Almost Educational

We return after a six-month hiatus.   We have some light discussion about the three ballot measures that passed in Michigan.  Dennis takes a quiz about money conspiracies for the warm-up. For the main topic, we blather about the legacy of the 7th president Andrew Jackson.  We postulate if he even had much of an impact?  So little of an impact that if he were to die and never take office would another man fill the role of being "outsider?"

Patrick invites Cassidy Robinson of the podcast, Jabber and the Drone, to discuss how YouTube helped reignite the culture wars that lay dormant for a decade.  We run through how electoral politics have become social politics and how regulation and gate keeping can help clean up the algorithmic mess of social media and streaming services.

Dennis and Patrick delve into their Economic text books and attempt to explain the American tax system, Modern Monetary Theory, The Two Santa System, school district funding, the student loan crisis and why deficits never mattered.

Patrick invites guest hosts podcaster, Roejen, from the Project Archivist podcast and author Eric Wojciehowski to discuss UFO subcultures, intelligence agency disinformation campaigns and black budget tomfoolery.   We discuss the possibility of the United States government using UFO sightings as cover for black budget projects.  We also touch on the history of the UFO subculture and the seeding of agents within the subculture to monitor larger groups and political movements.

Dennis returns from his “deathbed” and Patrick fixed the stream to allow the podcast back onto iTunes.  We discuss Henry Ford, Detroit and Dearborn of the 1930’s, and the manner in which America could have or do fall into authoritarian rule. We look at how the Black Legion subverted democracy.  We wrap things up with musing about liberal democracy and American national identity.

Patrick is joined by guest host and fellow teacher, Jesse Kiefer from @jessekiefer the Grawlix Podcast to discuss the concepts in Ernest Cline’s book Ready Player One. We discuss the themes of pop culture overdosing, the future of education, and the inherent dangers of big tech.

Patrick is joined by guest host Hinton to have a wide-ranging conversation about the areas in which internet subculture bleed into American political culture. Gamergate Timeline of Gamergate What the Alt-Right Learned from the Left Worst of Reddit Reddit Bans ‘Incel’ Group for Inciting Violence Against Women

Alternate takes on Richard M Nixon mania takes hold when we dig down into different scenarios in which "Tricky Dick" is triumphant or king mutant of the radioactive slag pile. Could he win in 1960? What if he had been convicted on national televsion? Started a major international conflict in the Middle East?

This week we delve into three athletes that were the greatest that never became the greatest. We bring three different athletes from three different sports and wonder aloud on what their impact would be on the American landscape Len Bias How the athletes death led to shoddy drug laws and stunted a Celtics Dynasty Steve Dalkowski The baseball player that was the inspiration for Bull Durham and the Scout films Joe Don Looney The prototype for the modern NFL running back that was an uncoachable yogi guru

Patrick is joined by guest host Mike “Red Wizard” Fallek to discuss bunk, hoaxes, junk science and general groupthink in American society.  We start with PT Barnum and end with TED Talks. This one is hard to pin down we go in all over the place, there is a thesis in there someplace.   You can find Mike here Let's Start A Cult Podcast

This week alternate North Americas are discussed.  What would an America look like with a Norse Nova Scotian Empire?  How would a cold war between New France, England, and their American colonies play out in 1820?  What would America look like without a Puritan colony?

This week Patrick is joined by guest host Keith Foster from Tonight in San Diego and the podcast Jabber and the Drone to have a Twilight Zone draft. We discuss Keith’s effort to create a live improv version of the Twilight Zone, what makes Zone endure, and provide some cultural and historical context around the themes of the show. Plus we draft our favorite ten episodes and spoil them all. Links Tonight in San Diego Jabber and the Drone Simpson’s and Twilight Zone Rod Serling’s Vast Promised Land: Battling Sponsors, Debating the FCC and Fighting for Mature Television, 1959–1966

Dennis and Patrick play alternate historians with Walt Disney.   Would Walt have us all living in some retro-futuristic utopia by 2018?  Would we be living in scaled-up Singapore?  If Disney went under would we have Bugs Bunny fever for 80 years?  Would we all just be living under the fear of Mouseketeer death squads?  Four different alternate timelines are devised and debated.

Patrick goes solo to ponder a more uplifting Alternate History topic.  On Dec 25th, 1914 after seven horrific months of fighting during the first World War German and British Soldiers played soccer and exchanged gifts during a brief truce.  What if things went differently? What if Jean Jaures had not been assassinated and could have stayed a voice of dissent in France? What if the New York Times ran the story the day after the revolt?  Instead over a week later? What if leadership was slow to respond to protests at home and Op-Ed columns ran? What if Wilson took advantage of the situation and have pressured matters from America? What would happen to Alsace Lorraine? Would things change on the Eastern Front?

Enjoy some American political historical profiles along with some high-level dorkish drafting as Patrick and Dennis pick their six of the "toughest" American political figures. What follows is a strange trip through a civics textbook paired with a Dragon Ball Z meets WWE Royal Rumble end

Patrick goes solo to explain the history of The FCC,  How Tim Wu explains Net Neutrality, and why Ajit Pai is like a comic book henchmen.  There is also some Venture Brothers love heaped on at the end of the show.

This week we use the Al Franken speech at the Open Markets Institute sponsored the event as a screed against Big Tech, Bots, and monopolies.  Some debate ensues about the Fairness Doctrine and "citizen journalists".    There is more debate about how to regulate Algrurytms from Google, Facebook,  We end as always on a pessimistic note about a toothless FEC and the lust for antitrust in America.

Patrick invites guest host Cassidy Robinson from Jabber and the Drone, on the podcast to discuss the John Carpenter cult classic They Live.  We look at the film from its' original Reaganomics and consumerist critique to its evolution as a Shepard Fairey skateboarding meme.  We also take a look at the battle to save the iconography and thesis of the film from being co-opted by Neo-Nazi groups online.  And wrap things up with discussing John Carpenter the Auteur Links mentioned in this episode: https://jabberandthedrone.podbean.com/ https://almosteducational.com/

This week we discuss how the president can is able to launch nuclear weapons, codes, bombers, footballs included.  How the heck did we get the 25th amendment and more importantly how does it really work?  Should we really trust the “generals” and what the hell happens when Trump tries to fire Robert Mueller?  

Patrick invites oldest and best friend of the show Professor Winston Conrad of the Red Lodge podcast to discuss all things lycanthropy. What do werewolves have in connection with the witch trials? Why no chick werewolves? How awesome is the Howling? Winston Conrad's Website