Varn Vlog

Episoder

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  A People’s History of the Mets: Urban Planning, Labor, and Radical Politics with A.M. Gittlitz 03.08.2026 1t 22min

  Why are the New York Mets the ultimate team of the working-class underworld? Author A.M. Gittlitz joins the channel to discuss his new book, Metropolitans, and pitch why leftists should actually care about sports. In this episode, we dive deep into the Mobius strip dynamic of sports, mass culture, and radical politics. Far from just a corporate monopoly, baseball has a long history as a battleground for popular power and control over our collective leisure time. We trace the lineage of the M...
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  Cold War Cinema — History, Propaganda, and Left-Wing Film Analysis with Jason Christian & Tony Ballas 27.07.2026 2t 32min

  How did decades of geopolitical paranoia, nuclear anxiety, and state-sponsored propaganda completely reshape the landscape of global filmmaking? In this episode of Varn Vlog, we dive deep into the intersection of history and film with Jason Christian and Tony Ballas, the hosts of the Cold War Cinema podcast. From Hollywood blockbusters and hidden indie gems to the stark cinematic outputs of the Soviet bloc and divided Germany, our guests break down how the global standoff between capitalism ...
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  Gerontocracy in America: Samuel Moyn on Aging Wealth and Shifting Power 23.07.2026 1t 19min

  Welcome back to the Vlog. Today, we are joined by acclaimed legal scholar and historian Dr. Samuel Moyn (Chancellor Kent Professor of Law and History at Yale University) to discuss his critical book, Gerontocracy in America. While the public focus on modern gerontocracy often centers on the visible, late-stage cognitive decline of celebrity politicians like Joe Biden or Donald Trump, Dr. Moyn argues that these figures are merely the tip of a much deeper, structural iceberg. The real-world da...
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  Why Jordan Peterson is Wrong About Jung with Rob Faure Walker 20.07.2026 2t 31min

  Why are so many political activists crashing into severe burnout and depression? Can the deep psychology of Carl Jung provide a radical toolkit for modern survival without retreating from the fight? In this episode of Varnblog, we sit down with ecotherapist and author Rob Faure Walker to deconstruct his groundbreaking book, Radical Jung . We dive into a mind-bending exploration bridging the Marxist radical imagination with Jungian analytical psychology. Rob shares his personal journey throug...
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  Brandon Lightly on the Mass Line and New Democracy, Part 1 16.07.2026 1t 51min

  In this episode of VarnVlog, we are joined by Brandon Lightly to discuss the complex and often misunderstood history of Maoism. We dive deep into the theoretical underpinnings of the "mass line" and "new democracy," exploring how these concepts served as an internal critique of Marxism and a departure from Soviet-style bureaucracy. Key Topics Covered: Defining the Mass Line: Is it just populism, or a sophisticated leadership feedback loop? The Historical Origins: From the Hunan Report to t...
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  Screened Realities and the Complicit Lens: Robin Andersen on Media Complicity in Gaza and Beyond 13.07.2026 1t 11min

  While the atrocities in Palestine and Gaza have been live-streamed by courageous on-the-ground journalists, American legacy media have operated in an entirely different reality. Dr. Andersen details how establishment journalism has actively abandoned baseline standards of accuracy and fairness to echo fabricated atrocity propaganda and shield the state of Israel from accountability. In this interview, we break down the explicit mechanics of this media complicity: The New York Times Bureau B...
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  Real Internationalism: Inside the RAIZ International Project 09.07.2026 1t 8min

  In this special episode, we are doing something a little different by introducing an urgent, concrete internationalist political project. We are joined by two representatives affiliated with RAIZ International. To protect the sensitive nature of their organizing on the ground, we have tailored this conversation to focus on their overarching strategic goals and material outlook without endangering any ongoing local initiatives. RAIZ International rejects the dominant trend of contempo...
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  Grade Scandals, Bureaucracy, and the Truth About the Teacher Shortage with Chris Papst 06.07.2026 46min

  Why are public school budgets skyrocketing while student proficiency scores tank? How do districts artificially inflate graduation rates while leaving children entirely illiterate? In this episode of Varnblog, we sit down with Emmy award-winning investigative journalist Chris Papst to uncover the disturbing reality exposed in his new book, Failure Factory. For nearly a decade, Chris Papst and his team at Project Baltimore have investigated the deep-seated corruption, administration failures,...
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  Solidarity or Silence?: How Leftist Politics Often Overlooks the Disabled with Anthony David Vernon 02.07.2026 1t 29min

  This podcast and YouTube episode features an in-depth conversation with Anthony David Vernon, a philosopher and educator, exploring the intersection of disability studies, left-wing politics, and the systemic failures of accessibility in a post-pandemic world. The discussion challenges the "normative" framework of society, examining how both civic institutions and political movements often fail to truly incorporate the voices and needs of the disabled community. Key Discussion Highlights The...
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  Karl Marx’s Ethics of Human Flourishing with Sam Badger 29.06.2026 1t 49min

