Coming From Left Field (Audio)

“Minneapolis Reckoning- Race, Violence & the Politics of Policing in America” with Michelle Phelps

In this podcast, Michelle Phelps discusses her book, “Minneapolis Reckoning- Race, Violence & the Politics of Policing in America,” which traces the history of the Minneapolis Police Department, from its founding through to the murder of George Floyd and subsequent reforms.   Phelps provides a vivid picture of the possibilities and limits of challenging police power, showing how the dual meaning of the police—as both a promise of state protection and a threat of state violence—creates complex politics that thwart change.

 

Michelle S. Phelps is a Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota. Her research focuses on the sociology of punishment, particularly the rise of probation supervision as a criminal justice sanction and its relationship to mass incarceration. She has published extensively in interdisciplinary peer-reviewed journals and co-authored the book "Breaking the Pendulum: The Long Struggle Over Criminal Justice" with Philip Goodman and Joshua Page.

 

Order the book:

Minneapolis Reckoning- Race, Violence & the Politics of Policing in America by Michelle S. Phelps
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691245980/the-minneapolis-reckoning

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

MichellePhelps#MichelleSPhelps#PoliceReform#BlackLivesMatter#BLM#MPD#PoliceReform#Chauvin#GeorgeFloyd#GunViolence#Powderhorn#OverPolice#CURA#CommunityPolicing#DeeschalationTraining#BodyCamera#PolitcalActivism#ViolencePrevention#CAHOOTS#CUAPB#MinneapolisPolice#ViolenceInteruptionProgram#waronpoverty#KernerReport#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“You Can’t Please All-Memoirs 1980-2024” with Tariq Ali

In this podcast, Tariq Ali discusses the second volume in his memoir series, following “Street Fighting Years.” The book, “You Can’t Please All: Memoirs 1980-2024” covers Ali’s life and political activism from 1980 to 2024.  It includes autobiographical notes, journalism, essays, political commentary and personal reflections.

 

Tariq Ali is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual. He is well-known for his anti-imperialist stance and has been involved in various political movements since his youth. Ali has written or co-authored over 100 fiction and nonfiction books, covering a wide range of topics, including geopolitics and the history of post-colonialism.

 

Order the book:

You Can't Please All: Memoirs 1980-2024 by Tariq Ali
https://www.versobooks.com/products/2937-you-can-t-please-all

Bhupen-Khakhar painting mentioned:
https://brooklynrail.org/2017/02/artseen/Bhupen-Khakhar/

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

TariqAli#IslamQuintet#EdwardSaid#DerekJarman#ChristopherHitchen#Bhutto#MaryKayWilmers#SusanWatkins#NewLeftReview#StreetFightingYears#StreetFiightingMan#HugoShavez#MickJaeger#JohnLennon#BhupenKhakhar#ChrisHedges#PolitcalActivism#VietnamProtest#AnitImperisalism#Palestine#LeninScenario#OliverStone#postcolonialism#WinstonChurchill#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“Project Censored's State of the Free Press 2025” with Andy Lee Roth

In this podcast, Andy Lee Roth discusses the annual publication of Project Censored State of the Free Press, which takes the pulse of the media and shares the 25 most essential but underreported stories of the past year. Editors Mickey Huff, Shealeigh Voit, and Andy Lee Roth look back on a year in which significant news stories lost out to coverage of celebrities and non-events. They highlight 25 of the most underreported stories of 2024.

 

Andy Lee Roth is the associate director of Project Censored, a nonprofit media watchdog organization. He coordinates the Campus Affiliates Program, a network of students and faculty at colleges and universities across North America who research and identify the top "censored" news stories. He earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of California–Los Angeles and a BA in Sociology and Anthropology from Haverford College.

 

 

Order the book:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/760692/project-censoreds-state-of-the-free-press-2025-by-mickey-huff/

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

AndyLeeRoth#AndyRoth#MickeyHuff#ShealeighVoit#StateoftheFree Press2025#ProjectCensord#FreePress2025##AI#algorithms#SocialMedia#MediaBias#Censorship#FirstAmendment#Journalism#Newsworthiness#AlgorithmicLiteracy#ShadowBanning#HorseRaceReporting#AlanMacleod#KevinGosztola#Gatekeepingmodel#Censorshipbyproxy#qualitativedataanalysis#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“Blue Collar Empire” with Jeff Schuhrke

In this podcast, we talk with Jeff Schuhrke about his book ‘Blue Collar Empire: The Untold Story of US Labor’s Global Anticommunist Crusade.” This book recounts the AFL-CIO’s global anticommunist crusade in the late 20th century, shows how it took place in partnership with the US government’s Cold War-era quest to control labor struggles abroad and explores what this history means for the possibility of international solidarity in the US labor movement today.

 

Jeff Schuhrke is a labor historian, journalist, union activist, and assistant professor at the Harry Van Arsdale Jr. School of Labor Studies, SUNY Empire State University in New York City.

