Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy

#1808 Billionaires vs. Democracy: They're Not Coming For Your Job, They're Coming For Your Government (And The Entire Economy)

Air Date: 7/10/2026 Today we look at what it means to live in an economy that has quietly split in two with a soaring stock market driven by AI on one side, a collapsing job market on the other, and the subtle shift in the right to own things, from your music and movies to your car's software, which all underlie the slide toward technofeudalism. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: America Is Entering a New Socialist Era — and It Might Stick - The Recount - Air Date 6-30-26 KP 2: America's Job Market Is Collapsing - Max Fisher - Air Date 4-10-26 KP 3: The Richest Country Is Pretty Mid Now Part 1 - Benn Jordan - Air Date 6-28-26 KP 4: We Uncovered The Master Plan That Peter Thiel Doesn't Want You To See - More Perfect Union - Air Date 6-29-26 KP 5: The End Of Capitalism Is Here. - Second Thought - Air Date 6-5-26 (01:06:28) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Humanity Is About to Be Optimized Out of Existence for the Sake of Profit My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:06:46) SECTION A: THE RISING LEFT A1: Trump's Speech At America 250 BACKFIRES, Sony Ends PHYSICAL MEDIA | Zaid Talks Part 1 - Zaid Tabani - Air Date 7-5-26 A2: Do Democrats F*ck Now? How Democratic Socialists Are Taking Over The Party - Some Some More News Clips and Some More News - Air Date 7-5-26 A3: How the Democratic Party Captures and Subverts Revolutionary Energy (with Kshama Sawant) - The Chris Hedges YouTube Channel - Air Date 6-29-26 A4: AI Is Losing and the Left Is Winning, with Brennan Lee Mulligan and Ed Zitron - Factually! with Adam Conover - Air Date 6-26-26 A5: Democrats Don't Know What "Affordability" Actually Means, with Dino Guastella - Factually! with Adam Conover - Air Date 6-24-26 (01:49:40) SECTION B: EVERYDAY EXTRACTION B1: The American Economy Is Broken—Here's Why - Established Context Part 1 - Air Date 4-13-26 B2: Why Owning Nothing Is So Expensive - Business Insider and Insider - Air Date 1-24-26 B3: NEW WARNING: Your Vehicle Can't Be FIXED After 2026 - Motor Feed - Air Date 6-28-26 B4: Trump's Speech At America 250 BACKFIRES, Sony Ends PHYSICAL MEDIA | Zaid Talks Part 2 - Zaid Tabani - Air Date 7-5-26 B5: Content Dot Mp4 - Thought Slime - Air Date 6-29-26 B6: Why American Airlines Stopped Making Money - Wendover Productions - Air Date 10-28-25 (02:51:16) SECTION C: THE RIGGED MACHINE C1: If the World Is F*cked... Why Are Stocks At Record Highs? - Lock Stock Finance - Air Date 6-18-26 C2: The Anti-Life or How Capitalism Will Die (with Math) - Literate Machine - Air Date 5-26-26 C3: The Richest Country Is Pretty Mid Now Part 2 - Benn Jordan - Air Date 6-28-26 C4: The American Economy Is Broken—Here's Why - Established Context Part 2 - Air Date 4-13-26 C5: Huge Polymarket Scandal - Voidzilla - Air Date 6-24-26 (03:36:27) SECTION D: THE RULING CLASS WORLDVIEW D1: The Real A.I. Problem No One Is Talking About (Who Buys Your Stuff, Robots_) - Josh Allan Dykstra - Air Date 1-13-26 D2: AI Is a Mass Psychotic Delusion - Science Fiction with Damien Walter - Air Date 6-20-26 D3: The Ruling Class Think Everything Is Disposable (Including the Planet) - Our Changing Climate - Air Date 7-3-26 D4: Stop Blaming Human Nature for Capitalism - Revolutionaryth0t - Air Date 1-28-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

