Episode

8/3 What Kansas Means For The Country; A Guantanamo Journey; Christian Secessionist Tech & Libertarian Debate

August 3, 2022

Sam and Emma host Moustafa Bayoumi, columnist at the Guardian, to discuss his recent piece in The Nation, “Journey to Guantánamo: A Week in America’s Notorious Penal Colony”. Then, Sam and Emma are joined by writer Jacob Silverman to discuss his recent piece in the New Republic “The CEO Trying to Build a White, Christian, Secessionist Tech Industry”. Then, Larry Sharpe, the Libertarian Party candidate for Governor in New York, joins Sam and Emma for a spirited debate! First, Emma and Sam dive into the results from yesterday’s primaries, including ERIC and Trudy Busch Valentine coming out on top in Missouri, AIPAC’s victory over progressive jew Andy Levin, and they dive deep into the absolutely beautiful and historic victory for reproductive rights in Kansas and the US writ large. Moustafa Bayoumi then gets right into the people imprisoned in the penal colony of Guantanamo Bay, walking through who is there, how long they’ve been there, who has yet to face trial, and who remains imprisoned despite serving the length of the sentence, before he gets into the topic of why he wrote this piece, from the rarity of being allowed visitation to the simple importance of keeping these human rights abuses and the war on terror in our social consciousness. Next, he walks Sam and Emma through a quick history of Guantanamo, beginning with the US’ takeover of Cuba in 1898, establishing the Gitmo naval base in 1903, and employing it as the first of countless overseas military islands of the US Imperial archipelago, a role it continued for almost a century until the Presidency of George W. Bush. From here, they walk through the last decade and a half of Gitmo, its role as a shield against CIA accountability, and why Obama’s pledge to shut it down failed, before they wrap up by disclosing the clear role the CIA still plays in the facilities, walking through the future for its detainees, and why the prisoners still prefer Gitmo to US Supermax Prisons. Then, Jacob Silverman jumps right into Andrew Torba’s fight to build a white Christian secessionist sector of the tech industry, from his creation of the free-speech twitter-ripoff that is Gab (to be followed by Parlor and Truth Social) to his role as a political consultant for the right, as they walk through the role these sites want to play in the world of social media, where they go wrong, and what the future of their role in political discourse might be.

And in the Fun Half: Sam hosts a debate with Libertarian candidate for Governor of New York Larry Sharpe, covering a massive range of topics, starting with the New York state laws that make it effectively impossible for third parties to make it on the ballot, and what Sharpe’s big tent libertarianism entails. They also work their way through the topics of abortion (and creating an environment for women to make easier choices), education reform (putting lots of trust in private enterprise), and wrap up with a conversation on healthcare and Sharpe’s issues with Medicare for All. Plus, your IMs!

Check out Moustafa’s piece here: https://www.thenation.com/article/world/guantanamo-bay-detention-visit/

Check out Jacob’s piece here: https://newrepublic.com/article/163285/andrew-torba-gab-white-christian-internet

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