Current Affairs editor Nathan J. Robinson joins us to break down New York Times columnist Bret "Bedbug" Stephens's article "The Genocide Charge Against Israel Is a Moral Obscenity": https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/16/opinion/israel-hamas-war-genocide.html Before that, Ben and the GTAA crew watch Ben's appearance on Novara Media to talk about the New Hampshire results and the Trump vs. Biden rematch nobody asked for. [NOTE: The planned debate with Christopher Rufo IS still happening--just...

Jacobin columnist Luke Savage joins us to talk about Luke's article "Modern Liberalism Has Become a Defense of Hierarchy and Deference to Elites" and the incoherent 34-point lib manifesto in the New York Times Luke was responding to--Cass Sunstein's "Why I Am a Liberal."  Before that, host Ben Burgis and the GTAA crew talk Trump, immigration, Biden sleepwalking us into yet another war in the Middle East, and Ben's recent appearance on Woke Bros. Last but definitely not least, Ben subjects the...

We're baaaaack! In the first GTAA episode of 2024, host Ben Burgis debates op-ed columnist Will Cooper, a liberal Democrat who nevertheless thinks that Ron DeSantis is more "competent" than Biden or Trump. Ben wrote a Jacobin article a while back responding to Will and arguing that this zany take is an extreme symptom of a much larger problem with mainstream technocratic liberalism. Caucus night in Iowa seemed like an excellent time to revisit the argument! Before that, we talk about Ben's...

Ben Burgis and Slavoj Zizek talk about everything from Israel/Palestine to quantum physics to the triumph of a libertarian nutjob in Argentina and what kinds of social freedom are worth wanting. It's a *really* good conversation.  It had to be prerecorced because of the extreme time difference between Los Angeles and Ljubljana and it went long enough that the last portion couldn't be played on the show. It'll be released next Friday for patrons and we'll probably run it in full for everyone...

David Griscom joins Ben Burgis to continue GTAA's weekly series of Thursday Night Debate Beakdowns by watching a very short, brand-new one--the debate between Breaking Points hosts Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti on the legacy of Henry Kissinger. Follow David on Twitter: @DavidGriscom Follow Ben on Twitter: @BenBurgis Follow GTAA on Twitter: @Gtaa_Show Become a GTAA Patron and receive numerous benefits ranging from patron-exclusive postgames every Monday night to our undying love and...

The directors of the documentary "Israelism," Erin Axelman and Sam Eilertsen, come byto talk about the film itself and the recent rash of attempts to censor screenings of it with GTAA host Ben Burgis. Ben reviewed the movie for Jacobin earlier this year: https://jacobin.com/2023/06/israelism-documentary-pro-apartheid-indoctrination-israeli-occupation-palestine In the postgame for patrons, This is Revolution host Jason Myles comes by to hang out and chat about rock music, authenticity, left...

Samuel Moyn joins us to talk about his fascinating new book "Liberalism Against Itself: Cold War Intellectuals and the Making of Our Times." In it he argues that liberalism today is shaped by the shift made by many liberal intellectuals who turned their backs on the radical aspirations of earlier liberalisms during the Cold War. One of our favorite recurrent guests, Matt McManus, just reviewed Moyn's book for Liberal Currents. Both of them have a lot to say about liberalism, socialism, and...

Ben Shapiro just debated...well, the only people he ever seems to want to debate these days--college students. But this time at a fancy setting! Ben Burgis and Victor Bruzzone break it down. Follow Victor on Twitter: @victorbruzzone Follow Ben on Twitter: @BenBurgis Follow GTAA on Twitter: @Gtaa_Show Become a GTAA Patron and receive numerous benefits ranging from patron-exclusive postgames every Monday night to our undying love and gratitude for helping us keep this thing...

One of our favorite guests, Ana Kasparian, returns for a conversation about the ongoing ethnic cleansing in Gaza and a variety of related issues. She and Ben Burgis watch some of a recent debate she did on the subject with the hosts of the PBD podcast. Before that, Ben and the GTAA crew break down a right-wing video about Rashida Tlaib's censure and talk about "from the river to the sea," and Ben's recent articles in Jacobin. In the postgame for patrons, they watch a video on why...

Current Affairs magazine's House Economist Rob Larson and journalist Matthew Vernon Whalan join Ben Burgis to continue the weekly series of Thursday Night Debate Breakdowns by watching a brand-new one for once--Norman Finkelstein's debate on Gaza with Eli Lake. Read Rob at Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/author/rob-larson Read Matthew's Substack: https://matthewvernonwhalan.substack.com/ Follow Rob on Twitter: @IronicProfessor Follow Matthew on Twitter:...

Jacobin staff writer Luke Savage joins Ben Burgis for a look at (among other things) the sad pointless writing of NYT columnist David Brooks & physicist and science educator Sabine Hossenfelder's late-career pivot toward apologetics for capitalism. Before that, This is Revolution host Jason Myles joins Ben and the GTAA crew to talk about Jason's upcoming show in the San Francisco Bay Area on November 18th (a book launch for Jason's "I Was a Teenage Anarchist" + meet and greet featuring...

Matthew Whalan and Ben Burgis continue the weekly series of Thursday Night Debate Breakdowns by watching a debate on "Resolved: That the Death Penalty Is a Good Thing" from a 1994 episode of William F. Buckley's Firing Line. These names didn't all fit in the title but the guests are Ed Koch, Walter Berns, Susan Boleyn, Ira Glasser, Leon Botstein, Stephen B. Bright, Bryan Stevenson. Matthew has written some relevant essays on His...

While Ben is away, Jake and Andy take over the show to watch some of the videos Andy found that we never shared with you. Andy brings on Rayyvana,  the Young Turks contributor and co-host of Taking The L, and Kristina, host of Cosmepolitics and co-host of Movie Night Extravaganza to join him in watching some of the strangest videos Andy has found on Rumble. Follow Rayyvana on Twitter: @RayyvanaTTV Follow Kristina on Twitter: @cosmepolitics Follow Ben on Twitter: @BenBurgis Follow GTAA on...

C. Derrick Varn, Jordan Dubin and Deep State Kuba once again join Ben Burgis to continue the weekly series of Thursday Night Debate Breakdowns by watching Sam Harris's 2007 debate with Chris Hedges on politics and religion. (Note that we initially mistakenly thought this was from 2011--the date on the video we were sharing--and some of the discussion reflects that assumption!) Follow Varn on Twitter: @skepoet Follow Deep State on Twitter: @DrKuba2 Follow Producer Jordan on Twitter:...

On the main show, GTAA host Ben Burgis debates Los Angeles GOP Vice Chair + Prager U and Babylon Bee contributor Siaka Massaquoi. (Note: This was originally scheduled elsewhere but we ended up having to move it to just do it tonight int he studio, which is bad news for LA listeners who wanted to see it in person--sorry about that!--but good news for listeners everywhere else who now get access to it sooner?) Before that, Ben and the GTAA crew talk a bit about Ben's article reporting Joe...

Victor Bruzzone and Ethan from the Confronting Capital channel once again join Ben Burgis for a Thursday Night Debate Breakdown. This week they're taking a look at a Cambridge Union debate from 5 years ago where Norman Finkelstein, left-wing Israeli journalist Gideon Levy and several other speakers debate the question of whether the two-state solution is dead. [Note: The original plan was to watch a different Cambridge Union debate with Norm but we had to switch due to audio issues. Sorry...

In the main show, Current Affairs editor Nathan Robinson joins us to talk about his magazine's newly released "A Student's Guide to Resisting PragerU propaganda." In the postgame for patrons, we're joined by Katie Halper to talk about Palestine. Tickets for Ben's debate with Siaka Massaquoi: https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/09005F42FFCD2E9B Order the Student's Guide for Resisting PragerU propaganda: https://www.currentaffairs.org/store/product/77 Follow Nathan on Twitter:...