#1807 What the World Cup Exposes: Identity, Colonialism, and Racism in 2026

Air Date: 7/7/2026 Today we use the 2026 World Cup to pull everything that runs under the game up into the light. Nearly a quarter of the players are representing a country other than the one they were born in, praised as national heroes when they score but scorned as foreigners when they lose. The history of colonialism built the machinery that turns immigrants into targets, and the results are playing out live around this year's tournament, in the towns that throw their arms open and the borders that slam shut, in who a country will claim and who it leaves outside. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Always Root for the Underdog - Pop Culture Detective - Air Date 7-1-26 KP 2: Colonial Wars Played On The Pitch - AJ+ - Air Date 6-21-26 KP 3: How the U.S. and France Ruined Haiti - Bianca Graulau - Air Date 8-14-25 KP 4: Who Gets To Enjoy The World Cup? - AJ+ - Air Date 6-19-26 KP 5: US Soccer Star Shows MAGA's Racism With Zero Effort - Rick Strom - Air Date 6-23-26 KP 6: How Colonialism Created Mbappe and Zidane, Explained - Uncivilized - Air Date 7-12-24 KP 7: Iran's World Cup Team Divides the Diaspora in the US | DW Reporter - DW News - Air Date 6-26-26 KP 8: Keep My Culture Out Your Mouth! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 6-27-26 (00:59:27) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR The World Cup Exposes How Racism Is a Tool, Not a Belief My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:11:20) SECTION A: COLONIALISM'S LONG GAME A1: Colonialism Never Ended – It Just Became Debt - AJ+ - Air Date 9-6-25 A2: They BANNED Haiti World Cup Jersey to HIDE Black History - THE MERC - Air Date 6-21-26 A3: Belgium Hands Over Remains of Patrice Lumumba to DR Congo - DW News - Air Date 6-20-22 A4: DR Congo's Lumumba Super Fan Arrives at FIFA World Cup After Delays | Firstpost Africa | N18G - Firstpost - Air Date 6-23-26 A5: How a Football Team Fueled Algeria's Fight for Independence - Uncivilized - Air Date 8-1-24 (01:44:54) SECTION B: DIASPORA AND DUAL IDENTITY B1: Tim Weah on World Cup Dreams, the African Diaspora and USMNT's Fair-Weather Knicks Fandom | PTFO - PABLO TORRE FINDS OUT - Air Date 6-19-26 B2: The Media Has Made You Hate Jude Bellingham For No Reason. - Small Talk with Ore Olukoga - Air Date 6-17-26 B3: Why Soccer Wonderkids Are Rejecting France and Spain - What Now? with Trevor Noah - Air Date 6-18-26 (02:08:22) SECTION C: THE CUP ON THE GROUND C1: Alexi Lalas Is Ruining the World Cup in More Ways Than You Think - Rick Strom - Air Date 6-16-26 C2: World Cup Kicks Off in Mexico Amid Protests Against Austerity and Forced Disappearances - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-11-26 C3: Luke Thomas: World Cup Border CHAOS Humiliates America - Luke Thomas Gets Political (LTGP) - Air Date 6-15-26 C4: How a Small US City Fell in Love With Algeria Before FIFA World Cup | First Sports With Rupha Ramani - Firstpost- Air Date 6-12-26 C5: Okay, The 2026 Squad of Cape Verde Is Not Normal - Soccer Stories - Oh My Goal and PedTalksSports - Air Date 6-26-26 C6: Inside Algeria's Takeover of Kansas - RocaSports and RocaNews - Air Date 6-25-26 C7: 'It's a Disaster World Cup,' Iran's Football Captain Mehdi Taremi Says - Al Mayadeen English - Air Date 6-27-26 C8: Iran's World Cup Story Just Took A HUGE Turn - The Ring of Fire - Air Date 6-26-26 (03:00:05) SECTION D: RACE, MYTHOLOGY, AND IDEOLOGY D1: AskHistorians Podcast Episode 197 - White Mythic Spaces in Historical Representation with Stefan Aguirre Quiroga Part 1 - The AskHistorians Podcast - Air Date 4-6-22 D2: Football Brings Out Argentina's Unspoken Racism Issue - Football Smash - Air Date 2-18-26 D3: AskHistorians Podcast Episode 197 - White Mythic Spaces in Historical Representation with Stefan Aguirre Quiroga Part 2 - The AskHistorians Podcast - Air Date 4-6-22 D4: Pete Hegseth Is Trying to Resegregate the Military - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-20-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

#1806 America at 250: The Declaration, the Constitution, and our Crisis of Democracy

Air Date: 7/4/2026 Today we examine what America has celebrated for 250 years and what it keeps refusing to look at. The Declaration promised government by the consent of the governed, but the Constitution protected slavery, concentrated power in elites, and left the definition of "the people" deliberately vague. Every generation inherits that same unresolved contradiction and has to address it for themselves. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: The Constitution's Preamble, Plain and Powerful - Civics In A Year - Air Date 10-9-25 KP 2: Trump 250 Gala Grows More Humiliating as Fox Grapples with Low Turnout - THE DAILY BLAST with Greg Sargent - Air Date 6-26-26 KP 3: Thom Hartmann -The Myth of Corporate Personhood - Brave New Foundation - Air Date 3-3-10 KP 4: The Constitution (Melissa's Version) - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 5-11-26 KP 5: The Declaration of Independence and Democracy Renovation Part 1 - Democracy Works - Air Date 4-6-26 KP 6: America's 250th Birthday Must Reckon with Racism, Historian Says - Here & Now Anytime - Air Date 6-19-26 (00:52:07) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR America's Birthday Lie: The Constitution Didn't Promise Democracy My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:10:03) SECTION A: FOUNDING IDEAS A1: Promote The General Welfare - Siena and Toast The Podcast - Air Date 11-18-2020 A2: The Ideas at the Heart of the Declaration and the Constitution Part 1 - We the People - Air Date 6-25-26 A3: Bill of Rights Institute's Tony Williams & David Bobb on America 250 Part 1 - The Takeout with Major Garrett - Air Date 6-16-26 A4: Ep.289 Divided Over the Declaration How an Enduring Debate Sustains the Vision of America with Author Tony Williams 480 - Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America - Air Date 2-13-26 A5: Bill of Rights Institute's Tony Williams & David Bobb on America 250 Part 2 - The Takeout with Major Garrett - Air Date 6-16-26 (01:47:48) SECTION B: RACE & RECKONING B1: The Fantasy of America at 250 Part 1 - On the Media - Air Date 6-26-26 B2: The Ideas at the Heart of the Declaration and the Constitution Part 2 - We the People - Air Date 6-25-26 B3: The Fantasy of America at 250 Part 2 - On the Media - Air Date 6-26-26 (02:21:00) SECTION C: PRESENT CRISIS C1: Trump V. The Constitution - What A Day - Air Date 5-5-26 C2: 250 Years On, Can Democracy Hold (with Joanne Freeman) Part 1 - Stay Tuned with Preet - Air Date 6-25-26 C3: Tom Nichols Trump's Speech Was Pure TRASH - Bulwark Podcast - Air Date 6-25-26 C4: 250 Years On, Can Democracy Hold (with Joanne Freeman) Part 2 - Stay Tuned with Preet - Air Date 6-25-26 (03:01:39) SECTION D: CAPTURE & RENOVATION D1: Buckley V. Valeo Part 1 - 5-4 - Air Date 7-7-20 D2: The Declaration of Independence and Conditions for Democratic Flourishing - Stanford Legal - Air Date 6-23-26 D3: Buckley V. Valeo Part 2 - 5-4 - Air Date 7-7-20 D4: The Declaration of Independence and Democracy Renovation Part 2 - Democracy Works - Air Date 4-6-26 D5: The Declaration of Independence and Conditions for Democratic Flourishing Part 2 - Stanford Legal - Air Date 6-23-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

#1805 Trump Giving Iran $300 Billion to End His Own War

Air Date: 7/1/2026 Today we examine how four months of American bombardment accomplished what decades of diplomacy never could, making Iran, still run by oppressive theocrats, a regional superpower. An Iranian woman told a reporter she endured the bombing hoping it would topple the regime. Instead, it entrenched it. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: J.D. Vance Iran Deal Fall Guy Part 1 - On the Media - Air Date 6-19-26 KP 2: The Cards Held by Iran in a Badly Written Memorandum - Explainer - Air Date 6-18-26 KP 3: Trumpworld Quietly Shivs JD Vance as Damning Leaks Discredit Iran Deal - THE DAILY BLAST with Greg Sargent - Air Date 6-17-26 KP 4: Trump Weakened U.S. Allies While Strengthening Iran Part 1 - UNFTR - Air Date 6-19-26 KP 5: What the End of War Could Mean for Iranians - The Current - Air Date 6-17-26 KP 6: The Iran Deal, Boy, I Don't Know - Takes by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-18-26 (00:54:18) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Trump's Iran War Gave the Regime Everything It Wanted My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:07:37) SECTION A: THE DEAL ITSELF A1: Executive Disorder Iran Deal, UFC at the White House, Dialog Hack - It Could Happen Here - Air Date 6-19-26 A2: For His Own Birthday, Trump Gifts Iran $300 Billion - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 6-16-26 A3: Iran Conflict Brief The US-Iran Deal and a New Phase of Accommodation - Columbia Energy Exchange - Air Date 6-16-26 A4: The Cards Held by Iran in a Badly Written Memorandum Part 2 - Explainer - Air Date 6-18-26 (01:43:52) SECTION B: THE STRATEGIC LOSS B1: Iran Deal Winners, Losers, and Regional Impact Part 1 - Sources & Methods - Air Date 6-19-26 B2: Trump Weakened U.S. Allies While Strengthening Iran Part 2 - UNFTR - Air Date 6-19-26 (01:58:52) SECTION C: VOICES FROM THE REGION C1: How Does the Middle East See the U.S.-Iran Deal - Here & Now Anytime - Air Date 6-16-26 C2: J.D. Vance Iran Deal Fall Guy Part 2 - On the Media - Air Date 6-19-26 C3: Iran Deal Winners, Losers, and Regional Impact Part 2 - Sources & Methods - Air Date 6-19-26 C4: Can the U.S. Find the Strategic Patience Needed to End War with Iran - Consider This - Air Date 6-21-26 (02:28:09) SECTION D: WHEN THE STRONGMAN FAILS D1: Weekly Roundup Trump's Iran Disaster, JD Vance's Problem, and the Collapse of the Strongman Myth Part 1 - Straight White American Jesus - 6-19-25 D2: Can Trump Convince Republicans Hes Won the War on Iran - Americast - Air Date 6-24-26 D3: Angry Trump Snaps at Media Over Iran as Fox Hits Him with Brutal Poll Part 1 - THE DAILY BLAST - Air Date 6-24-26 D4: Weekly Roundup Trump's Iran Disaster, JD Vance's Problem, and the Collapse of the Strongman Myth Part 2 - Straight White American Jesus - 6-19-25 D5: Senator Bill Cassidy Folds to Trump- Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 6-25-26 D6: Angry Trump Snaps at Media Over Iran as Fox Hits Him with Brutal Poll Part 2 - THE DAILY BLAST - Air Date 6-24-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

