Parallax Views w/ J.G. Michael

REPLAY OF AN EPISODE OF PARALLAX VIEWS FROM EARLIER THIS MONTH DUE TO A FAMILY CRISIS; PARALLAX VIEWS WILL BE BACK TO REGULAR SCHEDULE NEXT WEEK. MY APOLOGIES

On this edition of Parallax Views, libertarian gadfly Jim Bovard returns to dissect the federal killing of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis and its disturbing parallels to the infamous Ruby Ridge standoff. Bovard, author of ten books including Public Policy Hooligan, Attention Deficit Democracy, The Bush Betrayal, and Lost Rights: The Destruction of American Liberty, examines how federal law enforcement, including ICE, Border Patrol, and the FBI, have historically operated under preemptive “Rules of Engagement” that sanction the use of deadly force against American citizens. He traces the echoes of Ruby Ridge, where the Weaver family was ambushed by FBI snipers and U.S. Marshals, to the recent Minneapolis shooting, highlighting patterns of threat inflation, government cover-ups, and the erosion of civil liberties. In this episode, we discuss Alex Pretti's killing—shot in the back multiple times despite surrendering a legally carried firearm—and the official government narrative that quickly labeled him a “domestic terrorist.” Bovard contrasts the federal and political spin surrounding Pretti with the 1992 FBI and ATF operations in Idaho, where Randy and Vicki Weaver, along with family friend Kevin Harris, were targeted under similarly aggressive rules of engagement. He details how, in both cases, federal agents preemptively used lethal force, disregarded due process, seized evidence to prevent independent investigation, and faced little accountability, despite public outcry and judicial rebukes. Bovard also examines the broader implications for civil liberties, gun rights, and freedom of speech, including how videotaping federal agents has become criminalized in practice and how political partisanship—exemplified by Trump administration officials and conservative media—can shape public acceptance of state violence. He unpacks the historical, legal, and political dimensions of these incidents, from the misrepresentation of armed threats to the systematic attempts at cover-up by the Justice Department and federal law enforcement agencies. This episode is essential listening for anyone concerned with U.S. federal law enforcement abuses, ICE and Border Patrol accountability, FBI sniper operations, government overreach, civil liberties in America, the politics of domestic terrorism labeling, and the ongoing legacy of Ruby Ridge in contemporary policing. Bovard's insights offer a stark reminder of how federal power can be misused and why vigilance is necessary to protect individual rights against state violence.

On this edition of Parallax Views, we continue covering the explosive developments of last week with the abduction of Nicolas Maduro by the United States. Joining me is Kyle Anzalone, opinion editor at Antiwar.com and host of Conflicts of Interest and The Kyle Anzalone Show, to break down what we know so far about the operation, what remains unclear, and what it could ultimately entail for Venezuela, the region, and the United States of America. We discuss the circumstances surrounding Maduro's kidnapping, including whether he may have been sold out by elements within his own government, as well as popular narratives pointing to Israel and oil interests as prime drivers—and why we're skeptical of those explanations. Kyle and I also examine the broader political context: Maduro's prior willingness to work with the Trump administration on oil, the propaganda buildup ahead of the operation (including Trump branding Maduro a “narco-terrorist”), and, most significantly, the role of Marco Rubio and South American Republicans tied to the Cuban-American exile lobby. In that light, we explore whether Venezuela is being treated as a testing ground or prelude for future U.S.-backed destabilization or regime change efforts in Cuba, the fractures this episode reveals within MAGA-world, and how war hawks have worked to cognitively infiltrate the so-called anti-interventionist movement to reorient those elements back into more hawkish sentiments.

In this episode of Parallax Views, J.G. Michael is joined by freelance film journalist Corey Atad, who has written for such publications as The Baffler and Defector, to break down the growing likelihood of Netflix acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery and what a Netflix–Warner Bros. merger would mean for Hollywood, media competition, and the future of cinema. The discussion examines how Netflix's ambitions could end up reshaping the entertainment industry—often at the expense of workers, audiences, and cultural life. Atad also analyzes David Ellison's attempted hostile takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, a move widely seen as an effort to block a Netflix takeover. Despite positioning himself as an alternative to Netflix, Ellison—who is aligned with MAGA political networks and Silicon Valley power structures—raises serious concerns due to his erratic leadership style and behind-the-scenes dealings, including reported personal outreach to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav while actively attempting to seize control of the company. The episode further explores fears that a Paramount–Skydance merger could transform CNN into a MAGA-aligned media outlet, with Atad arguing that the deeper issue may be the accelerating collapse of cable news itself rather than partisan capture alone. A central theme of the conversation is how Netflix and streaming consolidation threaten movie theaters, which Atad frames as vital communal spaces in a time of increasing social atomization. Michael and Atad discuss how the Netflix business model, rooted in a Silicon Valley “disruptive” mindset, prioritizes scale and dominance over shared cultural experiences—placing theatrical exhibition and mid-budget filmmaking at risk. The episode concludes by arguing that neither Netflix absorbing Warner Bros. nor a Skydance takeover represents a good outcome, and that a functioning democratic state would prevent this level of media consolidation in the first place. Special attention is given to how a Netflix–Warner Bros. deal could harm Canada's media industry, where Atad is based. In other words, this episode discusses regulation, monopoly, culture, the potential death of theaters, and what it all in the bigger picture for America and the world through a conversation about Netflix's acquiring Warner Bros. It's a doozy at around 2 hours but should interest movie and non-movie fans alike!

