Podcasts about leftism

And what about our president protecting the flag with an EO. They've already made an arrest of a man who burned the flag near the White House.What took so long for this. I get that some consider this a free speech issue, but I do believe it's bigger than that. I would have been ok with Obama banning flag burning. You burn an American flag and Democrats yell, FREE SPEECH. You burn a rainbow flag, and Democrats yell, HATE SPEECH!Officially over 1000 arrests in DC alone, since the crackdown. 13 days in a row without a homicide.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today we will again expand your minds, and cause you to think about things you see and hear just a bit differently. The challenge for you is not to believe me, but to hear me, and trust yourselves to assess the situations we will present. You are the jury of what you experience. Nobody else. I'd like to start by explaining a few things that have happened over the past few of days. I'm going to put in perspective my views on Leftism, and use them as examples.Take for example the wreck that killed 3 family members in CA.An illegal with a CA driver's license and an illegal CDL killed that family because he made a u-term in the middle of the freeway. Something a legit trucker would NEVER do. Do we want to keep the death count of Leftism. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Order Why Trump Won today: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amazon.com/dp/B0FBS5QF4L⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.This episode was livestreamed on August 10, 2025.

Rinse and repeat, as Trump confounds the so-called experts and thwarts all the tenets of Leftism like he's playing whack-a-mole with a sledge hammer.As I said yesterday, the man is unstoppable. You know why Trump is so formidable? He's one of the first presidents who doesn't need the money, nor does he care about it. What miracles did Trump work today. Because when it comes to what this guy does it's rinse and repeat. A broken record, where the same piece repeats over and over. And it's good news.Trump has put away all the Leftist tropes:He's a racist. He's sexists. He's whatever. And he's burying them on Epstein, piling dirt on top of their coffins, and they are too stupid to realize it's happening.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I have discussed Colbert, and I assure you that we are only at the beginning of this saga.That's how Leftism works. If he were a conservative, it would be over. Lose $40M a year, and that's that. We all understand the economics of it. If the show doesn't work, it doesn't work.But Leftism needs more than a financial reason to die. It can't be the message, right?!No, CBS letting Colbert go is a “right-wing” conspiracy. And what about the excuse that Trump did it, because he was awarded $16M in his lawsuit against CBS.Most Leftists don't know how much money Colbert makes. From what I read, they pay that clown $15M a year. I repeat, the show loses $40M annually.Consider how bad things are for Colbert today. After Trump negotiates the mega deal with the EU?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Back in the 1960s, the teachers' unions, especially the United Federation of Teachers in New York, had a reputation for being strongly Jewish. But today, the teachers unions—especially the National Education Association—are deeply entrenched in an Everything Leftist movement that has made Palestinian nationalism that often strays into antisemitism a core value. Joining us today […]

Back in the 1960s, the teachers' unions, especially the United Federation of Teachers in New York, had a reputation for being strongly Jewish. But today, the teachers unions—especially the National Education Association—are deeply entrenched in an Everything Leftist movement that has made Palestinian nationalism that often strays into antisemitism a core value. Joining us today to discuss the teachers' unions swing to the anti-Israel and even outright antisemitic hard left is Rhyen Staley, a researcher at Defending Education (formerly Parents Defending Education).Largest Teachers' Union in United States Erases Jews From the HolocaustA History of Everything Leftist Unionism: Labor and the New LeftThe Ideological Fuel of a New Left: Three Axes, Two Buckets, and One ApproachHolocaust Miseducation and the Nakba Narrative

Send us a textThis week, Ben, Adam, and Jonny take a look at the confected moral outrage machine. Why are we allowed to be angry at Bob Vylan, but not a government aiding and abetting a genocide?  How does the state uses outrage to keep people quiet? Why do Christians so often fall for it? Plus: the antifascist joy of queer wrestling in nacho cheese, bookshop-based moral collapse, and a French pastor and his deeply unimpressed wife, who led a village to save thousands of Jewish refugees during the Nazi occupation.Support the showEverything Bread and Rosaries does will be free for everyone forever, but it does cost money to produce so if you wish to support the show on Patreon, we'd love you forever!Music credits at this link

Send us a textThanks for nearly half a thousand followers on YouTube over the last month! Truly incredible.There has been a growing radical movement pretending to be Christian and Right Wing that's been growing under our noses, and it's becoming more obvious every day. This recent clip making it's rounds exposes the Woke Right ideology as Leftism parading around in a Nazi costume, actively trying to corrupt conservatism and Christianity. It's becoming easier than ever to see where this ideology is headed thanks to people like the deceived emotional young man in this debate.Support the showSupport the Show! https://www.patreon.com/sparenoarrowsCheck out the video Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@sparenoarrowsConnect with me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spare_no_arrows/Spare no Arrows on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/6CqhvtMWRItkoiv8ZrJ6zVSpare no Arrows on Apple Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spare-no-arrows/id1528869516

Let's start with a universal truth: Leftism is the only ideology where you can openly fantasize about punching Nazis (read: anyone right of Karl Marx) while simultaneously clutching your pearls if someone dares to disagree with you. It's a magical realm where hypocrisy isn't just tolerated—it's celebrated.Take my recent conversation with a conservative friend who, like many, has adopted the “live and let live” approach to his Leftist acquaintances. His reasoning? “She's not that bad.” Ah, yes. The classic conservative cop-out. She only wants to dismantle the nuclear family, not the entire Western legal system. She only supports Antifa when they're firebombing federal buildings, not when they're (allegedly) firebombing your federal building.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

President Trump has ripped the heart out of Leftism, and he's showing it to them as their brains contemplate what just happened.In yet another sign that the world is realigning, we get this media update. The New York Post writes, that WaPo is tired of being considered “fake news”.Watching the mainstream media squirm in the post-Trump era is like binge watching The Walking Dead - Media Edition.And now, in a twist nobody saw coming (except everyone with a functioning brain), The Washington Post—yes, that bastion of democracy-defending journalism—is undergoing what can only be described as a corporate exorcism.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chicago Public Schools has a $734M deficit after paying for illegals.These are funds that should ONLY go to American citizens. When they do bond elections for education, do you want to pay to educate the children of illegals? CPS is laying off. That's the best news for CPD they've had in years. 1458 employees will be laid off.432 teachers, 677 special ed classroom assistants.Sex Offender freed in COA sex offender was freed, and he was caught on camera trying to abduct a childhttps://nypost.com/2025/07/14/us-news/registered-sex-offender-to-walk-free-after-elementary-school-kidnapping-attempt-prosecutors-say/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

As always weekends are not a time to take a break from anything. The Left never rests, because the devil never rests. The best we can hope for is to enjoy small respites from the muck and mire of Leftism and enjoy family and friends in between the battles. Our get-togethers are a reminder of what we fight for.Are the Democrats on the good side of any issue in America these days? It's difficult for me to understand their logic. I come to the conclusion that they simply hate this country, and this is a LEARNED condition.They don't live anything they espouse. They hate capitalism but crave it and use it more than any citizen. They want to be left to “be themselves”, yet they force their ideologies on everybody around them.They condone crime, but protect themselves from it, they claim to want to save the “democracy” as they continually do things to destroy it.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On the heels of Independence Day, I want to say to the millions of Americans that we fought and at least temporarily won the greatest revolution to date in this country. A war no Founding Father could have predicted, given the technologies of today.But their forethought allowed us to see the big picture, and we won in 2016, and perhaps dealt a death blow to Leftism in 2024.Understand that the Declaration of Independence didn't give us our independence but confirmed that we already had it…I saw a meme on July 4: The Earth is 4.5B years old and you get to be alive during the Trump presidency!We are getting our country back.But that won't stop the naysayers. No matter how great the news. You would think that if we get legitimate good news, we should all celebrate. Our prayers go out to Texas residents caught in massive floods…See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

State representative Walter Hudson joins Jon Justice on Twin Cities News Talk AM 1130 to talk about the likelihood of Governor Tim Walz running successfully for a third term.Also, the House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Accountability Committee held its first interim hearing this week, scrutinizing the Department of Human Services. Were Democrats interested in the problem? Or did they deflect?Finally, Walter reacts to an op-ed by a university student making her case against having children, which sets up a discussion about the toxic anti-life ideology being taught in our educational institutions.Support the show

