Tag Archives: Politics and Activism

Scholars’ Circle – Propaganda in democratic society, Part 2 of 2 -/- Ways States Resist President Donald Trump agenda – January 29, 2017

January 28, 2017 host

First, how propaganda works, particularly in democratic settings. Jason Stanley is the author of How Propaganda Works. This is part two of a two part interview. Hear part one [ dur: 25 mins. ]

Jason Stanley is Professor of Philosophy at Yale University. He is the author of How Propaganda Works , Know How and Knowledge and Practical Interests (Lines of Thought).

Then, throughout US history conflict has risen between states’ rights to self-govern and the power of national government to pass laws applying across the country. With Donald Trump as president, many cities and states are gearing up to resist his agenda. How will states’ rights figure into the resistance? IS secession a real possibility? Sanford Levinson is the author of The Undemocratic Constitution and Nullification and Secession in Modern Constitutional Thought. [ dur: 33mins. ]

Sanford Levinson is Professor in the Department of Government and Chair in Law at the University of Texas Law School. His numerous publications include, Framed: America’s 51 Constitutions and the Crisis of Governance, Constitutional Faith, Our Undemocratic Constitution: Where the Constitution Goes Wrong (and How We the People Can Correct It) and, most recently, Nullification and Secession in Modern Constitutional Thought.

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Scholars’ Circle – Propaganda in democratic society -/- Silencing science, how and why – January 22, 2017

January 21, 2017 host

First, how does propaganda work, particularly in democratic settings? This is part 1 of 2 part interview with Professor Jason Stanley. ( Hear Part 2 )[ dur: 26 mins. ]

Jason Stanley is Professor of Philosophy at Yale University. He is the author of How Propaganda Works , Know How and Knowledge and Practical Interests (Lines of Thought).

Then, what are the ways that science is being silenced? and to what end? We get insight from Professor Shaun Hendy. [ dur: 32 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Shaun Hendy, Professor of Physics at University of Auckland, New Zealand. He is the author of Silencing Science.

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Scholars’ Circle – Genes, Culture and Prospect of humanity -/- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. remembered – January 15, 2017

January 13, 2017 host

Is humanity outgrowing planet? We get insight from Bing professor of population studies at Stanford University, Paul R. Ehrlich.[ dur: 28 mins. ]

Paul R. Ehrlich is president of the Center for Conservation Biology and Bing professor of population studies at Stanford University, author of the Population Bomb, Human Natures: Genes, Culture, and the Human Prospect and A World of Wounds: Ecologists and the Human Dilemma.

While much of the country remembers Martin Luther King, Jr. as primarily a leader of civil rights and desegregation and a great orator, our next guests say he stood for so much more. Many aspects of his life, legacy & philosophy remain either unknown or conveniently forgotten. This interview from January, 2014. [ dur: 30 mins.]

David Garrow is Professor of History and Law at University of Pittsburgh, author of FBI and Martin Luther King, Jr: From “Solo” to Memphis.
Joshua Inwood is Professor of Geography and Africana Studies in Geography Department, University of Tennessee. His publications include, Nonkilling Geography, Searching for the Promised Land: Examining Dr. Martin Luther King’s Concept of the Beloved Community,and Street naming and the politics of belonging: spatial injustices in the toponymic commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr.
Thomas Jackson is Professor of History at University of North Carolina, Greensboro. He is the author of, From Civil Rights to Human Rights: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Struggle for Economic Justice.

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Scholars’ Circle – American Football and Domestic Violence -/- Philosophy and Politics of Humor – January 1, 2017

December 31, 2016 host

Domestic violence is just one of the many problems of violent sports. We’ll take a close look at American Football and its discontents. We are joined by Steve Almond. [ dur: 28 mins. ]

Steve Almond is the author of Against Football: One Fan’s Reluctant Manifesto

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, we look at the origins, philosophy and politics of humor. [ dur: 30 mins. ]

Amber Day is a Professor of Performance studies in English and Culture Studies Department at Bryant University. She is the author of Satire and Dissent: Interventions in Contemporary Political Debate.
John Morreall is a Professor of Philosophy Department Chair at Religious Studies at William and Mary College. He is the co-author of Comic Relief: A Comprehensive Philosophy of Humor.
Peter McGraw is a Professor of Marketing and Psychology at University of Colorado, Boulder. He is the co-author of The Humor Code: A Global Search for What Makes Things Funny.

