This weekend on BEST OF THE GIST, we unearthed a 2016 interview with Chuck Klosterman, the author of The Nineties and a dozen or so other books. In this archival gem, Mike and Chuck discuss what counts as a great American novel, and how we decide who’s smart. And we’re also listening back to the Tuesday spiel about how a Harvard sleep researcher changed Mike's position in the battle over Daylight Saving Time.
Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara
Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com
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Since Russia invaded Ukraine, there has been intense focus on Russian oligarchs - elites with enormous wealth and close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The United States and international allies have imposed travel bans and economic sanctions on the billionaires, freezing accounts and impounding yachts and private jets. The goal is to disrupt the covert money funneled to Putin and his regime and to make the oligarch's lives difficult enough that they might pressure Putin to loosen his grip on Ukraine.
Now President Biden's KleptoCapture task force faces the difficult and time consuming task of tracking down assets hidden in intricate webs of financial secrecy - many created by US regulations - that allow the oligarchy to hide their money and maintain power.
We speak with Paul Massaro, a congressional foreign policy adviser who specializes in sanctions and illicit finance.
In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.
We’re a little late this week, but it’s worth it, as we are able to report on a lengthy conversation that our (returning) guest, Dean Vik Amar of the University of Illinois School of Law, had with the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, just hours before our podcast taping. He offered Vik and his students a truly inside look at the Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings just conducted, as well as his perspective on confirmations in general, and some truly surprising perspectives and possible ideas for reform - and now, our listeners have this early access to them.
Guest Rogue Andrea Jones Roy; Special Report: Political Science of War; News Items: Transgenic Plants in Space, Homeopathy Trials and Publication Bias, Psychedelic Treatments, Anti-Universe, Plastic in our Blood; Science or Fiction
In the latest in World Book Club's season celebrating The Exuberance of Youth, Harriett Gilbert talks to Zimbabwean writer NoViolet Bulawayo about her extraordinary novel, We Need New Names.
A remarkable literary debut shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize We Need New Names is the unflinching, compelling story of a young girl's journey out of Zimbabwe and into America. A coming-of-age story, we follow a young girl named Darling, first as a 10-year-old in Zimbabwe with her friends, navigating a vibrant world of colour, political chaos and ultimately lethal danger. Later as a teenager emigrating to the Midwest United States, she hopes to find a better future living with her Aunt Fostalina in Michigan, only to discover that her options as a young immigrant are perilously few.
(Picture: NoViolet Bulawayo. Photo credit: Nye Lyn Tho.)
Today on the “Weekly Recap,” NLW looks at two old bitcoin FUDs that came roaring back with a vengeance. The “crypto is for criminals” narrative was built into the assumption that led the European Parliament to vote in favor of advancing strict new anti-money laundering (AML) rules with regard to crypto wallets. Meanwhile, Greenpeace, funded by the chairman of Ripple, decided to start a campaign to get Bitcoin to change its code to be more environmentally friendly.
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Consensus 2022, the industry’s most influential event, is happening June 9–12 in Austin, TX. If you’re looking to immerse yourself in the fast-moving world of crypto, Web 3 and NFTs, this is the festival experience for you. Use code BREAKDOWN to get 15% off your pass at www.coindesk.com/consensus2022.
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“The Breakdown” is written, produced by and features Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with editing by Rob Mitchell, research by Scott Hill and additional production support by Eleanor Pahl. Adam B. Levine is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. The music you heard today behind our sponsor is “I Don't Know How To Explain It” by Aaron Sprinkle. Image credit: Zephyr18/Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk. Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.
