It Could Happen Here

A narrated tale about climate refugees, ancestral memory, and an Eritrean-rooted setting. Giant spider robots and molten-glass threads that harvest clouds feature heavily. Tensions over shifting weather patterns and rules of sky people drive conflict. The story follows risky acts of care, banishment, and the creation of a new garden below the towers.

Dana El Kurd, researcher of Arab and Palestinian politics, gives regional context on Israel’s attack on Lebanon. Stephen Moncelli, journalist covering political extremism, and Michael Phillips, historian of Dallas racial history, outline the Fifth Circuit’s ideological shift. Molly Conger, reporter on financial systems, breaks down shadow banking and why non-bank finance matters. The conversation jumps from court power to regional war to financial fragility.

They dig into ICE agents appearing at major airports and the controversy over their limited screening role. They cover the new DHS secretary’s contentious confirmation remarks and deportation rhetoric. They examine stalled Iran negotiations, oil market fallout, and the geopolitical risks around tanker escorts and strategic islands. They also note AI video industry shakeups and business fallout.

Molly Conger, conversational co-host known for investigative commentary, probes shadow banking with curiosity. The conversation covers what shadow banking is, who fills those roles, how securitization and maturity transformation create fragility, and why private credit and new asset-backed products could revive systemic risk.

Elia Ayoub, a UK-based Lebanese-Palestinian historian and anti-authoritarian writer, lays out recent Israeli attacks on Lebanon and their human toll. He maps the campaign’s scale, displacement, and infrastructure damage. He examines shifts in Israeli tactics toward domination, the limits of Lebanese and international forces, and the regional risks those policies create.

Dr. Michael Phillips, historian and author who studies racism and eugenics in Texas, joins to trace the Fifth Circuit’s dramatic turn. He explores the court’s liberal civil-rights past, its conservative reshaping since the 1980s, and the rise of James Ho. Conversations cover rulings on abortion access, drag bans, free speech, and the court’s clashes with the Supreme Court.

A deep dive into a Texas trial about a protest and a shooting outside an immigration facility. They outline how authorities built conspiracy and terrorism charges using chat logs, weapons evidence, and political materials. The conversation highlights legal tactics like Pinkerton liability, material support statutes, and how definitions of violent organizing were argued in court.

A narrated story about fungus-covered trash gardens and a mutant's strange home. Intimate walks reveal tense relationships and hidden backstories. Rituals of coming-of-age and public orations shape communal life. Tales of violence, leaving, and queerness complicate ideas of utopia and hope.

Dana El Kurd, an associate professor and Middle East analyst, gives on-the-ground reporting on Palestinian politics and Gaza governance. Shanley, a researcher at VC InfoDocs, investigates venture capital networks and the network state. They discuss maritime security risks, Palestinian debates over armed tactics, VC’s political power and the rise of network-state projects in multiple short, punchy conversations.

They dig into harassment of journalists by prediction-market bettors and how that warped coverage. The Prairieland federal trial and surprising legal tactics around protests get a close look. Strikes on major gas fields and disruptions to LNG exports and shipping in the Strait of Hormuz are detailed. U.S. military moves to the Middle East and a sudden political resignation round out the conversation.