GTAA host Ben Burgis and Current Affairs magazine house economist Rob Larson continue the weekly series of Thursday Night Debate Breakdowns by watching Bernie Sanders' 2017 debate with Ted Cruz. On October 22nd at 7 PM (doors open at 6:30 PM) Ben is going to be debating Los Angeles County GOP Vice Chair (and Prager U & Babylon Bee contributor) Siaka Massaquoi: https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/09005F42FFCD2E9B?fbclid=IwAR3Y3k9EBeA6i41Yt5E7ftL_rgkjx6rHG3KkNvllNrSnkpIPRggk7Hkymbg Follow...

[Just realized we didn't put this out on Tuesday like usual. Sorry about that!] Read Matthew's Substack: https://matthewvernonwhalan.substack.... Follow Matthew on Twitter: @VernonWhalan Follow Jake on Twitter: @yakobabbot Follow Ben on Twitter: @BenBurgis Follow GTAA on Twitter: @Gtaa_Show Become a GTAA Patron and receive numerous benefits ranging from patron-exclusive postgames every Monday night to our undying love and gratitude for helping us keep this thing...

Tickets for Ben's debate in LA with Siaka Massaquoi on October 22nd: https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/09005F42FFCD2E9B Hamas and the Israeli state escalated this weekend into all-out war. We start with some thoughts on that from Ben Burgis and the GTAA crew, and then go to Ben's conversation with his fellow Ben, Benjamin Fong, about Fong's book "Quix Fixes Drugs in America from Prohibition to the 21st Century Binge." In the postgame for patrons, Ryan Zickgraf talks about the Trump trials,...

Matt McManus's long awaited book "A How To Guide to Cosmopolitan Socialism: A Tribute to Michael Brooks"--with an introduction by GTAA host Ben Burgis--was officially released on October 1st. Matt joins us to talk about the ideas about socialism, internationalism, universal values and cultural peculiarity and more that fill the book, and for Matt and Ben to talk all things Brooks. David Griscom hangs out in the postgame for patrons. Order Matt's book from worker-owned Red Emmas...

Ben Burgis and Producer Jordan watch Socialist Alternative leader Kshama Sawant's debate with Eric Blanc (author of "Revolutionary Social Democracy Working-Class Politics Across the Russian Empire (1882-1917)") on the relevance of the Russian Revolution today. The debate was moderated by Jacobin editor Bhaskar Sunkara. Follow Jordan on Twitter: @jayohardeeayen Follow Ben on Twitter: @BenBurgis Follow GTAA on Twitter: @Gtaa_Show Become a GTAA Patron and receive numerous benefits ranging...

Journalist, activist, and novelist Cory Doctorow joins Ben Burgis to talk about Cory's new book "The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation." Ben and the GTAA crew play some clips from Ben's debate with Adam Friended & PSA Sitch on anti-CRT laws and "Cultural Marxism." Norman Finkelstein joins us in the postgame for patrons. Buy Cory's book: https://www.versobooks.com/products/3035-the-internet-con Buy Norm's...

Ethan from the Confronting Capital channel and Victor Bruzzone once again join Ben Burgis for GTAA's weekly series of debate breakdowns. This week they watch the recent debate between Krystal Ball & Kyle Kulinski on one side and Briahna Joy Gray on the other about Biden and third party voting. And yes, we just ran a clip where Matt Christman argued forcefully that this is a silly topic to argue about but we were still curious what all these people had to say, so we decided to give it a...

Chapo Trap House host Will Menaker joins Ben Burgis for a conversation about the GOP primary field and Thomas Friedman's latest Thoughts About Ukraine in the New York Times. Before that, Jacobin columnist Liza Featherstone talks about her In These Times article "New York Socialists Won Big On Climate. How Did It Happen?" Last but definitely not least, comedian Robert Yasumura joins us in-studio for the postgame. Read Liza's...