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Scholars’ Circle – Cooperatives transform work -/- Christmas 1914 – December 25, 2016

December 24, 2016 host

First, can worker owned cooperatives transform workers lives and livelihoods? We speak with Jessica Gordon Nembhard author of, Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice. [ dur: 31mins. ]

Jessica Gordon Nembhard is Associate Professor of Community Justice and Social Economic Development in the Department of Africana Studies at John Jay College, City University of New York. Her latest book is Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice.

Then, why did soldiers on the front line of one of the deadliest wars lay down their arms and play soccer with the very men they were supposed to shoot? We’ll revisit the Christmas truce of 1914 with Stanely Weintraub author of, Silent Night: The Story of the World War I Christmas Truce.[ dur: 23mins. ]

Stanley Weintraub is a Professor Emeritus of Arts and Humanities at Penn State University. He is the author of more than 50 books including Silent Night: The Story of the World War I Christmas Truce.

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Scholars’ Circle – Dissent and Free Speech in Law, part 2 -/- Business of altering remembrance of historical events, part 2 – December 18, 2016

December 17, 2016 host

First, we continue ( part 1 ) to trace the birth of free speech in the US, a country that for decades prosecuted dissenters. What caused the radical turn around by the Supreme Court to support free speech? Thomas Healy is the author of, The Great Dissent: How Oliver Wendell Holmes Changed His Mind – and Changed the History of Free Speech in America.[ dur: 28mins. ]

Thomas Healy is Professor of Law at Seton Hall Law School. Author of The Great Dissent: How Oliver Wendell Holmes Changed His Mind–and Changed the History of Free Speech in America

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, can historical trauma be used as a means of uniting humanity rather than dividing humanity? Part two of a two part ( part 1 ) panel discussion. [ dur: 30 mins. ]

Douglas Becker is a professor of international relations at the University of Southern California and author of the chapter Memories and Trauma as Elements of Identity in Foreign Policymaking.
Dovile Budryte is a professor of political science at Georgia Gwinnett College in Atlanta. She is the author of Taming Nationalism: Political Community Building in the Post-soviet Baltic States and co-editor of the collected volume Memory and Trauma in International Relations: Theories, Cases and Debates.
Jessica Auchter is professor of political science and public service at the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga. She is the author of The Politics of Haunting and Memory in International Relations.

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Scholars’ Circle – Dissent and Free Speech in Law -/- Business of altering remembrance of historical events – December 11, 2016

December 10, 2016 host 1 Comment

First, after years of allowing censorship and criminal prosecution of dissent, what caused the radical turnaround by the Supreme Court to then support free speech and dissent? Part one of a two part discussion with Thomas Healy author of, The Great Dissent: How Oliver Wendell Holmes Changed His Mind–and Changed the History of Free Speech in America.

Thomas Healy is Professor of Law at Seton Hall Law School. Author of The Great Dissent: How Oliver Wendell Holmes Changed His Mind–and Changed the History of Free Speech in America

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, what we remember about historical events and how we remember them effects the future of politics and policies, according to our guests. And memory entrepreneurs are in the business of shaping these memories as a means of advancing political agenda. We look at the politics of memory and how these memory entrepreneurs are trying to shape what how we remember the past as a means of shaping the future. Part one of a two part panel discussion.

Douglas Becker is a professor of international relations at the University of Southern California and author of the chapter Memories and Trauma as Elements of Identity in Foreign Policymaking.
Dovile Budryte is a professor of political science at Georgia Gwinnett College in Atlanta. She is the author of Taming Nationalism: Political Community Building in the Post-soviet Baltic States and co-editor of the collected volume Memory and Trauma in International Relations: Theories, Cases and Debates.

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Scholars’ Circle – Cuba, now where! -/- Sociology insights into Disaster Recovery – December 4, 2016

December 3, 2016 host

First, with the death of Fidel Castro and with Donald Trump as the incoming president, what will happen with Cuba and it’s relations with the United States? Peter Kornbluh of Cuba Documentation Project at the National Security Archives with insights.[ dur; 26mins. ]

Peter Kornbluh directs the Cuba Documentation Project and the Chile Documentation Project at the National Security Archives. He is the author of Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations between Washington and Havana, The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier on Atrocity and Accountability and co-author of The Iran-Contra Scandal: The Declassified History.

Then, storms and fires are on the rise in quantity and severity bringing disastrous consequences to lives and livelihood. How will we deal with the storms, particularly with the loss of power? [ dur: 32mins. ]

Dr Steve Matthewman, teaches at University of Auckland, NZ. His research and expertise is in Social theory, technology studies, the underbelly of modernity, the sociology of accidents and disasters. He is the author of Disasters, Risks and Revelation: Making Sense of Our Times
Dr Julie Leigh MacArthur , teaches at University of Auckland, NZ. Her research and expertise is in Environmental politics and policy, participatory governance, renewable energy policies, social and solidarity economies. She is the author of Empowering Electricity: Co-operatives, Sustainability, and Power Sector Reform in Canada.

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Scholars’ Circle – Lasting Quality Peace Making -/- Big Money Influences Science and Industry – November 27, 2016

November 26, 2016 host

First, beyond ending war what does it take to make a lasting quality peace? Peter Wallensteen is the author of Quality Peace: Peacebuilding, Victory and World Order.[ dur: 28mins. ]

Peter Wallensteen is a Professor of Peace and Conflict Research at Uppsala University, Sweden and research Professor of peace studies at Joan B Kroc Institute for Peace Studies at University of Notre Dame. He is the author of Quality Peace: Peacebuilding, Victory and World Order, Understanding Conflict Resolution, contributor to The Scientific Study of Peace and War: A Text Reader and editor of Regional Organizations and Peacemaking: Challengers to the UN?.

Then, the birth of what we know as big science. The big money supported, cross institution collaborations that have supported both medicine and weaponry. How did science and government get so entrenched with industry, and one another? And what have been the results? Michael Hiltzik is the author of Big Science: Ernest Lawrence and the Invention That Launched the Military Industrial Complex. [ dur: 30mins. ]

Michael Hiltzik is a Pulizer Prize winning journalist and author. He has been writing for the Los Angeles Times for three decades and is currently the Times’ Business Columnist. He is the author of many books including, The New Deal: A Modern History; The Plot Against Social Security, and his latest Big Science: Ernest Lawrence and the Invention That Launched the Military Industrial Complex.

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Scholars’ Circle – Making of a Scandal -/- US election 2016 affects on climate, economy and foreign policy – November 20, 2016

November 19, 2016 host

First, the makings of a scandal. Why are some perceived as big scandals, while a rash of other wrongs are ignored? [ dur: 21mins. ]

Robert Entman is a Professor of Media and Public Affairs and Professor of International Affairs at The George Washington University. He is the author of, Scandal and Silence: Media Responses to Presidential Misconduct, Projections of Power: Framing News, Public Opinion and US Foreign Policy, and The Black Image in the White Mind: Media and Race in America.

Then, what might the 2016 election mean for the future on climate, the economy, foreign policy and democracy in the US? [ dur: 37 mins. ]

Sean Theriault is a Professor in the Department of Government at The University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of The Power of the People: Congressional Competition, Public Attention, and Voter Retribution, Party Polarization in Congress, and The Gingrich Senators: The Roots of Partisan Warfare in Congress.
William F. Grover is a Professor of Political Science at Saint Michaels’s College. He is the author of The Unsustainable Presidency: Clinton, Bush, Obama and Beyond, The President as Prisoner: A Structural Critique of the Carter and Reagan Years, and co-editor of Voices of Dissent: Critical Readings in American Politics.
Keith T. Poole is a Professor of the Department of Political Science at the University of Georgia and Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the co-author of Political Bubbles: Financial Crises and the Failure of American Democracy, Polarized America: The Dance of Ideology and Unequal Riches, and Ideology and Congress.

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Tag Archives: Politics and Activism

Scholars’ Circle – Propaganda in democratic society, Part 2 of 2 -/- Ways States Resist President Donald Trump agenda – January 29, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Propaganda in democratic society -/- Silencing science, how and why – January 22, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Genes, Culture and Prospect of humanity -/- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. remembered – January 15, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – American Football and Domestic Violence -/- Philosophy and Politics of Humor – January 1, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Cooperatives transform work -/- Christmas 1914 – December 25, 2016

Scholars’ Circle – Dissent and Free Speech in Law, part 2 -/- Business of altering remembrance of historical events, part 2 – December 18, 2016

Scholars’ Circle – Dissent and Free Speech in Law -/- Business of altering remembrance of historical events – December 11, 2016

Scholars’ Circle – Cuba, now where! -/- Sociology insights into Disaster Recovery – December 4, 2016

Scholars’ Circle – Lasting Quality Peace Making -/- Big Money Influences Science and Industry – November 27, 2016

Scholars’ Circle – Making of a Scandal -/- US election 2016 affects on climate, economy and foreign policy – November 20, 2016

By Maria Armoudian