Order the book:
https://www.versobooks.com/products/2979-blue-collar-empire

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

JeffSchuhrke#BlueCollarEmpire#AFL#CIO#AFLCIO#CIA#AFCIO#anticommunism#anticommunist#coldwar#foreignpolicy#FreeTradeUnion#CommunistParty#HarryVanArsdale#USLabor#USImperalism#TradeUnions#RedScare#GoodNeighbors#EndowingDemocracy#MamaMaida#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“Who Owns Democracy” with Charles Derber and Yale Magrass

In this podcast, we talk with Charles Derber and Yale Magrass about their book, “Who Owns Democracy?: The Real Deep State and the Struggle Over Class and Caste in America.” This book uniquely reverses today’s MAGA conspiratorial concept of the deep state to reveal how a very real “deeper state” is evident throughout history, back to the founding of American democracy.

 

Charles Derber, Professor of Sociology at Boston College, has written 26 books on politics, democracy, fascism, corporations, capitalism, climate change, war, culture wars, and social change.

Yale Magrass is a Chancellor Professor of Sociology at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. He is the author/coauthor of nine books, most co-authored with Charles Derber, and eighty articles. His work focuses on how militaristic capitalism distorts everyday life as it promotes inequality, bullying, environmental devastation, and war.

 

Order the book:

Who Owns Democracy?: The Real Deep State and the Struggle Over Class and Caste in America by Charles Derber and Yale R. Magrass  https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781032781907 

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

#CharlesDerver#YaleMagrass#YaleRMagress#deepstate#WhoOwnsDemocracy#Americanfascism#capitalistclass#capitalistdeep#caste#ChristianRight#CIA#ColdWar#communist#deepdemocracy#DemocraticParty#elites#fascist#FDR#GildedAge#identitypolitics#JPMorgan#JimCrow#proto#fascism#racism#Reagan#MAGA#RepublicanParty#slavery#socialist#WallStreet#corporatepower#neofascism#Americanmilitarism#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

"Mastering the Universe” with Rob Larson

In this podcast, we talk with Rob Larson about his book, “Mastering the Universe: The Obscene Wealth of the Ruling Class, What They Do with Their Money, and Why You Should Hate Them Even More.” Larson is a professor of economics for the past 18 years and has authored numerous books, including “Bit Tyrants: The Political Economy of Silicon Valley” and “Capitalism vs. Freedom: The Toll Road to Serfdom”. He writes for Jacobin and Dollars & Sense and is the House Economist for Current Affairs magazine.

 

In this book, Larson delves into the extreme wealth and influence of the ruling class. This includes the problems of wealth distribution, the extravagant lifestyles and moral failings of the ultra-wealthy and their negative impact on societal issues, including environmental destruction and public health crises.

 

Order the book:

Mastering the Universe: The Obscene Wealth of the Ruling Class, What They Do with Their Money, and Why You Should Hate Them Even More: https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9798888900857

 

Mentioned in the podcast:

Current Affairs Magazine:  https://www.currentaffairs.org/

World Inequity Database: https://wid.world/

A New Approach to Measuring Income Inequality Over Recent Decades | RAND: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RBA516-1.html

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

#RobLarson#NathanJRobinson#NathanRobinson#BillGates#billionaire#carbon#ElonMusk#ClimateChange#WorldInequityDatabase#CurrentAffairsMagazine#economics#economists#Richistain#masteringtheUniverse#ObsceneWealth#Rand#ClimateCrisis#IncomeInequity#Captial#GuildedAge#ThomasPiketty#UltraWealthy#WealthDistribution#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“The Myth of American Idealism: How US Foreign Policy Endangers the World” with Nathan Robinson

In this podcast, we talk with Nathan J. Robinson about the book he co-wrote with Noam Chomsky, “The Myth of American Idealism: How U.S. Foreign Policy Endangers the World.” In this book, Noam Chomsky and Nathan J. Robinson outline America’s pursuit of global domination, offering an incisive critique of the self-serving myths that dominant elites in the United States continue to push. They discuss Washington's role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the impact of policies on The Global South, and the potential for future conflicts with Russia and China.  They argue that U.S. power poses a significant threat to global security.

 

Noam Chomsky is institute professor emeritus in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and laureate professor in the Agnes Nelms Haury Program in Environment and Social Justice at the University of Arizona. His work is widely credited with revolutionizing modern linguistics, and he is equally renowned for his incisive writings on global affairs and U.S. foreign policy. Chomsky is the single most cited and published living author, winner of numerous international awards, and has written over one hundred books,

 

Nathan J. Robinson is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Current Affairs magazine. He is the author of Why You Should Be a Socialist and Responding to the Right, and his articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The New Republic, among others. Robinson holds a JD from Yale Law School and a PhD in sociology and social policy from Harvard University.

