Mia talks with unionized abortion care worker Crystal about RFK Jr.’s new announcement that Tylenol in pregnant people can cause autism and the real reproductive healthcare crises in the US.
In their heyday of the 1970s and 1980s, there were more than 200 - possibly more than 400 - feminist restaurants and coffee shops in the USA and Canada. These places were aiming to change ways of working, and upend the hierarchies of restaurants; to provide food that was ethically sourced and affordable to customers, while providing staff with a decent wage; to signal to particular kinds of people that a space was specifically for them. They didn't always succeed, and often they didn't last for more than a couple of years. But they sure did try things. Dr Alex Ketchum, author of Ingredients for Revolution, a History of American Feminist Restaurants, Cafes, and Coffeehouses, explains the ups and downs of how these places used words.
Visit theallusionist.org/breadroses for more information about today's topics, plus a transcript of the episode.
Support the show at theallusionist.org/donate and as well as keeping this independent podcast going, you also get behind-the-scenes info about every episode; livestreams with me, Martin and my ever-growing collection of dictionaries, and the charming and nurturing Allusioverse Discord community, where we're watching the current season of Great British Bake Off, and donors are learning that apparently it is a surprisingly productive source of writing inspiration for me.
This episode was produced by me, Helen Zaltzman, on the unceded ancestral and traditional territory of xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. The music is by Martin Austwick. Download his own songs at palebirdmusic.com and on Bandcamp, and listen to his podcasts Song By Song and Neutrino Watch.
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We chat about the growing genre of personal literary essays about AI where the literati at places like the New Yorker pen long essays laying out their thoughts, worries, and ultimate embrace of AI. But as with most personal essays, we end up learning more about the foibles and anxieties of the authors than anything material about the thing they are writing about. Big shout out to the excellent piece in N+1 we discuss in this episode, which turns the sights of literary criticism on this genre of “AI-and-I” essays.
••• What’s Up With Peter Thiel’s Obsession With the Antichrist? https://newrepublic.com/article/200471/peter-thiel-obsession-antichrist-religion
••• Large Language Muddle https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-51/the-intellectual-situation/large-language-muddle/#rf3-55362
••• Two Days Talking to People Looking for Jobs at ICE https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-51/politics/yanis-two-days-talking-to-people-looking-for-jobs-at-ice-2/
Standing Plugs:
••• Order Jathan’s new book: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520398078/the-mechanic-and-the-luddite
••• Subscribe to Ed’s substack: https://substack.com/@thetechbubble
••• Subscribe to TMK on patreon for premium episodes: https://www.patreon.com/thismachinekills
Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (bsky.app/profile/jathansadowski.com) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.x.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (bsky.app/profile/jebr.bsky.social)
On June 22nd, 1983, 15-year-old Vatican City resident Emanuela Orlandi disappeared after attending a music lesson. Over the decades, numerous people claimed to have seen Orlandi, or reached out with leads on her fate. Yet even now, the case remains unsolved. Join the guys as they explore that facts of the case, the wide-ranging possibilities, the allegations of conspiracy, crime and cover-ups, ultimately asking: What happened to Emanuela Orlandi?
After two decades of work, supporters of an international agreement are celebrating ratification of a tool aimed at reversing ongoing threats to oceans around the globe. Sixty nations have signed onto the High Seas Treaty. It’s a legally-binding document that maps a direction for marine biodiversity in international waters. It addresses threats such as pollution, overfishing, and damage caused by climate change. The goals align with those of many Indigenous populations, many of whom are bearing the brunt of diminished ocean diversity. At the same time, there are concerns about the ability to enforce the agreement against nations that choose to ignore it.
GUESTS
Steve MacLean (Iñupiaq), managing director of the World Wildlife Fund U.S. Arctic Program
Solomon Kahoʻohalahala (Native Hawaiian), chairperson of the Maui Nui Makai Network, a former Hawaii State Representative, and elder
A new Brain Drain: funding cuts and political chaos cause scientists to leave the US -- and other countries love it. Wal-Mart bans an emotional support alligator. Protestors get in hot water in the UK. New Mexico may make childcare free. And one scientist may have just cracked the code on space travel. All this and more -- including the first bot minister -- in this week's strange news segment.
Seattle-based Indigenous funk/jazz band Khu.éex’ is an ensemble full of storytellers and their stories carry a punch. They are back with another double album titled, “Red Cedar in the Hour of Chaos.” They carry on their unique P Funk-inspired sound and blend it with hip-hop, doom metal and psychedelia, all while drawing from Tlingit, Haida, and other Native roots.
Earth Surface People (Photo: Cheyenne Weston/@greezy.lens)
Another band, this one from the Southwest, weaves Diné stories and concepts into their just-released album filled with neo-soul and jazz influences. “Yáágo Dootliźh” is the second album from the Indigenous soul collective Earth Surface People.
We’ll talk with members of both these groups about the power of Native storytelling through music.
GUESTS
Preston Singletary (Tlingit), co-founder of Khu.éex’, musician, and glass artist
Sondra Segundo (Haida), lead female vocalist for Khu.éex’, author, and educator
Dakota Yazzie (Diné), leader of Earth Surface People
The public has gone through several phases of evolution on what the shooter's motive was. At first, it was assumed he was a leftwing terrorist. Then it seemed clear he was on the right. Or maybe nihilist. Then, the charging documents were released. These contained some selected texts with Robinson's transgender roommate who he seems to have been in a romantic relationship with. They are... weird. But what is going on here? What can we actually reasonably conclude at this time?
James sits down with Frances to hear firsthand what it is like for families of people in the asylum system right now and how even U.S. citizens can have their families torn apart by the Trump administration’s anti-asylum policies.
