Social media has been filled with clips of Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee for mayor of NYC. He's been proving quite the foil for Andrew Cuomo's attempt to upset Zohran Mamdani. But who is this man, exactly? Derek and Julian discuss.
Show Notes
16 Cats, 320 Square Feet and One Long-Shot Candidate for Mayor
7 Takeaways From the Final N.Y.C. Mayoral Debate
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
--------
33:21
--------
33:21
280: Peter Thiel is Definitely Not the Antichrist
Tech billionaire Peter Thiel is no cuck philanthropist. The co-founder of Palantir is leading his company at the bleeding edge of mass surveillance, facial recognition, predictive policing, and AI-assisted warfare. He also fancies himself a political player, responsible for funding his protege, JD Vance, to a heartbeat away from the presidency. Considering this CV, the announcement that Thiel would give a series of four lectures on the AntiChrist was puzzling.
Why would a tech-bro with a notoriously awkward and inarticulate speaking style hold forth on religious prophecy? Or would this be a coming out party, where he would finally confirm his alliance with Satan? Now that the lectures have happened, we can finally tell you—and later, we’ll frame it in the context of Thiel’s mentor, René Girard.
Show Notes
Inside tech billionaire Peter Thiel’s off-the-record lectures about the antichrist
It Kind of Seems Like Peter Thiel Is Losing It
Battling to the End: Conversations with Benoît Chantre: René Girard
I See Satan Fall Like Lightning: René Girard
“A Geometry of Desire: René Girard’s Mimetic Theory, Part 1.”: John Ganz
“The Iron Triangle: René Girard’s Mimetic Theory, Part 2.”: John Ganz
“Escaping the Kingdom of Futility: René Girard’s Mimetic Theory, Part 3.”: John Ganz
“The Cure for Envy: René Girard’s Mimetic Theory, Part 4.”: John Ganz
Know Your Enemy Ep 87, featuring John Ganz
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
--------
1:08:14
--------
1:08:14
Portland Has (Not) Fallen (For It)
Listen to the full episode on Patreon
After attending the No Kings rally in Portland on Saturday, Derek shares some thoughts about the week leading up to the nationwide protests.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
--------
5:23
--------
5:23
Brief: “Weird Stephen” Miller
Stephen Miller is once again making headlines for saying the quiet part out loud. Derek and Julian look into this strange little man from Santa Monica.
Show Notes
Stephen Miller: Understanding the man who became ‘Trump’s brain’ through his Chronicle opinion column
‘I love Hitler’: Leaked messages expose Young Republicans’ racist chat
What Stephen Miller Was Like in High School - Charles Gould
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
--------
31:38
--------
31:38
279: They’re Shooting the Priests
ICE is on the loose in our cities, acting with seeming impunity. They've repelled from Black Hawk helicopters, thrown journalists and protestors to the ground, and belligerently refused to unmask, provide identification, or present warrants for the people they're kidnapping.
Among the social media videos documenting this despicable stormtrooper behavior came the image of a priest being hit in the head and knocked to the ground by a pepper ball shot from an ICE building rooftop.
We've homed in on this disturbing moment to ask if what we'd seen so far had not crossed a red line for the American public, what does it mean to shoot at a priest protesting injustice in prayer?
Show Notes
Surge in U.S. Concern About Immigration Has Abated
Portland’s ‘War Zone’ Is Like Burning Man for the Terminally Online
DC Churches to Trump: Stay Out of Our Parking Lots
Religious protesters say ICE threatens religious freedom in Chicago
In LA, faith leaders protest to stand up for the detained and keep the peace
Chicago Pastor Sues Trump Admin After Allegedly Being Shot by ICE Agents
Federal lawsuit brought by Black et al against Noem and DHS
Evangelical Pastor Doug Pagitt on Christian Nationalism
Exclusive: The Churches Fighting Back Against ICE
Religious leaders offering communion to detainees turned away at Broadview ICE facility
Bishop Rojas on rise in ICE raids: ‘It is not of the Gospel of Jesus Christ'
Religious leaders offering communion to detainees turned away at Broadview ICE facility
Signs of Faith Against Fascism: An Interview with Eric MartinPaul Elie: Daniel Berrigan was a fierce critic of the United States. He was also a great American.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Dismantling New Age cults, wellness grifters, and conspiracy-mad yogis. At best, the conspirituality movement attacks public health efforts in times of crisis. At worst, it fronts and recruits for the fever-dream of QAnon. As the alt-right and New Age horseshoe toward each other in a blur of disinformation, clear discourse, and good intentions get smothered. Charismatic influencers exploit their followers by co-opting conspiracy theories on a spectrum of intensity ranging from vaccines to child trafficking. In the process, spiritual beliefs that have nurtured creativity and meaning are transforming into memes of a quickly-globalizing paranoia. Conspirituality Podcast attempts to bring understanding to this landscape. A journalist, a cult researcher, and a philosophical skeptic discuss the stories, cognitive dissonances, and cultic dynamics tearing through the yoga, wellness, and new spirituality worlds. Mainstream outlets have noticed the problem. We crowd-source, research, analyze, and dream answers to it.