This spooky season on Parallax Views, we venture behind the Iron Curtain with historian Alexander Herbert, author of Fear Before the Fall: Horror Films in the Late Soviet Union. Herbert uncovers a hidden world of Soviet horror cinema — films that reflected the fears, contradictions, and collapsing certainties of late socialism. We talk about Viy (1967), the first officially Soviet horror movie and a chilling adaptation of Nikolai Gogol's tale about a terrified seminarian forced to pray over a witch's corpse. From there, Herbert explores how later Soviet filmmakers created movies that were either horror or horror-adjacent. It's an exploration of a rather unexplored topic. It's a conversation about horror, history, and ideology — and how the Soviet Union's final decades produced some of the most fascinating and overlooked genre films ever made.

On this edition of Parallax Views, we continue our annual Spooky Season series with a chilling deep dive into one of Hollywood's most infamous real-life tragedies — the Twilight Zone: The Movie helicopter crash. Journalist Steve Chain, author of Fly By Night: The Secret Story of Steven Spielberg, Warner Bros., and the Twilight Zone Deaths, joins the show to uncover the haunting true story that forever changed the film industry. Chain's explosive investigation revisits the 1982 disaster that claimed the lives of actor Vic Morrow and two children on set — and the five-year legal battle that followed. Was it a tragic accident, or was there a cover-up to protect some of Hollywood's most powerful names, including John Landis and Steven Spielberg? Chain pulls back the curtain on the shocking evidence, courtroom drama, and corporate maneuvering behind one of Tinseltown's darkest chapters. As part of Parallax Views' spooky season lineup, this episode isn't about ghosts or monsters — it's about real-life horror: power, negligence, and the human cost of spectacle. If you're fascinated by true crime, Hollywood scandals, media history, or the eerie intersection of fame and tragedy, you won't want to miss this one.

On this edition of Parallax Views, we continue our Halloween “spooky season” series with an episode exploring how true crime stories—particularly those involving serial killers—are brought to life on screen. Screenwriter Stephen Johnston joins the show to discuss the process of writing films about notorious figures like Ed Gein, Ted Bundy, and The Hillside Stranglers (Angelo Buono and Kenneth Bianchi). Johnston's screenwriting credits include Chuck Parello's Ed Gein (2000; aka In the Light of the Moon), starring Steve Railsback (known for his portrayal of Charles Manson in the 1976 TV film Helter Skelter) and Carrie Snodgress (Diary of a Mad Housewife); Matthew Bright's darkly comic and controversial Ted Bundy (2002); and Parello's The Hillside Strangler (2004), featuring C. Thomas Howell (Red Dawn) and Nicolas Turturro (NYPD Blue). Most recently, Johnston wrote the screenplay for Chad Ferrin's Ed Kemper, a biopic about “The Co-Ed Killer” that received its video-on-demand (VOD) release earlier this year.

In this episode of Parallax Views w/ J.G. Michael, I speak with renowned foreign policy expert Vali Nasr about his book Iran's Grand Strategy: A Political History. We examine the historical roots of Iran's political and strategic thinking, from the Persian Empire to the modern Islamic Republic, and explore how ideology, geopolitics, and domestic politics shape Iran's approach to the world. Nasr explains how Iran perceives the United States and its foreign policy, and how this perception informs Tehran's dealings with the U.S., its own diplomacy, and its long-term strategy. He also offers a reassessment of the 1953 Iranian coup d'état, arguing that while the U.S. supported it, the coup itself emerged organically from Iranian political dynamics. And yes, we will discuss the issue of Iran and its nuclear program, including what the strike against Fordow nuclear site entails for Iran.