#1804 Elon Musk, the First Trillionaire, and the Broken System That Made Him

Air Date: 6/27/2026 Today we trace how one man went from receiving a $278 million government grant to becoming the world's first trillionaire who spent .025% of his wealth to get Trump elected, then used his position to slash programs that help people while stoking race riots overseas. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: 'Billionaire CRISIS': How the Country's Wealthiest Are 'bankrolling' U.S. Politics - MS NOW - Air Date 5-27-26 KP 2: We Uncovered a Hidden Wealth Transfer in the SpaceX IPO. You're Holding the Bag. - More Perfect Union - Air Date 5-27-26 KP 3: Trump DOGE Cuts Caused 600,000 Deaths This Year, Fmr. USAID Official Says - The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell - Air Date 11-24-25 KP 4: Everything Is Falling Apart and Americans Aren't Happy About It - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-16-26 KP 5: Elon Musk Celebrates Trillionaire Status by Stoking Racist Terrorism in Belfast! - I Doubt It Podcast - Air Date 6-14-26 KP 6: Why The Economist Hates Wealth Taxes - Garys Economics - Air Date 6-14-26 (00:57:37) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR The System That Made Musk a Trillionaire Is the Real Villain My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:15:26) SECTION A: THE TRILLIONAIRE AND WHAT HE REVEALS A1: 'Massive Loser': World Roasts First Trillionaire Elon Musk - The Rational National - Air Date 6-14-26 A2: A Trillion Dollars - Jonathan Pie - Air Date 6-14-26 A3: Trillionaire Welfare Queen - The John Fugelsang Podcast - Air Date 6-15-26 A4: "Land Grab": Trillionaire Elon Musk Sued in South Texas to Block SpaceX Takeover of Wildlife Refuge - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-16-26 (01:49:20) SECTION B: THE HUMAN COST OF CONCENTRATED POWER B1: 9.4M Lives at Risk: The Human Cost of Elon Musk's DOGE Cuts - Holy Post Media - Air Date 6-15-26 B2: Justin Wolfers on Musk, Inequality, and the Price of American Democracy - Platypus Economics with Justin Wolfers - Air Date 6-13-26 B3: 'If You Can Keep It': What The Wealth Gap Means For Democracy Part 1 - 1A - Air Date 4-27-26 (02:12:31) SECTION C: THE SPACEX IPO HEIST C1: SpaceX IPO: What They're Not Telling Retail Investors - UNFTR Media - Air Date 6-9-26 C2: The First Trillionaire! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 6-14-26 (02:28:50) SECTION D: BELFAST HOW MUSK FUELS RACIAL VIOLENCE ABROAD D1: Belfast Riots: Why UK Mobs See Racial Violence as 'national Defence' | Amina Shareef | MEE Opinion - Middle East Eye - Air Date 6-18-26 D2: The Truth About the Belfast Riots | Claire Hanna Interview - PoliticsJOE Podcast - Air Date 6-10-26 D3: Major Antiracist Rally Held in Belfast to Condemn Anti-Immigrant Riots - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-15-26 D4: Elon Musk Moves Against German Broadcaster ZDF After Riot Report - DW News - Air Date 6-16-26 (03:00:30) SECTION E: THE RECKONING BILLIONAIRE RHETORIC AND THE CASE FOR TAXING WEALTH E1: Why Jeff Bezos Wants to Cut Your Taxes - Garys Economics - Air Date 5-31-26 E2: Elon Musk & America's Tech Oligarchy - The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart - Air Date 6-10-26 E3: 'If You Can Keep It': What The Wealth Gap Means For Democracy Part 2 - 1A - Air Date 4-27-26 E4: We Need a Wealth Tax on Billionaires. Here's Why | Aaron Bastani Meets Gabriel Zucman - Novara Media - Air Date 5-24-26 E5: The Hidden Danger of America's Wealth Gap - Robert Reich and Inequality Media - Air Date 6-9-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com