On the heels of Independence Day, I want to say to the millions of Americans that we fought and at least temporarily have won the greatest revolution to date in this country. A war no Founding Father could have predicted, given the technologies of today.But their forethought allowed us to see the big picture, and we won in 2016, and perhaps dealt a death blow to Leftism in 2024.Understand that the Declaration of Independence didn't give us our independence but confirmed that we already had it…I saw a meme on July 4: The Earth is 4.5B years old and you get to be alive during the Trump presidency!We are getting our country back.But that won't stop the naysayers. No matter how great the news. You would think that if we get legitimate good news, we should all celebrate. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Imagine trying to explain Leftism to somebody visiting America from another planet...LEGALLY! What would you tell them about Leftists who hate their country and try to do anything destructive to hurt the place? If aliens came to Earth to destroy it, they would cancel plans, and say, "Leftists are already doing a great job!", then take off.Why do Leftists side with anything that penalizes American citizens?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode of Weekend Recap, I discuss another week and the carnage on the Left continues. The stench of decaying Leftist rot permeates all of Democrat-controlled enclaves in America. Metaphorical bodies litter the wasteland of any place where Democrats are in charge. An apocalypse of their own creation.They walk around like Zombies, unaware of how stupid and vulnerable they are. Each of them victims or victims-in-waiting, as they trudge through their meaningless lives waiting for Leftism to finally befall them.The scene is reminiscent of scientists who work on something so destructive, meant to take out their competition, but instead the potion gets leaked in the lab and kills all of them. In the case of Leftism, it didn't leak it. They just carelessly mishandled the Constitution, and it morphed into this grotesque thing called Leftism. It's infected generations of Americans and metastasized into the hideous monster that Leftism has become. Democrats tossed Leftism around like a nuclear bomb whose fuse was set, then BANG!Ah that smell. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How would you explain Leftism to an extraterrestrial? Worse, how would they interpret it, if they landed and turned on any media.No matter how you answer that question, it would land you in an insane asylum or your Leftist city of choice. Because the description of Leftism in an culture is simply, they are crazy. We explore many of the latest examples of cra-cra in this episode and hope you enjoy it.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We welcome Dr. Karlyn Borysenko, an expert guest who has been behind the scenes into the underbelly of leftist activism, only to expose how our cultural enemies think, plan, and infiltrate.  Show Notes Actively Unwoke: The Ultimate Guide for Fighting Back Against the Woke Insanity in Your Life by Karlyn Borysenko A Brief History of Racism by Karlyn Borysenko The 2 reasons totalitarian states detest the Church The Church Speaks to the Modern World: The Social Teachings of Leo XIII We Can't Afford to Be Catholic Anymore | Fr. Robert McTeigue, S.J. iCatholic Mobile The Station of the Cross Merchandise - Use Coupon Code 14STATIONS for 10% off | Catholic to the Max Read Fr. McTeigue's Written Works! "Let's Take A Closer Look" with Fr. Robert McTeigue, S.J. | Full Series Playlist Listen to Fr. McTeigue's Preaching! | Herald of the Gospel Sermons Podcast on Spotify Visit Fr. McTeigue's Website | Herald of the Gospel Questions? Comments? Feedback? Ask Father!

Another week and the carnage on the Left continues. The stench of decaying Leftist rot permeates all of Democrat-controlled enclaves in America. Metaphorical bodies litter the wasteland of any place where Democrats are in charge. An apocalypse of their own creation.They walk around like Zombies, unaware of how stupid and vulnerable they are. Each of them victims or victims-in-waiting, as they trudge through their meaningless lives waiting for Leftism to finally befall them.The scene is reminiscent of scientists who work on something so destructive, meant to take out their competition, but instead the potion gets leaked in the lab and kills all of them. In the case of Leftism, it didn't leak it. They just carelessly mishandled the Constitution, and it morphed into this grotesque thing called Leftism. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

There is no hope for MSNBC. Leftism is baked into their DNA. Hoping for change in them is like expecting a vegan to open a butcher shop.Case in point:MSNBC interviewed Democrat Congressman Ro Khanna who said that the “strike on Iran has caused the first crack in the MAGA base”. [X] SB – Ro KhannaFact that there is a bipartisan opposition alreadyNot bipartisan opposition to much in WA, and people are notFirst true crack in the MAGA base. 1/3 of the people are revolting.A crack in MAGA? A crack in MAGA? What delusion you must suffer to believe that MAGA would abandon President Trump for protecting us now and into the future?MAGA's not cracking; it's doubling down. But the media loves a contrarian Republican to prop up their narrative. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Leftism is under assault...by the Left. And President Trump is making sure it stays that way.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Leftism isn't just misguided; it's a wrecking ball, demolishing truth and reason in its quest for control. The news cycle is a daily reminder of how far they'll go to keep the grift alive, and today's headlines are a goldmine of their self-inflicted wounds.Let's start with Jamie Raskin, the Maryland congressman who's still peddling the Trump-Russia collusion hoax like it's 2016. This guy tweeted that Trump's “owned by the Russians,” despite the Mueller report, Durham investigation, and years of evidence proving the collusion narrative was a Democrat-manufactured lie. Raskin's not dumb—he's just banking on his base's denial. The Left clings to these hoaxes—Russia, January 6th, you name it—because admitting they're wrong means losing their moral high ground. And that's all they've got. Without their “Trump's a traitor” bedtime story, they're just a party of failed policies and bad haircuts. See Raskin's cringe for yourself: Twitchy on Raskin's Russia Hoax.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

America is fighting is most brutal battle to date. And it has changed the course of the war. The 2nd civil war is being fought inside this country.Hard to believe it's happening, but Leftists are sick people.Their decision-making leaves one baffled. Everything they claim to love has been devastated by their policies, but they won't let up. They are determined to prove that their ideas will never work by continually trying them.Leftism enables what happens. Hamas attacks Israel. Leftists in America celebrated.Leftists want to punch us in the mouth. We are winning all their constituencies.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Good evening, folks, and welcome to another dive into the circus of modern politics, where the Left's relentless chase for power, prestige, and cold hard cash has turned them into a laughingstock of self-owning buffoons. It's not just that their ideas are bad—oh no, they're catastrophic. It's that their execution is a masterclass in idiocy, a parade of performative nonsense that'd make a reality TV producer blush. Leftism isn't just an ideology; it's a black hole of destruction, sucking in common sense and spitting out chaos. Let's unpack a few gems from the news cycle to prove it.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Washington Examiner's Lauren Green, State Representative Chuck Wichgers, National Right to Work's Mark Mix, Rep Derrick Van Orden, Rep Tom Tiffany, Rep Bryan Steil

[WEEKEND RECAP 25-233] Don't try to make sense of Leftism… Leftism is on full frontal display daily.But not from Biden. We haven't heard anything from him on LA riotsWe will discuss leftism on the backdrop of the LA riots later, but before we get to that I want to point out a few other things…First, when you consider conservatism, what anvil might befall us? Please tell me what should keep us up at night worrying. NothingBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

[EP 25-231] Leftism is a violent ideology. Because it has to be. When you have no good ideas, you must force people to believe bad is good. And that takes work.But it goes against human nature. People know, for example that they need law enforcement. Simple concept. It's like a child knowing it needs its parent. I'm not saying that law enforcement is a parent to the citizens, but their motto is “protect and serve”. And that is what parents do.Some people are vulnerable and others, predators will take advantage of that. Law enforcement was designed to do exactly that.But we live in a society where people OPENLY advocate to get rid of law enforcement. Why? So they can make the “laws”, and those laws will inevitably benefit only them. Look at how it works now.Hunter Biden should be in prison, but he's not. So should his father.Pelosi insider trades…proudly.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

[EP 25-225] The media continues lying about President Trump and his achievements.The bad news for them is almost every time they lie, the truth follows with a karma kick to their sorry asses.Apparently, the Left's only defense against Trump is to continue the tired olf playbook of Leftism, which is to lie for sport.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

As the United States nears its 250th anniversary, I'm joined by Jeffrey Anderson—President and Founder of American Main Street Initiative—who has a powerful message on the importance of celebrating our nation's history and its heroes. - - -  Today's Sponsor: Beam - Visit https://shopbeam.com/KLAVAN and use code KLAVAN to get our exclusive discount of up to 40% off.