 

Order the book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/

 

Current Affairs Magazine:  https://www.currentaffairs.org/

Nathan J. Robinson’s Website: https://www.nathanjrobinson.com/

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

#NoamChomsky#NathanJRobinson#NathanRobinson#TheMythofAmericanIdealism#CritiqueForeignPolicy#globalinstablity#JakartaMehod#VincentVevins#ArmsControl#Cuba#GlobalSouth#IsraeliPalestanConflict#WorldBank#USInterventions#EcomonicDomination#VijahPrashad#ClimateCrisis#DavidFrum#ClimateDisturciont#MythAmercianIdealism#ManufacturingConsent#IndonesianMassKIllings#MediaControl#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“Duty to Warn: May I Tell You What Project 2025 Really Is?” with Frank Schaeffer

In this podcast, we talk with Frank Schaeffer to discuss his recent blog post regarding “Project 2025” and its origins in the theologically conservative Opus Dei and deep-pocket conservative think tanks. Schaeffer is an author, film director, screenwriter, and painter. He is the son of theologian and author Francis Schaeffer, who, with other evangelicals, is responsible for the pro-life movement and the religious-right that emerged in the 1970s. His crisis of faith and disillusionment with the movement led to his departure in the mid-80s.

 

Duty to Warn: May I Tell You What Project 2025 Really Is?
https://frankschaeffer.substack.com/p/duty-to-warn-may-i-tell-you-what

 

Frank Schaeffer’s Substack:
https://frankschaeffer.substack.com/

Frank Schaeffer’s Art
https://www.frankschaefferart.com

 

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

 

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

#FrankSchaeffer#CrazyforGod#HeritageFoundaton#Project2025#ChristianRight#OpusDei#ReligiousRight#FrancisSchaeffer#EdithSeville#FrankSchaefferArt#JerryFarwell#JamesDobson#BillGraham#ReligiousRight#ElonMusk#PatRobertson#TuckerCarlson#PeterTheil#WhyIAmAnAthiest#MandateForLeadership#DutyToWarn#PowellMemo#ChristoFacism#Patriarchy#Evangelical#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“Surveillance Education” with Nolan Higdon and Allison Butler

Nolan Higdon and Allison Butler are specialists in media literacy and, with their book, Surveillance Education: Navigating the Conspicuous Absence of Privacy in Schools, they focus attention on the pervasive use of digital surveillance technologies in schools that often results in a pernicious effect on students.

 

Nolan Higdon is a founding member of the Critical Media Literacy Conference of the Americas, a Project Censored National Judge, an author, and a lecturer at Merrill College and the Education Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, USA.

 

Allison Butler is a Senior Lecturer and Director of the Media Literacy Certificate Program in the Department of Communication at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA. She is also Co-Director of the Mass Media Literacy non-profit organization, where she develops and runs training programs for teachers covering critical media literacy in K–12 schools, Vice President on the Board of the Media Freedom Foundation, and a spokesperson for Project Censored.

 

Order the book:
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781032812274

 

Nolan Higdon’s Substack:
https://nolanhigdon.substack.com

 

Mentioned in the podcast
Project Censored
https://www.projectcensored.org/

 

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

#NolanHigdon#AllisonButler#MediaLiteracy#SurveillanceEducaton#Privacy#ProjectCensored#DigitalSurveillance#SurveillanceCaptialism#DataBreach#CritialMediaLiteracy#AnatomyofFakeNews#FakeNews#DigitalCulture#TikTokHarm#ChallengeVideo#Secition230#InternetHarm#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

“Marx’s Ethical Vision” with Vanessa Wills

Dr. Vanessa Wills is a political philosopher, ethicist, educator, and activist based in Washington, DC. She is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at George Washington University. Her areas of specialization are moral, social, and political philosophy, nineteenth-century German philosophy (especially Karl Marx), and the philosophy of race.  She is a founding editor of Spectre Journal, a biannual journal of Marxist theory, strategy, and analysis.

In her book Marx's Ethical Vision, she presents novel Marxist positions in various philosophical debates and covers a wide range of Karl Marx's writings while giving a holistic account of his views throughout his life.

Order the book:
Marx's Ethical Vision by Vanessa Christina Wills https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9780197688144

Spectre Journal
https://spectrejournal.com/

Vanessa, the Jazz Singer!
From Indiana With Love-Feme (feat. Vanessa Wills)
https://youtu.be/4Ssr_K3EbIA

Mentioned by Greg:
Rhiannon Giddens new version of Peggy Seeger's classic:
https://youtu.be/lmwwqHmwZq8

 

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about

 

#VanessaWills#VanessaChristinaWills#AnalyticalMarxism#MarxsEthcialVision#CommunistManifesto#MoralObjectivism#Philosophy#Alienation#HistoricalMaterialst#Captalism#Spectre#SpectreJournal#CapitalismCritcism#MoralPhilosphy#GeorgeWashingtonUniveity#EthicsAngelaDavis#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday