He's back! The socialist journalist, author, broadcaster and activist Jeff Sparrow is back to help make sense of the election result.
Hear what Jeff makes of the idea that the ALP should return to the "sensible centre", how unconvincing Bill Shorten was as a progressive leader, the radical response that the climate crisis requires, where to next for the #StopAdani campaign, the fate of The Greens and whether class warfare is really over (hint: it's not).
You can support the show by becoming a Patron yes please thanks
ENOUGH is coming to Newcastle, Geelong, Sydney & Melbourne
A Rational Fear is coming to Brisbane for Climate Week on Thursday June 6th
I'll be back in Brisbane on Sunday June 30th for the MELT Gala
ENOUGH is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August
Jeff's articles: Where to now for the Left?
What went wrong for Labor on climate
The environment vs jobs? We have been in this fight before
Jeff's book Trigger Warnings: Political Correctness & The Rise of the Right
ARTICLE: Unions' pro-Labor electoral strategy a failure by Tom Bramble
ARTICLE: Tony Burke floats Green New Deal-style approach to Labor's climate policy
ARTICLE: Anthony Albanese to travel to Queensland on first day as Labor leader
ARTICLE: Trumpism is taking over the world and the Left is to blame by Bret Stephens
Cause of the Week: BDS Australia (bdsaustralia.net.au)
Gideon Rozner is a Liberal Party member and the director of policy at free market think tank The Institute of Public Affairs. He loves markets and freedom and shit like that.
I'd booked this discussion in prior to the weekend's election results which for SOME FUCKING BONKERS reason s3aw the Morrison government re-elected. Gideon was very pleased with the result and in this conversation we discuss what he think happened, what Morrison will actually do, his climate scepticism, "class warfare", abolishing the Fair Work Act and how much money he won by betting on the election.
You can support the show by becoming a Patron yes please thanks
ENOUGH is coming to Newcastle, Geelong, Sydney & Melbourne
ENOUGH is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August
Gideon's profile on The IPA website
20 Policies to Fix Australia by The IPA
Gideon talks Peter Ridd on Sky News Outsiders
ARTICLE: Climate sceptics see a conspiracy in Australia's record-breaking heat by Graham Readfearn
ARTICLE: Australian Labor's Miliband Moment by Osmond Chiu
ARTICLE: We live in anti-political times by Elizabeth Humphrys
Cause of the Week: Give Money To Homeless People (or alternatively support Justice Connect's Homeless Law justiceconnect.org.au)
Singapore-based fund manager Alex Turnbull is the son of the ousted PM Malcolm and self-described "activist in most senses of the word".
Since the leadership coup in August of last year, Alex has been publicly scathing of the state of the Liberal Party and has actively campaigned to get centrist independents elected in traditionally safe Liberal seats. Alex joined me via Skype to talk with me about about his new approach to politics and public debate, what the heck the "sensible centre" really means and whether or not his dad ever watched my TV show.
You can support the show by becoming a Patron, don’t-ya-know
ENOUGH is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August
I'm hosting the Smokestack Comedy Gala is on at Monash University this Friday night
Please support the Refugee Council's Choose Humane campaign
ARTICLE: Alex Turnbull, former PM's son, names 'top 5 craziest Liberals'
ARTICLE: Alex Turnbull takes aim at News Corp
ARTICLE: Alex Turnbull puts his money where his non-Liberal mouth is
Dirty Power: Big Coal's network of influence over the Coalition government by Greenpeace
Cause of the Week: Carbon Tracker (carbontracker.org)
Richard Di Natale is a Senator for Victoria and the leader of the Australian Greens. His seat isn't up this election but he is out there campaigning hard for the Greens to retain their positions in the Senate and potentially pick up some lower house seats too.
In this conversation we covered a lot, from Richard's thoughts on the egging of the PM to the ghosts of social media past sinking young people's political careers to his party's political fortunes to capitalism to MDMA. But it's clear that the Greens' and Richard's passion is focussed on the existential threat of climate change (as you'd expect). Here Richard outlines the importance of the battle against Adani, the bizarre coal culture war and what a just transition for coal miners might actually look like.
You can support the show by becoming a Patron, don't-ya-know
ENOUGH is on at the Sydney Comedy Festival for 4 shows only this week! WOW!
ENOUGH is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August
richard-di-natale.greensmps.org.au
Richard's speech at the National Press Club
The Greens' election platform (read it please)
350.org's documentary Accelerate Climate Action
ARTICLE: Whither the Greens? How a reckoning looms for a party fighting to hang on by Paddy Manning
ARTICLE: What is next for the Australian Greens? by Martin McKenzie-Murray
Cause of the Week: The Australian Greens (greens.org.au)
My childhood friend Alex Dyson is a very nice and very funny man who I got to host the triple j breakfast show with for four years.
Now, somewhat insanely, he is running as an independent candidate in our home seat of Wannon in south-west Victoria. It's a seat that's been held by the Liberals for 64 years and is currently held by Minister for Education Dan Tehan by a margin of 10%.
We drank a lot of wine, watched the godawful Leaders' Debate and had a long and fun and slightly-tipsy chat about his politics, why he thinks it's worth running in a safe seat, political ideology and Lupe Fiasco. We laughed, we reminisced, we respectfully disagreed, we danced. Enjoy!
Become a Patron of the show (please) yummy money yum yum
ENOUGH is coming to Sydney Comedy Festival for 4 shows only next week
ENOUGH is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August
ARTICLE: Legit Political Candidate Alex "Sesh Gremlin" Dyson Revealed Why He's Running
PM Julia Gillard Addresses the End of the World
Cause of the Week: Dangerous Females (dangerousfemales.com.au)
Kath Larkin is a unionist and socialist activist. She’s the Victorian Socialists candidate for the seat of Cooper (formerly Batman) in the 2019 federal election, running against Labor’s Ged Kearney.
In this conversation Kath told me about asking Jordan Peterson a question on Q&A (that he didn’t like), her history of union organising, why she’s running in Cooper (and whether she’s going to win), her vision of a socialist future in Australia and she maintains hope in the idea of achieving radical change.
ENOUGH is coming to Sydney Comedy Festival for 4 shows only
ENOUGH is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August
Kath Larkin's Victorian Socialists candidate page
Kath Larkin's campaign on Facebook
Cause of the Week: Victorian Socialists (victoriansocialists.org.au)
Simon Holmes à Court is an energy transition expert. He's a Senior Advisor to at the Climate Energy College at Melbourne University, sits on the board of the Smart Energy Council and spends a lot of his time on twitter correcting the likes of Josh Frydenberg and Chris Uhlmann when they say silly wrong things about climate and energy issues issues.
In this conversation (recorded on an unseasonably warm April day), Simon talks me through the influence of fossil fuel money, the dumb culture war between coal and renewables, why he's a climate optimist and what the parties are offering in this climate election.
MAKE SURE YOU'RE ENROLLED TO VOTE BY 8PM TONIGHT PLEASE!!!
My show ENOUGH has just four shows left at the Melbourne Comedy Festival
Plus I’m doing my play #KWANDA which is also good and funny! Just 2 shows left
ENOUGH is coming to Sydney Comedy Festival for 4 shows only
Simon's writing at The Guardian
Article: No, Minister Canavan, coal will not be king for 20 more years
Article: Australia's energy policy is a tangled mess built on a foundation of lies
Cause of the Week: Margo Kingston's #IndependentsDay for Climate Change Action on chuffed.org
Greg Larsen is one of the funniest people I've ever met in my whole bloody life. He and I worked together on Tonightly where we made some very silly and naughty comedy together before we were cruelly cancelled by the FASCIST LIBERAL GOVERNMENT.
In this chat I ask Greg to reflect on the Tonightly months, his political punk band The Feminazis, wokeness, debate and the pointlessness of protests.
My show ENOUGH is on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival right now! Hot dang!
Plus I’m doing my play #KWANDA which is also good and funny! Just 4 shows left
ENOUGH is coming to Sydney Comedy Festival for 4 shows only
My spot at the 2019 Comedy Festival Opening Night Gala
Greg's show Useful Idiot is at Melbourne Comedy Festival NOW
The infamous Tonightly sketch that sparked "Cuntgate"
And this sketch about Germans wanking is one of the funniest things I've ever been involved in
Cause of the Week: Donate to The Australian Greens (greens.org.au/donate)
Sorry about the delayed episode, all! My bad. Comedy Festival is on and all that. Anyway.
Sally McManus has been the Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions since 2017. She's the public face of the trade union movement in Australia and she takes little to no shit whatsoever.
We recorded this chat on the day the ACTU launched their call for the minimum wage to be raised to a living wage. I asked Sally to explain what that means, as well as her stances on democratic socialism, neoliberalism, privatisation, insecure work, just how hard it is to go on strike in Australia and how the ALP could become a helluva lot better.
My show ENOUGH is on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival right now! Hot dang!
Plus I'm doing my play #KWANDA which is also good and funny! Just 6 shows left
ENOUGH is coming to Sydney Comedy Festival for 4 shows only
On Fairness by Sally McManus, Melbourne University Publishing
ARTICLE: Is Sally McManus the woman the Coalition fears most?
RALLY TO CHANGE THE RULES happening around the country on Wednesday April 10th
Cause of the Week: JOIN YOUR FUCKING UNION PLEASE (australianunions.org.au)
Samah Sabawi is a playwright, poet and activist who is passionate about fighting for the rights of the Palestinian people. Just days after the horrific massacre in Christchurch, Samah explains to me why she was "disappointed but not shocked" by the horrific attack and how nearly two decades of poisonous Islamophobia has led us to this point.
Samah also lays out what life is like for Palestinians in their own land, what the Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions movement is calling for and why it's important you #BoycottEurovision2019.
Become a Patron of the show and help cover the basic costs of making this thing happen (please)
My stand-show ENOUGH is on at the Brisbane Comedy Festival this week
Then ENOUGH heads to the Melbourne & Sydney Comedy Festivals. It’s funny! Please come!
My play #KWANDA will be on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival for 8 shows only
Donate to the families of the Christchurch victims
See Samah's play Them at La Mama Courthouse
ARTICLE: We told you the threat is white supremacy by Randa Abdel-Fattah
ARTICLE: 2,891 Murdoch Media Stories Trashing Islam In A Single Year, Study Reveals by Michael Brull
Cause of the Week: The BDS petition to #BoycottEurovision2019
Melissa Davey is the Melbourne Bureau Chief for Guardian Australia. She’s done brilliant reporting about lots of different things over her career, but over the past few weeks has been diligently covering on the trial and conviction of George Pell.
As Pell receives his sentencing today and as we learn more about his case for appeal, Melissa explains what it’s been like following this massive story, the journalistic ethics at play, the judicial process and the reactions from the media and the Church to the guilty verdict.
WARNING: This conversation contains discussion of sexual assault and abuse
Become a Patron of the show and rest in peace knowing you’ll go to heaven
My stand-show ENOUGH is on at the Brisbane Comedy Festival next week
Then ENOUGH heads to the Melbourne & Sydney Comedy Festivals. It’s funny! Please come!
My play #KWANDA will be on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival for 8 shows only
The School Strike 4 Climate is on this Friday!
Melissa's writing at Guardian Australia
ARTICLE: Cardinal Pell's Conviction: The Questions That Remain
ARTICLE: Five Times Guilty: How George Pell's Child-Abusing Past Caught Up With Him in Courtroom
ARTICLE: The inconsistencies of George Pell's defenders just displays their power by Richard Cooke
Cause of the Week: Dementia Australia (dementia-australia.org)
Emma is in Year 11, Anthony has just started uni and together they're involved in organising the second School Strike 4 Climate on Friday March 15th. It's a nation-wide, non-partisan, student-led protest demanding our political leaders take some GODDAMN REAL ACTION on climate change for once please.
It was an honour to sit down with these two passionate, funny, committed young people to discuss their motivations for organising the march, their hopes for what it might achieve and their thoughts on the very dumb criticism it's received from right-wing dumbos.
Trust me: listening to this will fill your heart with hope.
Become a Patron of the show and rest in peace knowing you’ll go to heaven
My play #KWANDA will be on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival for 8 shows only
Unite For The Night @ The Metro, Thursday March 7th
Luke McGregor and I are coming to Nelson Bay and Belmont in March
The Swedish 15-year-old who's cutting class to fight the climate crisis
Cause of the Week: SUPPORT THE STRIKE ON FRIDAY MARCH 15TH! SEE YOU THERE! THANKS!
Giordano Nanni is a historian and satirist and the driving force behind The Juice Media.
He was the co-creator of the hugely successful Rap News series which has tallied millions of views and featured cameos from the likes of Noam Chomsky and Julian Assange and since 2016 he's been collaborating in his lounge room with his partner Lucy and actors Ellen and Zoe to make the very-funny-and-extremely-on-point Honest Government Ads series. The series has tackled everything from net neutrality to East Timor to the arms trade to Australia Day and they make me laugh and they make me angry.
Here Giordano and I have a bloody lovely chat about the story of The Juice, how history forms his politics, working with Assange and Chomsky and how doing satire could potentially see him sent to prison for five years. Funny stuff!
Become a Patron of the show and rest in peace knowing you’ll go to heaven
My play #KWANDA will be on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival for 8 shows only
Unite For The Night @ The Metro, Thursday March 7th
Luke McGregor and I are coming to Nelson Bay and Belmont in March
BDS Australia's petition calling on SBS to boycott Eurovision 2019
"2012 with Noam Chomsky & Anonymous [RAP NEWS X]"
"Aussie Election: A Game of Polls - feat. Julian Assange [RAP NEWS 20]"
Honest Government Ad | Visit Timor-Leste!
Honest Government Ad | The ABC
Honest Government Ad | Australia Day
Honest Government Ad | A Message For People Smugglers
Cause of the Week: East Timor Women Australia (etwa.org.au)
Aimee Terese is a law student, podcaster and socialist.
Until this week she was the co-host of the Dead Pundits Society podcast in which she picked apart US politics from a Leftist perspective, filling my brain with a bunch of smart insights and funny jokes. She doesn't suffer contradictions or bullshit and I loved getting to pick her brain during this conversation about the origins of her politics, electoralism, "lesser evil voting", Jordan B. Peterson and Bernie Sanders.
Become a Patron of the show and rest in peace knowing you'll go to heaven
My play #KWANDA will be on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival for 8 shows only
This Sunday I’m performing in Trevor Ashley’s MARDI GALA at the Sydney Opera House
Luke McGregor and I are coming to Nelson Bay and Belmont in March
The Dead Pundits Society podcast (@DeadPundits, on soundcloud)
Cause of the Week: The NSW/ACT Aboriginal Legal Service (alsnswact.org.au)
I'M BACK, BABY.
It's a new year and I'm unemployed so what better time to restart this podcast. This is just a cheeky little tease ep, but a brand new episode with a fascinating guest will be out this Wednesday. Hurrah.
I have set up a Patreon for the show, not to become a billionaire but to try to cover the basic costs associated with making this thing (transport/time/snacks).
I really appreciate anything you can give (if you can afford it). PLEASE NOTE THERE WILL BE NO REWARDS FOR BECOMING A PATRON. YOU GET JACK SHIT, OK? SORRY.
You can become a Patron here if you like.
It's nice to be back. Talk soon.
My play #KWANDA will be on at the Melbourne Comedy Festival for 8 shows only
This Sunday I'm performing in Trevor Ashley's MARDI GALA at the Sydney Opera House
Luke McGregor and I are coming to Nelson Bay and Belmont in March
Learn more about Victorian Socialists
School students are striking for climate action again on March 15th