[EP 25-192] Some of you asked my opinion of the 12-foot-tall statue of the overweight Black woman placed prominently in New York City. Well, here you go.My initial reaction upon learning of this statue was, “Holy Mother of Aunt Jemima!” I half-expected to see a stack of bronzed pancakes get rolled out afterwards.This hunk of metal showcases Leftism at its finest. And who better to honor the worst citizens of America: big Black Leftist women.How do I know the statue is about Leftist Black women? Because conservative Black women don't need statues.Conservative Black women are confident about themselves and prefer to be measured on merit, not mocked as false idols made of bronze and bad decisions.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

On This Episode:A LESSON FROM A TREE FALLINGA tree fell in my yard. It elevated some thoughts in me about neighborliness and the blessing of our health.ABUNDANCE vs. AUSTERITYMy entire life, it was the Right that argued for more abundance and Leftism saying we all needed to get by with less. I have some example about how that paradigm is changing as well as asking, "for the Christian, which (abundance or frugality) should be emphasize?PRESCRIPTION EXECUTIVE ORDERThe President says he's going to enforce price controls on pharmaceuticals. Is that a good idea?

[EP 25-187] Have you seen the suicide pod? That's in the news. In the time of Leftism, one can never have the need for ways to commit suicide…We have FBI updates. These will blow your mind. The Biden era FBI was a terrorist organization…against AMERICANS! More on that in a bit.BIG news out of China…this news I have will shock you fa sho. Wackademia stays in the news, doesn't it.First, the University of WA in Seattle, now Columbia University. Let's start there…Columbia University protesters were locked in the building they took over so they can be identified. They arrested them and now many are being deported.Another win for the good guys. Are you keeping count of the wins? Seriously.I talked to a friend of mine who was laid off for the first time in her life. She was distraught. I learned that she got severance, an extension on her living arrangements, and is in her 3rd interview for a new job. She had started saving a year ago and has 6 months of emergency cash.I asked her if she was counting her wins, as she lamented her story…How long do you think it will take for Leftists to realized that we aren't f'g around?Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

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Jonah Goldberg explains how Donald Trump's economic agenda is fundamentally a left-wing one and the Rousseauian roots of his nationalism. Show Notes:—Friday's G-File—Trump's interview with Time The Remnant is a production of The Dispatch, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch's offerings—including Jonah's G-File newsletter, regular livestreams, and other members-only content—click here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[EP 25-175] This is the new world. Leftism has creeped into games. What next, you get a do-over in chess?Dominoes is a game of skill, and of course some luck. But you adjust with each play. But leave it to leftism to make the game pay-to-play. Are the Bidens getting a kickback from this game? After all, it was invented by the CHINESE!Is it any wonder we have devolved to allowing criminals to walk the streets, and Leftists want to bring terrorists back into the country. If you will allow cheating in dominoes, then anything is fair game. As you can see, when you mess with the Black staples, I get upset. No justice no peace!!I want the person who allowed you to BUY better dominoes ARRESTED.Speaking of arrests, I'd like to see more arrests. We got that one low-level judge, but the question was asked could the president arrest a SCOTUS judge. Yes! And what about Congressmen or Senators? Yes.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

In this explosive live episode, Courtenay Turner will unravel the ideological undercurrents of Game~B-a movement positioning itself as a decentralized, pluralistic alternative to modern civilization's “rivalrous systems” while advancing a technocratic vision steeped in Hegelian dialectics and Leftist teleology. Framed as a “post-political” solution to societal collapse, Game~B's fusion of blockchain networks, AI-driven collective intelligence, and utopian rhetoric mirrors the Marxist critique of alienation-yet proposes a technological “Omega Point” eerily aligned with H.G. Wells' World Brain, Teilhard de Chardin's noosphere, and the Dark Enlightenment's war on “The Cathedral”.Key Themes:1: Game~B's Hegelian Roots:• How Game~B's critique of “Game~A” (neoliberal capitalism) recycles Marxist resentment of civilizational “rivalry” while rebranding collectivism as decentralized network states.• Its vision of “emergent coherence” through blockchain and AI mirrors Wells' call for a “permanent World Encyclopedia” and Teilhard's noospheric convergence, fulfilling Leftism's transcendent aspirations without overt coercion.2: The Phoenix Agenda:• Bret Weinstein's call to “Phoenix the Republic” and Jim Rutt's musings on “burning down” civilization's operating system evoke Operation Phoenix's CIA-orchestrated “creative destruction.” Is this a blueprint for controlled collapse?• Parallels to Hesse's Glass Bead Game: Will Game~B's “membranes” of self-organizing networks prioritize spiritual elitism over democratic accountability?3: Technocratic Singularity:• SingularityNET's decentralized AI market and optimal incentives for collective intelligence promise cooperation-but could entrench algorithmic governance.• Teilhard's Omega Point meets Silicon Valley: Is Game~B a secular rapture for the “Cognitariat,” leveraging blockchain to bypass nation-states?4: Leftism in Right-Wing Clothing:• James Lindsay's analysis of Leftist “Manichean telos” finds new expression in Game~B's romanticization of indigenous systems and Aquarian-age rhetoric.• Dark Enlightenment critiques of “The Cathedral” are co-opted to legitimize a post-democratic tech aristocracy. Join Courtenay as she dissects whether Game~B is humanity's salvation-or a Trojan Horse for a digitized Neo-Feudalism. Can decentralized networks transcend ideological capture, or will they amplify the very rivalries they claim to solve? Is the Phoenix a symbol of renewal-or a Tavistock-approved psyop? Tune in for a no-holds-barred exploration of civilization's next OS. __________________________________________________________________ ⁠⁠▶ GET On-Demand Access for Courtenay's Cognitive Liberty Conference⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Cognitive liberty Conference⁠⁠ ----------------------------------------- ▶ Follow & Connect with Courtenay: ⁠⁠CourtenayTurner.com⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Linktree⁠⁠ ▶ Support my work & Affiliate links: ⁠⁠Buy Me A Coffee⁠⁠ ⁠⁠GiveSendGo⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Venmo⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Cash APP⁠⁠ ⁠⁠RNC Store Vitamin B-17!⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Far Infrared Saunas...Promo: COURTZ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Stem Cell Activation⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Gold Gate Capital⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Free Satellite Phone...Promo: COURTZ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠MagicDichol⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Goldbacks=Real Currency! Promo:COURTZ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Honey Colony Health&More...Promo:COURTZ⁠⁠ ▶ Follow Courtenay on Social Media: ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ ⁠⁠TruthSocial⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Telegram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Amazon Music⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Rumble⁠⁠ ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ —————————————————▶ Disclaimer: this is intended to be inspiration & entertainment. We aim to inform, inspire & empower. Guest opinions/ statements are not a reflection of the host or podcast. Please note these are conversational dialogues. All statements and opinions are not necessarily meant to be taken as fact. Please do your own research. Thanks for watching! ————————————————— ©2025 All Rights Reserved ⁠⁠ Courtenay's Substack⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Bringing breadth and depth of context to inform, inspire and empower⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ukrainians have resisted Russia's aggression for years. Since the full-scale invasion of their country in 2022, Ukrainian women in particular have taken on important roles on the frontlines, in civil society, and at home. Gražina Bielousova's research examines how Ukrainian leftist feminists advocate for their causes at home and abroad, facing distinct challenges as they attempt to defend their country. The Ukrainian case is also distinct from Latvia and Lithuania, whose organizing takes on different shapes for the same cause. Bielousova joins Ben Gardner-Gill to explain these interactions and discuss the ongoing process of decolonization in Baltic Studies.Transcript Ben Gardner-Gill: Hello, and welcome to Baltic Ways. I'm your co-host, Ben Gardner-Gill. Today we're talking with Gražina Belousova. Gražina is a feminist scholar of race, religion, and gender in post-Soviet Europe. She earned her PhD from Duke University in 2022. Currently, she is a postdoctoral scholar at Vilnius University's Institute of International Relations and Political Science and a researcher at Vytautas Magnus University.Her current research project focuses on leftist feminisms in East Europe in light of Russia's war against Ukraine, which will culminate in her first book, What's Left of Feminism in East Europe.Gražina, welcome to Baltic Ways.Gražina Belousova: Thank you so much for having me, Ben.BGG: So let's kick off by just hearing a little bit more about your background. I know you finished your PhD pretty recently. Could you tell us a little bit more about how you got into academia, sort of your research interests, and what you're working on at the moment?GB: Right. Yes, I just defended my PhD in 2022. It's hard to believe that it's been nearly three years now. In my PhD, I focused on historical matters. My PhD was in religion and cultural anthropology. And one of the things that I found missing when I was trying to theorize the part of the world that I call home and that most of the world calls Eastern Europe—I realized that I was lacking a solid theory that would bridge economics, anthropology, and religious studies.I wanted to understand how religious difference, especially perceived religious difference, played a role in creating the space that we call Eastern Europe today. And that took me to 18th and 19th century travel writings by Western travelers, oftentimes who were on an official mission, to the edges or to the depths of the Russian Empire.So I've read a lot of ambassadors' letters. I've read a lot of dispatches from St. Petersburg and Moscow, trying to understand how Westerners thought about that religious difference and how that thinking structured their understanding of what this place was and why it was different. What I tried to argue is actually that perceived religious difference was at the root of thinking of Eastern Europe as something different.Now, when I chose to embark on that topic, I had to put another topic aside, which was the question of very contemporary matters, the question of leftist political thought and feminism. At that point, it felt to me more pertinent to write the kind of theory that I felt was missing. When I was given the opportunity to pursue a postdoctoral position at Vilnius University Institute of International Relations and Political Science, I pitched this idea to them.And we very quickly pulled together the application. And the next thing I knew, I was embarking on a project on leftist feminisms in Eastern Europe in light of the war in Ukraine. So, the path was windy, but here I am today, knees and elbows deep, in the project on leftist feminism.BGG: Wonderful. I mean, a windy path is going to be familiar to so many people listening.So, no surprise and no surprise as well that the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has really impacted your work and your life as it has for many of us. So tell us a little bit more about that.Over the last three years, we've been watching and seeing the horrors in Ukraine. From your perspective, from your academic work, what are some of the main things that you're looking at?GB: One of the things that I'm particularly interested in is the way that groups that are on the edges of society, on the margins of society, such as leftists, such as feminists, and especially leftist feminists—when the two come together and try to articulate their social and political vision and explain to themselves and to their fellow compatriots and oftentimes foreign donors, in my case, also Western leftist feminists, their relevance, how they're trying to articulate their position.War has a penchant for heightening nationalist tendencies. And this is not some kind of particular Eastern European pathology. War anywhere is going to produce these results. That is normal. People defend themselves and articulate themselves on the basis on which they're being attacked, on the basis on which they're being bombed.So this is what we are seeing in Ukraine. Leftism in Eastern Europe, because of the Soviet past, is often associated with Soviet nostalgia. Feminism, on the other hand, is oftentimes seen as something antithetical to national identity, something that is imported from the West, and something that either has no relevance or can be dangerous, especially when questions of national unity, questions of national defense come about.That is one of the reasons why I embarked on this journey, and this is one of the reasons why Ukraine had to be part of this picture. Because while the other countries that I'm looking at—Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, and Moldova—experience the threat of invasion, Ukraine is under attack.And one of the things that I'm finding is that Ukrainian leftist feminists are incredibly resourceful and incredibly gifted at articulating their relevance.One of the things that I'm going to say that stems from that understanding of leftist feminism that's erroneous, but that's pervasive, is that Ukrainian leftist feminists do not debate the legitimacy of the Ukrainian state. What is in question is the way things are happening under the conditions of war.The questions of most vulnerable people—so questions of what happens with people with disabilities, questions of what happens to single mothers, questions of what happens to the elderly people who are maybe unable to evacuate, questions of what happens to the working class people—all of these things are at the forefront of their minds. They're trying to be the advocates of their pleas to the larger society, while at the same time trying to articulate Ukraine's right to self-defense to Western leftist feminists.BGG: So they have both this tension, maybe tension is the wrong word, tell me if it isn't, but they have this tension internally where they're trying to advocate for what they see as justice or what is right with a domestic audience who, understandably, may be more frequently focused on what's happening at the front lines.And then there's also this international question, the foreign audience for these Ukrainian leftist feminists, who have a very different perspective on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. And I specifically use that verbiage instead of Russia's invasion of Ukraine because they're going to think about it very differently.So let's split those out a little bit, and I want to start with the domestic. You talked about the advocacy of these leftist feminists for the most marginalized groups in society, for those who are most vulnerable.In your view, where have they been most successful, perhaps? Where have they seen actual progress happen from their advocacy?GB: One of the things that immediately comes to mind, and many of my interlocutors were directly involved with, is the nurses' movement–the unionization and self-organization of the nurses.There is a movement called Be Like Nina, referring to one of the nurses seen as a pioneer of resisting exploitation. And, of course, under the conditions of war, the labor of nurses is incredibly valuable and needed, but not always appropriately compensated. This is what we can call essential labor, especially when we talk about the front lines, where people are wounded.Many of them are wounded very badly on a daily basis. However, there are other things that are happening in the background as well. While a lot of the resources are pulled to the front, there are people who are experiencing regular daily struggles with their health. And the nurses are being stretched very thin.And this was something that was really amazing to me. This was really one of the very few instances where I saw academics who are leftist feminists actually touching the ground with their ideas: where they got involved with helping the nurses organize, but not taking the center stage, where they acted as support, as a resource, but not overtaking the movement, rather creating the conditions under which nurses themselves could articulate what it was that they needed, what their goals were.And that was incredibly impressive to me because healthcare is severely underfunded across the whole region, and to achieve such tangible goals as wage increases and regulations that empower nurses to do their job was truly impressive. With every conversation with a woman—because I specifically talk only to women—I just felt sheer amazement, because this is so contrary to so many imaginations of what civil society, self-organization, or networks are like in Eastern Europe.This is so contrary to what some have called ‘uncivil' society. What is happening is really self-organization and civil society at its best, organized by women who are oftentimes stretched very thin, not just at work, but also at home, women whose husbands are potentially on the front lines.So to me, I really cannot think of anything else that, in terms of real life impact and in terms of transforming people's lives, has been grander (I'm going to go for that word) than this.BGG: That's remarkable, and thank you for bringing that. I had very little idea of this progress and this happening.So you use the term civil society, which I think is quite apt, and Western conceptions of civil society in the region that we call Eastern Europe can be highly misguided. Let's just put it like that. I think back to a webinar that the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies (AABS) hosted on Ukrainian civil society, democratization, responses to the war, and we have this comparative Ukrainian and Baltic perspective, where we looked at how Ukrainian civil society was responding.We looked at how Baltic civil society was responding, and you're doing something similar in your research here. You're looking at Latvia and Lithuania as two of the other case studies, in addition to Poland, Moldova, and, of course, Ukraine. One thing that I think we can all observe just from watching the news, let alone being in the countries as well, is that civil society across the region has had this really robust response in the last few years.So could you speak a little bit more to that in the comparative cases outside of Ukraine that you're looking at in your research, especially Latvia and Lithuania?GB: For sure. I think that in order to theorize civil society and the region in general, we need better theory than has been used often to talk about civil society at large.Here, for example, I'm thinking about Emily Channel Justice and her work and the way that she articulates the notion of self-organization. The way that she thinks about Ukraine, especially in the context of Maidan. The way that it left a self-organization, but that can be applied also to any form of civil society, regardless of ideology, is really a network of decentralized, self-organized people's groups.If you were to look for some kind of central organizing pattern, or some kind of centralized way of doing things, most likely you're not going to find it because it's based on personal network, connections, and localized issues. And I think that's definitely something that I'm seeing in Ukraine.One of the things that I'm seeing in Lithuania and Latvia is that it's going to differ slightly because there are going to be more central organizing figures. If we talk about organizing support for Ukraine, one of the things that we're going to see is that people are going to point to nationwide initiatives.Right now in Lithuania, there is an initiative called Radarum, which is a play on words, on radar and on darom, which is a Lithuanian word for let's do it. And it's a nationwide initiative to collect funds to purchase drones and anti-drone equipment for Ukraine. And there are particular faces that we associate with this initiative.National television is running ads for it. So there's a little bit more of a centralized sense to it. But once again, I would say that this is the mainstream way of organizing civil society, which, of course, with Westernization, has taken on some of the patterns that are similar to the West.If we look towards the left, we're going to see very much that it is self-organized, small groups of people who take different initiatives, such as raising funds for medical care, such as raising funds for queer people in Ukraine. So the more mainstream we go, the more patterns that are akin to those that we see in the West we're going to see.That is also going to be true in Latvia. The further left we go, the more organic, grassroots, self-organized cells of people we're going to find who participate in smaller, less visible initiatives. So that's probably the best way that I can explain the difference.BGG: Got it. We see this distinction of centralization and decentralization.One could consider these different types of movements organic in their own ways, but different in different ways. When one thinks of leftist organizing, which has a long and rich history, organic is sort of one of the key words.It's perpetual, and these society-wide initiatives, like what's currently going on in Lithuania, that we've seen across other countries over the last few years, are maybe a little bit less frequent and less common. So there's an important distinction there.So I want to pivot to the international dimension of how the Ukrainian leftist feminists are talking, especially with Western counterparts. And by Western, we mean Western Europe. We mean American and Canadian. We mean Western, as in not Eastern Europe. So could you talk a little bit about the challenges they're facing there?I think I alluded to it earlier. You alluded to it earlier, but could you dive a little bit more into that discourse, that dialogue between the Ukrainians and their counterparts?GB: This is the main point of contention. What does it mean to be leftist? How much does local experience shape being leftist?What is the relationship of the left to the national question? And I think this is where we are seeing the real tension. Underlying this tension, of course, is the question of Russia. Let me try to unpack this. And I'm going to start from the other end than I listed, which is with the question of Russia.Eastern European in general, and Ukrainian in particular, leftist feminists have a very different understanding as to what Russia is in terms of geopolitics than the Western counterparts are going to have. This stems from very different histories. Western leftism—especially the new wave of leftism that arose in the sixties and the seventies—in many ways has redefined itself not just through the questions of class, which I would argue were lost to some extent. They lost their centrality.And they redefined themselves through the anti-colonial, anti-racist struggle. And that struggle was particularly important because after the fall of the formal colonial system, the colonial patterns of economic exploitation, of social exploitation, of brain drain still very much persisted. And naming that and defining themselves against Western neoimperialism or neocolonialism in the Global South was one of the most defining features of the Left, both in the Global South and in the West. Now, Russia at that time had positioned itself as the ally of the colonized countries. And some of it was pure show, and some of it was actual money, resources, and help that were sent, for example, to Angola. And that made a real difference. Whether that was genuine concern for the colonized people or whether that was an ideological tool is a matter of debate.Whatever it was, it had a profound impact on the way that Western leftists relate to Russia. They continue to see Russia out of that tradition, in many ways, as an ally against Western capitalism and imperialism. Their empire, against which they define themselves, continues to be in the West, and oftentimes is seen as centered on the United States.The empire against which we define ourselves in Eastern Europe is Russia, because Russia was the colonizing power in a very real sense in the region. It was our empire that subjugated us. It was the colonial power that engaged in just about every single practice in which any colonial power engages in the region.For us, if we think outside of ourselves, Russia continues to be the colonial power in the way that it relates to Central Asia, in the way that it relates to the indigenous people of Siberia, in the way that it continues to conduct business. So both the left in the West and the left in the East continue to define themselves against the empire, but disagree on who the empire is.The fundamental difference is the question of Russia. Because of the way that Western leftists, and particularly Western leftist feminists, have been taught to see the world, the way that they have been habituated to see the world, they're unable to see Russia as an aggressor. They're unable to change their narrative about how NATO might act.And of course, the criticisms of continued Western abuses of power, especially when they center on the United States—such as Afghanistan or such as Iraq, but also here in the European context, intra-European context, Serbia is another context in which that comes up—are highly debatable questions, but they're seen a certain way. They're understood in a certain way by Western leftists. And because of Russia's criticism of the West, Western leftists see it as a natural ally, or at least as an equally guilty party.BGG: That's a really great explanation. I think the way that you've laid that out makes a lot of sense.It also harkens back to where I want to bring this, which is the debate that has been going on in Baltic studies and other academic fields, especially those focusing on the region, about thinking about Baltic history in particular as a colonial history and thinking about what it means to decolonize Baltic studies as a field, to decolonize our academic thinking. There have been a lot of discussions.I know that we were in the same room at the AABS panel at Yale last year on that fantastic panel about decolonization. Where do you think this leads with regard to your research specifically? There's already this trend in this field. I get the sense that you are an advocate and moving forward in land seeking for the field as a whole to move in that direction.What do you think the next steps are? What paths do you think could be taken? What do people need to be thinking about that they may not already be thinking about?GB: Well, I think for me, the key question when we are talking about Baltic studies and decolonization is what is it that we talk about when we talk about decolonizing Baltic studies or Baltic countries?Because I think sometimes we're talking about four different things. We are talking about the question of colonialism and coloniality. That's one. We are talking about imperialism, Russian imperialism, and Russian imperiality. We are talking about Russification and what it means to de-Russify. And we are also talking about Sovietization and what it means to de-Sovietize.And I would argue that while these four concepts are very much interrelated, they have very different agendas. So, I think it's a question of definitions. How do we define what our agenda is? Which of the four do we have in mind when we talk about decolonizing Baltic countries, Baltic studies, or anything else?And I would say that each of the four has its place and is significant. But the flip side of that, especially if we stay with the question of decolonization, is the question of Western theory, practice, and scholarship as it relates to Baltic studies. Because if we go back to the early questions in the conversation of what is civil society and whether there is a civil society, Baltic countries and the region as a whole are pathologized.Because the concept of what civil society is, or is not, was based on Western understandings and Western practices. And it rendered civil society in the region invisible. In what ways does the production of scholarship and knowledge about the region continue to be based in very unequal power relationships, in such a way that it continues to pathologize the region?And these are very uncomfortable questions, because much like, you know, in the late eighteenth century when the Lithuanian Polish Commonwealth was divided between the three powers, we're facing the same question: Who is our ally? Because we have learned that Russia is definitely not, but the West is also a problematic ally.This is where I think the question of what it means to center the study of the region in the theory, in the practice, in the questions that actually originate from the ground up, are so important. And I'm not ditching all Western scholarship out the window. That would be throwing the baby out with the bathwater.But I'm saying, what does it mean to balance? What does it mean to center? What does it mean to change the parameters of the conversation?BGG: Those are some weighty questions. I think they're good questions that the field is, I would say not even starting to engage with, but is engaging with, which is really excellent, but it's a long path.As anyone who is a scholar of decolonization will tell you, it doesn't happen overnight. It doesn't happen over a decade. It's sort of a continuous process. So, I think that is where we're going to have to leave it, knowing that there is so much more we could have talked about. But, Gražina, thank you so much.This has been a fascinating conversation. Thank you for joining Baltic Ways.GB: Thank you so much for having me, Ben. It's been a privilege.BGG: Thank you for listening to this episode of Baltic Ways, a co-production of the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies and the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI). A note that the views expressed in this and every Baltic Ways episode do not necessarily reflect those of AABS or FPRI.To ensure you catch the next episode of Baltic Ways, make sure you're subscribed to your podcast feed or wherever you get your shows. Thanks so much, and we'll see you next time. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

