Parallax Views w/ J.G. Michael

On this edition of Parallax Views, rabble-rouser, former Anonymous associate, journalist, and press critic Barrett Brown joins us to give an update on his current wars with the press. In particular, Barrett tells us about his latest suspension from Twitter and his recent series of exchanges with David Enrich of the New York Times. Enrich, who recently wrote the book Dark Towers: Donald Trump, Deutsche Bank, and an Epic Trail of Destruction, came to Barrett's attention to do whistleblower Val Broeksmit (who we recently interviewed alongside journalist Scott Steadman on Parallax Views) and Barrett has a great deal to say about the relationship between Broeksmit and Enrich. All that and much more on this edition of Parallax Views. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

On this edition of Parallax Views, we revisit "The Pandemic as an Economic Crisis" w/ returning guest and veteran journalist Albert Lanier (who covered the topic with us on our March 23rd, 2020 podcast). In light of workers around the U.S. like ex-Amazon employee Chris Smalls fighting for their rights amidst unsafe working conditions and general precarity, Albert Lanier expands on his view that the health crisis of the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic is tethered to an economic crisis. In relation to workers fighting back, Albert mentions the many strikes going on around the country in relation to both work and rent and argues that we are potentially living in a Great Depression 2.0 scenario. Additionally, he emphasizes the general connectedness of the consumer economy and the way those connections have been severed. All that and more on this edition of Parallax Views. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

On this edition of Parallax Views, we continue our exploration of the COVID-19 pandemic w/ Grant M Gallagher, an infectious disease journalist. We begin with Grant describing what he does as an infectious disease journalist and how it differs from commentary-based or pundit journalism. From there we delve into a number of topics related towards COVID-19 including something of primer on what exactly it is and the issues related to overwhelmed hospitals, underlying conditions, and other issues related to this crisis. Then, later in the program, we discuss the WHO, China, and the geopolitical aspects of the coronavirus pandemic. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

On this edition of Parallax Views, Ian Goodrum of China Daily offers his take on the COVID-19/coronavirus as an American living abroad in China. For some, this interview may prove particularly controversial as Ian makes no bones about coming from a pro-China perspective and working for state-owned media outlet within the country. With that in mind, I think that this proved an interesting conversation about how China handled the pandemic, conspiracy theories concerning COVID-19 as a bioweapon, accusations of countries (particularly China) fudging the number of actual deaths, China's intentions in relation to providing aid to other countries, the issue of "wet markets", and much more. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

On this very special edition of Parallax Views, former Staten Island Amazon employee Christian Smalls has taken the world by storm after speaking out about conditions at the facility he worked at and organizing fellow employees to strike for better sanitation condition and access to PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) in light of the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic. Since then Chris Smalls has had his employment with Amazon terminated and his reputation smeared by the company. A leaked memo has shown top executives at Amazon referring Smalls as "not smart or articulate" and now Senators, including former 2020 Presidential candidate Cory Booker and Sherrod Brown, have comes to Smalls's defense and are demanding answers from Amazon's mega-billionaire head-honcho, Jeff Bezos. This important story is likely not going away soon as Chris prepares to appear on major media outlets in the next week. Luckily for Parallax Views, Chris was gracious enough to stop by our program for a brief but powerful conversation about his story and the fight he's taken up for worker's rights. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!  

 On this edition of Parallax Views, futurist thinker and global resilience expert Vinay Gupta joins us to discuss a number of topics related to philosophy, politics, religion, humanitarianism, and the current coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic. For the unfamiliar Vinay is not an easy guest to describe. He is perhaps best known for playing a key role in the launch Ethereum, a blockchain-based software, and is now the CEO of Mattereum. His primary areas of interest include technology, global resilience, futurism, and crypto-currencies. And he is not one to shy away from controversy, as this uncensored conversation will ilustrate. In this discussion, Vinay begins by telling us a little more about his background and his the underpinnings of his worldview, which is informed by by the Western Scientific model and Indian spirituality. We then delve into work involving refugees with Hexayurt Project before pivoting into the topics of politics. Specifically, Vinay offers his view and, ultimately critique, of the Left. In particular, believes that the Left has gone too far away from a politics of socialist class solidarity and into identity politics too much. Although some of Vinay's views on this matter do not sit well with my listeners or, truth be told, myself in many regards, I believe that this aspect of the conversation at least provokes a challenging discussion. From there we delve into the topics of the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic. Vinay has done a great deal of work on pandemics over the years and offers some clarifying points about the nature of this particular pandemic as well as illucidating the class war element of the social tensions arising from COVID-19 sweeping the world. All in all, I believe that, while I and my listeners may greatly disagree with Vinay Gupta on some matters, that this conversation will live up to the title of being "A Parallax View". SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

