (assuming you live in a so-called First World Country).  Thousands of TV channels, Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, Google Play, iTunes, pornography, Soundcloud, YouTube, drugs (both legal and illegal), video games, social media, food and consumer electronics gadgetry that allow for the access of  most of the above at the touch of a finger.  Why the fuck would a First World human being want to do anything more than passively move thru their life, enjoying the entirety of human created entertainment that is available on small computer that fits in a pocket? [Click to Listen]

Activist Cinema Episode 8 - The Square (2013) is an excellent example of a journalistic documentary.  It covers the protests in Egypt's Tahrir Square that started in 2011 and stays with several citizens (protestors, activists and lawyers) over a two year period.  The ups and downs of seeing two presidents removed from power, violent military crackdowns and counter protests in a very short period of time.  It ends with the current (as of fall 2013) 'transitional period' in which the citizens are under military rule and all their victories are now under threat. [Click to Listen]

As a tangent series to the Activist Cinema episodes we've been doing for awhile now, here is short playlist of fantastic Activist Music - The Punk Rock Edition Vol.1.Transmission - S.T.U.N.Punk Rock Song - Bad ReligionControlled Opposition - Anti FlagSuburban Home - DescendentsLady Liberty - RancidJerk of All Trades - LunachicksDwindle - Falling SicknessBoredom - S.T.U.N.

On this episode we take a closer look at the so called 'Russian Anti-Gay Laws' with the help of a very insightful white paper - Russian Federation Anti Gay Laws: An Analysis and Deconstruction by Brian M. Heiss.  Why are these laws getting so much corporate media coverage?  Is it all just to remind people to tune into the Winter Olympics and by Coke and Nike products?  Is it possibly a distraction story so no one investigates the most expensive and corrupt Winter Olympics in history?  After we discuss these cynical questions, we take a quick look around the Middle East and Africa to see if there are any other countries whose anti-gay laws could stand some scrutiny by our oh-so-concerned corporate media.  And while we're looking into anti-gay laws and anti-gay hate crime statistics, it's always a good idea to check in here at home and see how the United States is faring.  (Hint: it's no better than Russia.  In fact, it's a lot worse in some areas). [Click to Listen]