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Ukrainians have resisted Russia's aggression for years. Since the full-scale invasion of their country in 2022, Ukrainian women in particular have taken on important roles on the frontlines, in civil society, and at home. Gražina Bielousova's research examines how Ukrainian leftist feminists advocate for their causes at home and abroad, facing distinct sets of challenges as they attempt to defend their country. The Ukrainian case is also distinct in comparison to Latvia and Lithuania, whose organizing takes on different shapes for the same cause. Bielousova joins Ben Gardner-Gill to explain these interactions and discuss the ongoing process of decolonization in Baltic Studies.TranscriptBen Gardner-Gill: Hello, and welcome to Baltic Ways. I'm your co-host, Ben Gardner-Gill. Today we're talking with Gražina Belousova. Gražina is a feminist scholar of race, religion, and gender in post-Soviet Europe. She earned her PhD from Duke University in 2022. Currently, she is a postdoctoral scholar at Vilnius University's Institute of International Relations and Political Science and a researcher at Vytautas Magnus University.Her current research project focuses on leftist feminisms in East Europe in light of Russia's war against Ukraine, which will culminate in her first book, What's Left of Feminism in East Europe.Gražina, welcome to Baltic Ways.Gražina Belousova: Thank you so much for having me, Ben.BGG: So let's kick off by just hearing a little bit more about your background. I know you finished your PhD pretty recently. Could you tell us a little bit more about how you got into academia, sort of your research interests, and what you're working on at the moment?GB: Right. Yes, I just defended my PhD in 2022. It's hard to believe that it's been nearly three years now. In my PhD, I focused on historical matters. My PhD was in religion and cultural anthropology. And one of the things that I found missing when I was trying to theorize the part of the world that I call home and that most of the world calls Eastern Europe—I realized that I was lacking a solid theory that would bridge economics, anthropology, and religious studies.I wanted to understand how religious difference, especially perceived religious difference, played a role in creating the space that we call Eastern Europe today. And that took me to 18th and 19th century travel writings by Western travelers, oftentimes who were on an official mission, to the edges or to the depths of the Russian Empire.So I've read a lot of ambassadors' letters. I've read a lot of dispatches from St. Petersburg and Moscow, trying to understand how Westerners thought about that religious difference and how that thinking structured their understanding of what this place was and why it was different. What I tried to argue is actually that perceived religious difference was at the root of thinking of Eastern Europe as something different.Now, when I chose to embark on that topic, I had to put another topic aside, which was the question of very contemporary matters, the question of leftist political thought and feminism. At that point, it felt to me more pertinent to write the kind of theory that I felt was missing. When I was given the opportunity to pursue a postdoctoral position at Vilnius University Institute of International Relations and Political Science, I pitched this idea to them.And we very quickly pulled together the application. And the next thing I knew, I was embarking on a project on leftist feminisms in Eastern Europe in light of the war in Ukraine. So, the path was windy, but here I am today, knees and elbows deep, in the project on leftist feminism.BGG: Wonderful. I mean, a windy path is going to be familiar to so many people listening.So, no surprise and no surprise as well that the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has really impacted your work and your life as it has for many of us. So tell us a little bit more about that.Over the last three years, we've been watching and seeing the horrors in Ukraine. From your perspective, from your academic work, what are some of the main things that you're looking at?GB: One of the things that I'm particularly interested in is the way that groups that are on the edges of society, on the margins of society, such as leftists, such as feminists, and especially leftist feminists—when the two come together and try to articulate their social and political vision and explain to themselves and to their fellow compatriots and oftentimes foreign donors, in my case, also Western leftist feminists, their relevance, how they're trying to articulate their position.War has a penchant for heightening nationalist tendencies. And this is not some kind of particular Eastern European pathology. War anywhere is going to produce these results. That is normal. People defend themselves and articulate themselves on the basis on which they're being attacked, on the basis on which they're being bombed.So this is what we are seeing in Ukraine. Leftism in Eastern Europe, because of the Soviet past, is often associated with Soviet nostalgia. Feminism, on the other hand, is oftentimes seen as something antithetical to national identity, something that is imported from the West, and something that either has no relevance or can be dangerous, especially when questions of national unity, questions of national defense come about.That is one of the reasons why I embarked on this journey, and this is one of the reasons why Ukraine had to be part of this picture. Because while the other countries that I'm looking at—Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, and Moldova—experience the threat of invasion, Ukraine is under attack.And one of the things that I'm finding is that Ukrainian leftist feminists are incredibly resourceful and incredibly gifted at articulating their relevance.One of the things that I'm going to say that stems from that understanding of leftist feminism that's erroneous, but that's pervasive, is that Ukrainian leftist feminists do not debate the legitimacy of the Ukrainian state. What is in question is the way things are happening under the conditions of war.The questions of most vulnerable people—so questions of what happens with people with disabilities, questions of what happens to single mothers, questions of what happens to the elderly people who are maybe unable to evacuate, questions of what happens to the working class people—all of these things are at the forefront of their minds. They're trying to be the advocates of their pleas to the larger society, while at the same time trying to articulate Ukraine's right to self-defense to Western leftist feminists.BGG: So they have both this tension, maybe tension is the wrong word, tell me if it isn't, but they have this tension internally where they're trying to advocate for what they see as justice or what is right with a domestic audience who, understandably, may be more frequently focused on what's happening at the front lines.And then there's also this international question, the foreign audience for these Ukrainian leftist feminists, who have a very different perspective on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. And I specifically use that verbiage instead of Russia's invasion of Ukraine because they're going to think about it very differently.So let's split those out a little bit, and I want to start with the domestic. You talked about the advocacy of these leftist feminists for the most marginalized groups in society, for those who are most vulnerable.In your view, where have they been most successful, perhaps? Where have they seen actual progress happen from their advocacy?GB: One of the things that immediately comes to mind, and many of my interlocutors were directly involved with, is the nurses' movement–the unionization and self-organization of the nurses.There is a movement called Be Like Nina, referring to one of the nurses seen as a pioneer of resisting exploitation. And, of course, under the conditions of war, the labor of nurses is incredibly valuable and needed, but not always appropriately compensated. This is what we can call essential labor, especially when we talk about the front lines, where people are wounded.Many of them are wounded very badly on a daily basis. However, there are other things that are happening in the background as well. While a lot of the resources are pulled to the front, there are people who are experiencing regular daily struggles with their health. And the nurses are being stretched very thin.And this was something that was really amazing to me. This was really one of the very few instances where I saw academics who are leftist feminists actually touching the ground with their ideas: where they got involved with helping the nurses organize, but not taking the center stage, where they acted as support, as a resource, but not overtaking the movement, rather creating the conditions under which nurses themselves could articulate what it was that they needed, what their goals were.And that was incredibly impressive to me because healthcare is severely underfunded across the whole region, and to achieve such tangible goals as wage increases and regulations that empower nurses to do their job was truly impressive. With every conversation with a woman—because I specifically talk only to women—I just felt sheer amazement, because this is so contrary to so many imaginations of what civil society, self-organization, or networks are like in Eastern Europe.This is so contrary to what some have called ‘uncivil' society. What is happening is really self-organization and civil society at its best, organized by women who are oftentimes stretched very thin, not just at work, but also at home, women whose husbands are potentially on the front lines.So to me, I really cannot think of anything else that, in terms of real life impact and in terms of transforming people's lives, has been grander (I'm going to go for that word) than this.BGG: That's remarkable, and thank you for bringing that. I had very little idea of this progress and this happening.So you use the term civil society, which I think is quite apt, and Western conceptions of civil society in the region that we call Eastern Europe can be highly misguided. Let's just put it like that. I think back to a webinar that the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies (AABS) hosted on Ukrainian civil society, democratization, responses to the war, and we have this comparative Ukrainian and Baltic perspective, where we looked at how Ukrainian civil society was responding.We looked at how Baltic civil society was responding, and you're doing something similar in your research here. You're looking at Latvia and Lithuania as two of the other case studies, in addition to Poland, Moldova, and, of course, Ukraine. One thing that I think we can all observe just from watching the news, let alone being in the countries as well, is that civil society across the region has had this really robust response in the last few years.So could you speak a little bit more to that in the comparative cases outside of Ukraine that you're looking at in your research, especially Latvia and Lithuania?GB: For sure. I think that in order to theorize civil society and the region in general, we need better theory than has been used often to talk about civil society at large.Here, for example, I'm thinking about Emily Channel Justice and her work and the way that she articulates the notion of self-organization. The