 On this edition of Parallax Views, we take a break from our coronavirus coverage to discuss legendary musician David Bowie, art, and authenticity w/ artist and author James Curcio. James has a new book out entitled Masks: Bowie & Artists of Artifice that looks at Bowie and his trickster persona from a philosophical perspective that comes to understand the late musician as a sort of shamanic character that blurred the lines between the authenticity and artificiality of an artist. Additionally, the book also looks into other figures like the gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson and the controversial Japanese novelist and poet Yukio Mishima. MASKS: BOWIE & ARTISTS OF ARTIFICE also features contributions form such thinkers as John Gray and Slavoj Zizek. In this conversation Jamie and I have a wide-ranging conversation about the book and the many themes it touches upon within its pages. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

On this edition of Parallax Views, an refresher and update on the case of imprisoned whistleblower Reality Winner w/ Reality's mother Billie Winner-Davis. Reality Winner was an NSA contractor who leaked documents pertaining to allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S Presidential Election to the press because she felt it was pertinent information that the public needed to know about. When the federal government traced the documents to Reality she was put on trial and received a sentence of over 5 years in prison. Regardless what you think of Russiagate, whether it was overblown or is one of the most important stories of our time, the harsh treatment Reality Winner has received for attempting to conscientiously alert the public to an issue she believed was of importance is indicative of the dangerous nature of the United States War on Whistleblowers over the past two decades. In addition to giving a refresher on Reality's case, Billie also fills us in on how Reality is doing in federal prison during this pandemic and discusses her concerns for Reality's mental health at this time, the possibility of coronavirus/COVID-19 making it's way into prison, and even tells us a little about Reality's artwork. All that and more on this edition of Parallax Views. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

On this edition of Parallax Views, Siberian-based educator Jason Van Boom joins us for a discussion of the coronavirus pandemic in his part of the world and how Mongolia's response to the coronavirus pandemic may have been useful to Siberia. Additionally, Jason takes us through a brief history of pandemic and plagues past and present including the Black Death, the diseases created by the "Columbian exchange", and now COVID-19. We also discuss the question of globalization and Jason's nuanced view of it's relationship to the pandemic. He argues that the "globalism vs. nationalism" binary is not a useful one in dealing with these matters and that globalization has been happening in some form or another long before the 20th century. And finally, Jason discusses the ideas of Carl Schmitt, specifically the "State of Exception", and how they relate to the response to the current pandemic. Jason also argues that there is a progressive version of the "State of Exception" in the form of the work of academic Robert Yelle. All that and much more on this edition of Parallax Views. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!

On this edition of Parallax Views, we continue our international coverage of the coronavirus pandemic this time from a Brazilian perspective. Brian Mier of the Brasilwire joins us to discuss how the crisis has been effecting Brazil, specifically on the political front. But first, we dive into a bit of recent Brazilian history with a discussion of the ouster of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and the rise of the Brazilian extreme right wing under current President Jair Bolsonaro and ideologues like Olavo de Carvalho. From there we delve into the neo-Malthusian response Bolsonaro has offered to the Brazilian public in regards to the coronavirus pandemic and how some are buying into it. Additionally, we talk about how Bolsonaro has become increasingly isolated politically due to the majority of the population being against his response thus far, including governors. All that and more on this edition of Parallax Views. SUPPORT PARALLAX VIEWS ON PATREON! FOR BONUS CONTENT AND ARCHIVED EPISODES!