Uncomfortable Conversations with Josh Szeps (private feed for ccravensands@gmail.com)

JUST JOSH: "Staying Sane on Israel"

Anti-Zionism, antisemitism, Palestinians, Hamas, Israeli Arabs, diaspora Jews, Gaza, and now an all-out war with Iran. It's head-spinning, trying to make sense of Israel right now.Today, Josh comes to you battered and bruised by the slings and arrows of a national pile-on. He wrote the lead opinion piece in the big thumping weekend edition of Sydney's and Melbourne's biggest broadsheet newspapers, in which he argued for diaspora Jews to stop reflexively making excuses for Israel.The backlash has been as savage as you'd expect on a topic where nuance goes to die. From the fallout, Josh takes a crack at wrestling with tribalism, group-think, moral honesty, and the unfolding Israel-Iran war. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit uncomfortableconversations.substack.com/subscribe

PREMIUM: “Old Media, New Media & the Truth” with legendary journalist Chris Uhlmann

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit uncomfortableconversations.substack.comChris Uhlmann is one of the most experienced and well-known journalists Down Under. He worked for decades as either the host or the chief political reporter on many of the country's most respected news shows: The 7.30 Report, ABC News, Nine News, and ABC Radio's flagship current affairs show "A.M."He's made the leap to Substack, and joined Josh to discuss his regret…

BONUS: The Playwright Who Just Won the Tony Awards

Over the weekend, the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play went to Eureka Day, a brave, hilarious satire of wokeness, vaccine denial, identity politics and social justice. Fresh from Broadway, the Sydney production is on now at the Seymour Centre. Its playwright, Jonathan Spector, joined Josh from California before his Tony triumph.Eureka Day is playing in Sydney until the 21st June 2025 at the Seymour Centre. You can find out more here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit uncomfortableconversations.substack.com/subscribe

“An Incredible Clean-Energy Future: Smart Homes, Smart Grids & Smart Thinkers” like energy entrepreneur Saul Griffith

If you want to feel optimistic about the mind-boggling potential of the renewable energy revolution, listen to Saul Griffith, one of the world's leading experts in electrification, decarbonisation and renewable energy technologies. He's founded a dozen Silicon Valley technology companies, R&D labs, and non-partisan organizations, and he was instrumental in developing the Biden Administration's climate action plan.Saul's U.S. research labs were recently eviscerated by Elon Musk's DOGE cuts. He begins this conversation in a gloomy mood about the state of American scientific research, but peps up about the potential for overhauling how we generate, deliver and manage clean electricity. It's a wild rebuke to the climate hysterics on both sides.While the rest of the country argues about nuclear energy, solar panels and fossil fuels, enjoy this electrifying chat about how we could be on the brink of electrifying everything. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit uncomfortableconversations.substack.com/subscribe

PREMIUM: "Trump, the Left, and the Future of Liberalism" with Yascha Mounk

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit uncomfortableconversations.substack.comWhile the showdown continues over Trump's military deployment against Los Angeles protestors, can we take heart from the resurgence of anti-Trump liberalism in Canada, Australia, the U.K. and Europe? Could the Democrats capture that energy? If the culture has moved on from "wokeness", then what's the next paradigm for the Left? How should we think about…