way that she thinks about Ukraine, especially in the context of Maidan. The way that it left a self-organization, but that can be applied also to any form of civil society, regardless of ideology, is really a network of decentralized, self-organized people's groups.If you were to look for some kind of central organizing pattern, or some kind of centralized way of doing things, most likely you're not going to find it because it's based on personal network, connections, and localized issues. And I think that's definitely something that I'm seeing in Ukraine.One of the things that I'm seeing in Lithuania and Latvia is that it's going to differ slightly because there are going to be more central organizing figures. If we talk about organizing support for Ukraine, one of the things that we're going to see is that people are going to point to nationwide initiatives.Right now in Lithuania, there is an initiative called Radarum, which is a play on words, on radar and on darom, which is a Lithuanian word for let's do it. And it's a nationwide initiative to collect funds to purchase drones and anti-drone equipment for Ukraine. And there are particular faces that we associate with this initiative.National television is running ads for it. So there's a little bit more of a centralized sense to it. But once again, I would say that this is the mainstream way of organizing civil society, which, of course, with Westernization, has taken on some of the patterns that are similar to the West.If we look towards the left, we're going to see very much that it is self-organized, small groups of people who take different initiatives, such as raising funds for medical care, such as raising funds for queer people in Ukraine. So the more mainstream we go, the more patterns that are akin to those that we see in the West we're going to see.That is also going to be true in Latvia. The further left we go, the more organic, grassroots, self-organized cells of people we're going to find who participate in smaller, less visible initiatives. So that's probably the best way that I can explain the difference.BGG: Got it. We see this distinction of centralization and decentralization.One could consider these different types of movements organic in their own ways, but different in different ways. When one thinks of leftist organizing, which has a long and rich history, organic is sort of one of the key words.It's perpetual, and these society-wide initiatives, like what's currently going on in Lithuania, that we've seen across other countries over the last few years, are maybe a little bit less frequent and less common. So there's an important distinction there.So I want to pivot to the international dimension of how the Ukrainian leftist feminists are talking, especially with Western counterparts. And by Western, we mean Western Europe. We mean American and Canadian. We mean Western, as in not Eastern Europe. So could you talk a little bit about the challenges they're facing there?I think I alluded to it earlier, and you alluded to it earlier, but could you dive a little bit more into that discourse, that dialogue between the Ukrainians and their counterparts?GB: This is the main point of contention. What does it mean to be leftist? How much does local experience shape being leftist?What is the relationship of the left to the national question? And I think this is where we are seeing the real tension. Underlying this tension, of course, is the question of Russia. Let me try to unpack this. And I'm going to start from the other end than I listed, which is with the question of Russia.Eastern European in general, and Ukrainian in particular, leftist feminists have a very different understanding as to what Russia is in terms of geopolitics than the Western counterparts are going to have. This stems from very different histories. Western leftism—especially the new wave of leftism that arose in the sixties and the seventies—in many ways has redefined itself not just through the questions of class, which I would argue were lost to some extent. They lost their centrality.And they redefined themselves through the anti-colonial, anti-racist struggle. And that struggle was particularly important because after the fall of the formal colonial system, the colonial patterns of economic exploitation, of social exploitation, of brain drain still very much persisted. And naming that and defining themselves against Western neoimperialism or neocolonialism in the Global South was one of the most defining features of the Left, both in the Global South and in the West. Now, Russia at that time had positioned itself as the ally of the colonized countries. And some of it was pure show, and some of it was actual money, resources, and help that were sent, for example, to Angola. And that made a real difference. Whether that was genuine concern for the colonized people or whether that was an ideological tool is a matter of debate.Whatever it was, it had a profound impact on the way that Western leftists relate to Russia. They continue to see Russia out of that tradition, in many ways, as an ally against Western capitalism and imperialism. Their empire, against which they define themselves, continues to be in the West, and oftentimes is seen as centered on the United States.The empire against which we define ourselves in Eastern Europe is Russia, because Russia was the colonizing power in a very real sense in the region. It was our empire that subjugated us. It was the colonial power that engaged in just about every single practice in which any colonial power engages in the region.For us, if we think outside of ourselves, Russia continues to be the colonial power in the way that it relates to Central Asia, in the way that it relates to the indigenous people of Siberia, in the way that it continues to conduct business. So both the left in the West and the left in the East continue to define themselves against the empire, but disagree on who the empire is.The fundamental difference is the question of Russia. Because of the way that Western leftists, and particularly Western leftist feminists, have been taught to see the world, the way that they have been habituated to see the world, they're unable to see Russia as an aggressor. They're unable to change their narrative about how NATO might act.And of course, the criticisms of continued Western abuses of power, especially when they center on the United States—such as Afghanistan or such as Iraq, but also here in the European context, intra-European context, Serbia is another context in which that comes up—are highly debatable questions, but they're seen a certain way. They're understood in a certain way by Western leftists. And because of Russia's criticism of the West, Western leftists see it as a natural ally, or at least as an equally guilty party.BGG: That's a really great explanation. I think the way that you've laid that out makes a lot of sense.It also harkens back to where I want to bring this, which is the debate that has been going on in Baltic studies and other academic fields, especially those focusing on the region, about thinking about Baltic history in particular as a colonial history and thinking about what it means to decolonize Baltic studies as a field, to decolonize our academic thinking. There have been a lot of discussions.I know that we were in the same room at the AABS panel at Yale last year on that fantastic panel about decolonization. Where do you think this leads with regard to your research specifically? There's already this trend in this field. I get the sense that you are an advocate and moving forward in land seeking for the field as a whole to move in that direction.What do you think the next steps are? What paths do you think could be taken? What do people need to be thinking about that they may not already be thinking about?GB: Well, I think for me, the key question when we are talking about Baltic studies and decolonization is what is it that we talk about when we talk about decolonizing Baltic studies or Baltic countries?Because I think sometimes we're talking about four different things. We are talking about the question of colonialism and coloniality. That's one. We are talking about imperialism, Russian imperialism, and Russian imperiality. We are talking about Russification and what it means to de-Russify. And we are also talking about Sovietization and what it means to de-Sovietize.And I would argue that while these four concepts are very much interrelated, they have very different agendas. So, I think it's a question of definitions. How do we define what our agenda is? Which of the four do we have in mind when we talk about decolonizing Baltic countries, Baltic studies, or anything else?And I would say that each of the four has its place and is significant. But the flip side of that, especially if we stay with the question of decolonization, is the question of Western theory, practice, and scholarship as it relates to Baltic studies. Because if we go back to the early questions in the conversation of what is civil society and whether there is a civil society, Baltic countries and the region as a whole are pathologized.Because the concept of what civil society is, or is not, was based on Western understandings and Western practices. And it rendered civil society in the region invisible. In what ways does the production of scholarship and knowledge about the region continue to be based in very unequal power relationships, in such a way that it continues to pathologize the region?And these are very uncomfortable questions, because much like, you know, in the late eighteenth century when the Lithuanian Polish Commonwealth was divided between the three powers, we're facing the same question: Who is our ally? Because we have learned that Russia is definitely not, but the West is also a problematic ally.This is where I think the question of what it means to center the study of the region in the theory, in the practice, in the questions that actually originate from the ground up, rather than are solely important. And I'm not ditching all Western scholarship out the window. That would be throwing the baby out with the bathwater.But I'm saying, what does it mean to balance? What does it mean to center? What does it mean to change the parameters of the conversation?BGG: Those are some weighty questions. I think they're good questions that the field is, I would say not even starting to engage with, but is engaging with, which is really excellent, but it's a long path.As anyone who is a scholar of decolonization will tell you, it doesn't happen overnight. It doesn't happen over a decade. It's sort of a continuous process. So, I think that is where we're going to have to leave it, knowing that there is so much more we could have talked about. But, Gražina, thank you so much.This has been a fascinating conversation. Thank you for joining Baltic Ways.GB: Thank you so much for having me, Ben. It's been a privilege.To ensure you catch the next episode of Baltic Ways, make sure you're subscribed to your podcast feed or wherever you get your shows. Thanks so much, and we'll see you next time.(Image: Facebook | Феміністична майстерня)Baltic Ways is a podcast from the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies, produced in partnership with the Baltic Initiative at the Foreign Policy Research Institute. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of AABS or FPRI. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit fpribalticinitiative.substack.com

