Air Date 5/2/2023
Today, we take a look at the intertwining of oil wealth, philanthropy, and culture washing from John Rockefeller to the sheiks of the Middle East.
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Transcript
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: Who Were the Robber Barons? - Brain Blaze - Air Date 10-29-19
The Robber Barons were some dudes who got rich and were pretty sketchy about it all, but then founded a bunch of universities and stuff like that, so I guess we're cool?
Ch. 2: Jane Mayer / The Koch Brothers and the Weaponizing of Philanthropy - EthicsinSociety - Air Date 4-6-16
Why is America living in an age of profound economic inequality? Why, despite the desperate need to address climate change, have even modest environmental efforts been defeated again and again?
Ch. 3: “Sportswashing & Greenwashing”: Ex-Soccer Player Jules Boykoff on Qatar Hosting World Cup - Democracy Now! - Air Date 11-29-22
We speak with author Jules Boykoff about the climate and political implications of the 2022 World Cup.
Ch. 4: How One Industry Controls Football - Athletic Interest - Air Date 11-5-21
Who controls football?
Ch. 5: Why Billionaire Philanthropy Won't Solve Anything - Second Thought - Air Date 2-25-22
You ever notice how oligarchs like Warren Buffet and Bill Gates are cast as these uber-wealthy saviors who are singlehandedly raising the world out of poverty? That doesn't happen by accident.
Ch. 6: What Is Sportswashing (and Does It Work)? - Freakonomics - Air Date 6-8-22
In ancient Rome, it was bread and circuses. Today, it’s a World Cup, an Olympics, and a new Saudi-backed golf league that’s challenging the P.G.A. Tour.
Ch. 7: Why Billionaires Won't Save Us - Our Changing Climate - Air Date 5-21-21
I look at how the elite philanthropy of Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk function as more of a billionaire preservation of wealth and self than as an act of altruism.
Ch. 8: Anand Giridharadas: Why We Should Be Skeptical of Billionaires - Amanpour and Company - Air Date 9-19-18
Anand Giridharadas believes we should be a bit more skeptical about embracing billionaires as the change-makers of our era.
MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)
Ch. 9: The 2022 FIFA World Cup And The Rise Of 'Sportswashing' (In The Loop) - Scripps News - Air Date 11-21-22
Christian Bryant explores why sporting events are and can be held in countries with authoritarian regimes in this segment of "Scoreboard."
Ch. 10: Fixing the Economy - Garys Economics - Air Date 11-27-22
After having opened up the publics eyes to the problem of Wealth Inequality, Gary reveals to the Channel his own idea for a possible Wealth Tax.
VOICEMAILS
Ch. 11: Reaching a conclusion on understanding the J.K Rowling episode - Boris from Belgium
Ch. 12: The is/ought malfunction in our pattern recognition - Dave from Olympia, WA
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 13: Final comments on the is/ought problem of politics
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE
Description: A diptych of photos of Mohammad bin Salman and a painting of John. D. Rockefeller. A drop of black oil falls into a splash over the center of the image.
Credits: Composite design by A. Hoffman. Photo of “Defense Secretary Jim Mattis stands with Deputy Crown Price of Saudi Arabia Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud” by U.S. Secretary of Defense, Flickr | License: CC by 2.0) | Changes: Cropped / Photo of painting of J.D. Rockefeller by John Singer Sargent, Flickr | License: Public Domain | Changes: Cropped / Oil drop and splash from Pixabay.
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com
Bonus Sample #286 Looking to the Past to See Ourselves
#1603 Clarence Thomas and the Highest Court in the Land with the Lowest Standards of Ethics
#1535 We Don't Do Accountability (Trump and GOP Crimes That Go Unpunished) (Repost)
Bonus Sample #285 The Christians and the Pagans
#1602 What Happens in Israel and Gaza Doesn't Stay in Israel and Gaza
#1601 Christian Nationalism is not Christianity, it is Fascism
Bonus Sample #284 First they came for the Italian babies
#1532 Accelerationism is the Brick on the Gas Pedal of the Runaway Car of Society (Repost)
#1533 How Theocracies Begin and End (Rise of the Far-Right + Demanding Women's Rights in Iran) (Repost)
#1600 Housing Cannot be a Fundamental Human Right and a Commodity at the Same Time
#1599 Taming the Beast: AI Regulation Before Human Relegation
Bonus Sample #283 Meaningless rituals are useful but self-driving cars are more questionable
#1598 Kiss of Death: Henry Kissinger's Bloody Legacy of Indifference
Bonus Samples #281 and 282 No one likes how this is going | Not Worth It
#1597 The rise of fascism around the world driven by economic insecurity
#1596 Building a positive future by first envisioning it and then designing it
#1519 International Fascist Movement on the Move (Throwback)
#1595 Pushing for Medicare For All in the Laboratories of Democracy
#1594 Testing New Climate Solutions: Geothermal and Geo-Engineering
#1518 Ronald Reagan, It Turns Out, Was Bad (Repost)
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