  In this episode of Varn Vlog, we sit down with Sam Badger to explore the moral philosophy hidden within Marxian theory. While Karl Marx is famously derisive of "moralism," this discussion unpacks how his work actually outlines a robust "Ethics of Human Flourishing"—a vision of human liberation rooted in the realization of our creative and social potential beyond the constraints of capital. We delve into Sam’s latest research, comparing Marx’s views on character development and well-being wit...
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  The Stranger Side of Ancient Philosophy: Materialism & Metaphysics with Max Wade 15.06.2026 2t 12min

  What did "materialism" actually mean to the ancients, and how does it differ from our modern scientific understanding? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Max Wade (Ph.D., Boston College) to bridge the gap between ancient Greek ontology and modern philosophical debates. We dive deep into the "weirdness" of ancient thought, exploring why the Stoics believed in physical gods and why the Epicureans were the only true ancient materialists. Dr. Wade challenges the secularized modern reading of ...
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  Revolutionary Strategy Today with the Angry Workers Collective 08.06.2026 1t 15min

  The working class is everywhere now. So why does it keep slipping out of view the moment we try to talk about power, strategy, and organization? We sit down with Marco from the Angry Workers Collective to dig into a question that quietly haunts modern labor politics: wage work has been universalized across the globe, yet movements get described with vague labels instead of clear class segments and material interests. We work through two tools that sharpen the picture: uneven and combin...
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  Up vs. Down: Bypassing the Two-Party Sorting Mechanism with Travis Misurell 04.06.2026 52min

  Is American democracy broken, or is it just rigged? In this episode of VarmBlog, we sit down with Travis Misurell, founder of the Think: The Future is Now Coalition (Fink), to discuss a radical new framework for political engagement: moving beyond the traditional left-vs-right binary to an "Up vs. Down" perspective. We dive deep into the Digital Politics Hub (DP Hub), a materialist infrastructure project designed to bypass party gatekeepers and empower the common voter. Misurell explains how...
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  Decoding the Tragedy of Noam Chomsky with Dr. Chris Knight 01.06.2026 1t 8min

  In this episode of Varn Vlog, we welcome back British anthropologist and activist Dr. Chris Knight, author of Decoding Chomsky, to discuss the startling revelations surrounding Noam Chomsky’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. We go beyond the headlines to examine the deep-seated contradictions in Chomsky’s career, his historical ties to the military-industrial complex, and what these scandals mean for the future of the American Left. Key Topics Covered: The Epstein Revelations: Analyz...
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  The Prospects of DSA: Party Building, Power, and the Marxist Unity Group 25.05.2026 1t 24min

  Approximately two years into the second Trump administration, the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is at a critical crossroads. In this semi-annual check-in, we sit down with members of the Marxist Unity Group (MUG)—Cliff Connolly, Gene Allen, and Amy Wilhelm—to discuss the evolving landscape of American socialist politics. In this deep dive, our panel explores the significant shift following the passing of Resolution Seven, which officially declared the DSA's intent to transition into ...
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  Communist Unity in Oceania: The Future of Socialist Organizing in Australia 18.05.2026 2t 15min

  You can learn a lot about the health of the left by asking one simple question: what happens when people disagree? We sit down with three organizers from Communist Unity to talk about building a mass communist party in Australia with open factions, democratic debate, and real programmatic unity and why that approach is so rare in practice. We trace their organizational roots through Socialist Alliance-era regroupment attempts, youth reading groups, and the split-and-merge history that shapes...
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  The Quest for Narrative From World Travels to Technology with Miles Spencer 14.05.2026 48min

  Is our digital legacy the final frontier of storytelling? In this episode, we sit down with Miles Spencer, a serial entrepreneur, world traveler, and the founder of Reflecta AI. Spencer, who co-created the long-running PBS series Money Hunt, has dedicated his career to the power of narrative. Now, he is using artificial intelligence to bridge the gap between physical archives—like shoe boxes of old photos and letters—and a dynamic, conversational digital legacy that allows families to preser...
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  The Castaneda Con with Ru Marshall 11.05.2026 1t 16min

  Is it anthropology or a high-stakes hoax? In this episode of the Varn Vlog, we dive deep into the enigmatic life of Carlos Castaneda with author and visual artist Ru Marshall. Marshall’s expansive new biography, American Trickster (OR Books), unearths the startling reality behind the man who convinced the world he was apprenticed to a Yaqui sorcerer named Don Juan. We explore how Castaneda transitioned from a UCLA PhD candidate to a global counterculture icon, selling tens of millions of book...
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  The Left-Wing Deadbeat with Nurse John 04.05.2026 1t 17min

  A lot of people can quote the right theory, wear the right shirt, and post the right meme. Then the moment arrives when you have to sit down with a coworker, ask what they need, and move them toward collective action and suddenly they vanish. We take on that tension by reading and reacting to the provocation “The Left-Wing Deadbeat,” using our own union organizing experience to separate what’s real from what’s just frustration dressed up as advice. We talk about why some organizing stories f...
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  The K-Shaped Decade with Matt Borka 27.04.2026 1t 38min

  “Why does life feel poorer when the economy looks rich?” That question drives our talk with Hungarian-born creator and entrepreneur Matt Borka, who has lived and worked across the West, Eastern Europe, and Asia and who tracks real-world conditions through labor data, incentives, and what he sees inside marketing and online business. We start with the growing sense of Western decline and quickly land on a hard-to-ignore pattern: a K-shaped economy where the top captures upside while everyone e...