[EP 25-160] Have you thought about all that has been exposed and what's coming, and then asked yourself how Democrats can continue with these games? Only the most warped people would think they can continue the ruse. It just goes to show you how powerful the forces of Leftism are. Most surprising is that NOBODY has been arrested.Joe Biden is corrupt and was demented. FACTS. He used autopen to pardon known criminals in multiple areas, and yet nothing has happened. We KNOW that Fauci financed gain of function and that covid was intentionally released in this country to cheat in the 2020 election. Nobody in prison. J6. Do I really need to comment. Fake data on everything from vaccine efficacy to our food, and nobody in prison.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

"It feels triggering so they have to take the opposite position." May Mailman is Deputy Assistant to the President & Senior Policy Strategist.

[EP 25-154] As I look at the news cycle, I ask myself what happened to truth and sanity. None of us are perfect, and there are times when the lie is easier. I will even entertain the insane from time to time, meaning we all have a little crazy in us. But what I'm seeing from Democrats these days is beyond comparison. It's like they have completely given up on seeing reason or at least listening to it.They fight us for sport, and not because they care about their issues. I've asked the question, “Help me make sense of Leftism”, but you simply can't do it, except to realize Leftism wants what it wants no matter the consequences.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

[WEEKENED RECAP 04-05-25] I often wondered if Leftism had a syndrome or something, so I looked it up. Leftism is defined in part by the Dunning-Kruger effect. The Dunning-Kruger effect is the scientific term for "clueless people who think they're experts." It's the reason your uncle at Thanksgiving rants about geopolitics despite never having left his hometown, or why that guy on Twitter with 12 followers declares himself a "thought leader."As Charles Darwin (who definitely didn't suffer from this) once wrote: "Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge." In other words: The less someone knows about a subject, the more certain they are about the subject. How It Works (Or, More Accurately, How It Fails) Psychologists David Dunning and Justin Kruger proved something obvious but depressing: The worst performers are the least capable of recognizing their own incompetence. That's why they consistently view themselves as better, more capable, and more knowledgeable than others.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

[EP 25-136] Did you survive Doomsday? More Democrats in NY did. They announced that for the first time in 30 years, there were 0 shootings in a 5-day period. Hunter Biden has been disbarred. So he didn't fare well on Tariff Day. Fauci's wife got fired from NIH. What took so long?! [X] SB – Hakeem Jeffries on SAVE Act  Gold hit another high, and the bottom didn't drop out of the market. In fact, when I took a glance at the market on Apr 2, all the indexes were high. Another thing Leftists want to happen is for Tesla to tank. The stock has taken a hit. And you can bet that in a few months, this will be the BEST BUY in the market. On Doomsday the stock rose. In as much as one can trust a gamble, I will tell you, Tesla's stock growth is a lock.But let's focus on tariffs for bit, because they are a great metaphor for Leftism. Cheering against America. Here are a few headlines from Doomsday: Treasury Yields Rebound With Europe's Before Tariff Unveiling Trump's tariffs stoke concerns that GOP ‘can kiss goodbye' majority. EU plans measures to guard against Trump tariffs Stocks turn higher in wait for Trump's tariff reveal.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

Dan Schneider, Vice President for Free Speech at the Media Research Center, joins me to discuss Big Tech's censorship of conservative voices and the legacy media's unwillingness to reform in the wake of Trump's 2024 election victory. - - -  Today's Sponsor: Helix Sleep - Go to https://helixsleep.com/klavan to get an exclusive offer.

Today, we're excited to sit down with Nicole Shanahan, lawyer, philanthropist, founder of the Bia-Echo Foundation, and RFK Jr.'s former running mate, to discuss her faith journey and conversion to Christianity after the loss of her unborn child to miscarriage. She tells us about her journey on the campaign trail and how she lost friends and supporters over her political stance. We also talk about some "right-wing" vaccine conspiracy theories and how some of them might not be as far-fetched as they might seem. Nicole tells us about the "tech wife mafia" in Silicon Valley and how these women and Hollywood have changed progressive culture for the worse. And Nicole shares what she's doing to help the beautiful state of California. Share the Arrows 2025 is on October 11 in Dallas, Texas! Go to sharethearrows.com for tickets now! Buy Allie's new book, "Toxic Empathy: How Progressives Exploit Christian Compassion": https://a.co/d/4COtBxy --- Timecodes: (01:17) Nicole's miscarriage  (09:10) Nicole's conversion and baptism (23:48) Experiences on the campaign trail (27:43) COVID vaccine conspiracy theories (32:02) Pro-life perspective  (41:09) Women's fertility longevity and IVF  (52:15) Progressives being used to make enemies (55:19) Nicole's daughter's autism diagnosis (01:08:18) Do vaccines cause autism? (01:12:08) “Tech wife mafia” and the Great Reset (01:24:46) Helping California --- Today's Sponsors: We Heart Nutrition — Get 20% off women's vitamins with We Heart Nutrition, and get your first bottle of their new supplement, Wholesome Balance; use code ALLIE at https://www.WeHeartNutrition.com. CrowdHealth — get your first 3 months for just $99/month. Use promo code 'ALLIE' when you sign up at JoinCrowdHealth.com. Pre-Born — Will you help rescue babies' lives? Donate by calling #250 & say keyword 'BABY' or go to Preborn.com/ALLIE. Hillsdale College — Hillsdale College is offering more than 40 free online courses they offer on History, Economics, Politics, Philosophy, and more, including their free course, "Introduction to Aristotle's Ethics: How to Lead a Good Life," all available for FREE. Go to https://hillsdale.edu/relatable to enroll. --- Related Episodes: Ep 902 | Kat Von D on Becoming a Christian https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-902-kat-von-d-on-becoming-a-christian/id1359249098?i=1000633896154 Ep 1102 | Did Trump Just Stop the Great Reset? | Guest: Justin Haskins https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-1102-did-trump-just-stop-the-great-reset-guest/id1359249098?i=1000677374601 --- Buy Allie's book, You're Not Enough (& That's Okay): Escaping the Toxic Culture of Self-Love: https://alliebethstuckey.com/book Relatable merchandise – use promo code 'ALLIE10' for a discount: https://shop.blazemedia.com/collections/allie-stuckey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leftism loses the Super Bowl, Vice President Vance encourages grace for a DOGE staffer who made edgy comments online, and Kanye West has a meltdown on X. Click here to join the member-exclusive portion of my show: https://bit.ly/4biDlri Ep.1670 - - - DailyWire+: Now is the time to join the fight. Watch the hit movies, documentaries, and series reshaping our culture. Go to https://dailywire.com/subscribe today. "Identity Crisis" tells the stories the mainstream media won't. Stream the full film now, only on DailyWire+: https://bit.ly/3C61qVU Order your Mayflower Cigars here: https://bit.ly/3Qwwxx2 (Must be 21+ to purchase. Exclusions may apply) - - - Today's Sponsors: Balance of Nature - Go to https://balanceofnature.com and use promo code KNOWLES for 35% off your first order PLUS get a free bottle of Fiber and Spice. Home Title Lock - Go to https://hometitlelock.com and use promo code KNOWLES25 to save 25% and receive a FREE title history report to ensure you're not already a victim! Lumen - Take the next step to improving your health: go to https://lumen.me/KNOWLES to get 20% off your Lumen. - - - Socials: Follow on Twitter: https://bit.ly/3RwKpq6 Follow on Instagram: https://bit.ly/3BqZLXA Follow on Facebook: https://bit.ly/3eEmwyg Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3L273Ek

Matt Walsh returns to the show to discuss his unexpected turn to filmmaking, how groupthink keeps people obedient, how dismantling is the defining characteristic of leftism, and the Variety hitpiece about him submitting his film “Am I Racist?” to the Oscars. Then, Maha Abouelenein joins the show to talk about her book “7 Rules of Self-Reliance”, how “showing up” is everything, helping Netflix launch in the Middle East, and the Middle East's love of comedy. For more with Matt Walsh: ● NEW MOVIE: Am I Racist? - available on DailyWire+ ● PODCAST: The Matt Walsh Show - available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts & Spotify ● INSTAGRAM & X: @mattwalshblog For more with Maha Abouelenein: ● NEW BOOK: 7 Rules of Self-Reliance - available wherever finer books are sold. ● INSTAGRAM & X: @magagaber Thank you for supporting our sponsors: ● http://SimpliSafe.com/Adam ● https://allfamilypharma.com/adam ● This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp http://BetterHelp.com/Carolla ● RuffGreens.com, use code: Adam ● http://OReillyAuto.com/Adam