December 10, 2024

The Attitude with Arnie Arnesen

As heard nationally on the Pacifica Radio Network!

Original Artwork – Janet King

Arnie provides pithy commentary, interviews and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Listen at 94.7 FM Monday thru Friday from 12 pm -1 pm. The show is replayed daily from 7 pm – 8 pm. Outside of Concord, listen using the stream player on this site (Click on “Episode 123” below) her podcast hosting platform Podomatic, or on TuneIn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts or many other podcasting platforms.

Listen to Podcast on the Podomatic platform

  • Part 1:We talk with Mark Joseph Stern, senior writer for Slate.comWe discuss the question: Is the law for suckers now?What are the rules now? Who verifies that the rules are being followed? The main stream media is in thrall to the big money supporters of Trump. Local media has been hollowed out, and information is being manipulated. Can voters make decisions for themselves, given the information has been distorted?Part 2:We talk with Rebecca Gordon, activist for civil rights, unions, and women.We discuss how this woman-hating administration will treat women for the duration. How can we counteract this?  WNHNFM.ORG  productionMusic: David […]
  • This is a group discussion with multiple topics.- What should be done to restore community among voters, despite their political differences.-Mr. Biden, as President, "time to do the crime."-There has been a loss of faith in the institutions of our society and government. What can be done to restore that faith?WNHNFM.ORG  productionMusic: David Rovics, "Time to Act", for Will Von Sproson
  • Part 1:We talk with Chris Tomlinson, of the Houston Chronicle.We discuss how Texas Republicans are attacking free speech in colleges and universities in Texas. Many faculty members in Texas and Florida are looking to leave, and go to other institutions. There is a fear of free thinking among Republicans. What does this foretell for the future?Part 2:We talk with Bill Curry and Aaron Rosenthal. Bill is former aide to Bill Clinton, and Aaron is with Northstar Policy.org.We discuss how the Democratic party must change to return to its roots: support for working Americans, rather than rich donors. Trump's presidency will […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Jeet Heer, national affairs correspondent at The Nation.We discuss the government agencies that Trump is staffing. Heer characterizes them as anti-populist, with fealty to the rich. We discuss Trump's view of the world as a gangster's view, and the government to be a government of gangsters. Trump's relationship to NATO and to other countries is one of a kind of 'protection racket' backed up by Putin's threat of violence.Part 2:We talk with Barbara Radnofsky and Ed Supkis, authors of a book about the relationship of Alan Shephard and his barber in Texas. The book "The Barber, […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Michal Tomasky, Editor of the New Republic.We discuss the corrupted DOJ under Trump. How will he expand and abuse his power? Project 2025 will underlie all his actions. We can expect him to take credit for any positive results from Biden's policies.Part 2:We talk with David Dayen, Executive Editor of The American Prospect.We discuss what should be the next steps for the Democrats. Long-term projects are necessary, but short term deliveries on immediate voter needs keep their attention. There is a "paucity of ambition" on the part of the Democratic party. What appeals should they make […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Prof. Beth Gazley, of Indiana University, Bloomington. She studies US nonprofit management and civil society policy.We discuss a new law that allows the government (esp. the Treasury Dept) to classify activist organizations as "domestic terrorists" and thereby deny them 501C3 status. This classification method is vague, and can allow political harassment of many organizations who may disagree with the administration. This is designed to chill the response of grass roots (poorly funded) organizations that speak out against the administration.Part 2We talk with John Nichols, of The Nation Magazine.We discuss the redefinition necessary for the Democratic party. […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Ismar Volic, Professor of Mathematics at Wellesley College.We discuss how politics are broken due to the original design by the Founders, because the structure is no longer appropriate. Voting, in particular, should be structured differently, since the population has changed. From and agrarian society, the US is now in an industrialized society, with different population patterns. We have a discussion of rank choice voting, which provides more information on what voters want.Part 2:This is race class, with Jonathan Feingold, Professor of Law at Boston University.RaceClass Ep. 36 | Florida Is Trumps Blueprint for the Coming War […]
  • This is a repeat of a previous broadcast.Part 1:We talk with Eileen Applebaum, of Temple University, and others, about health care in the US.She focuses on the structural determinants of health and longevity due to the social policies in the US.Part 2:We talk with Elizabeth Rosenthal, of KFF Health.We discuss why many "nonprofit" hospitals are rolling in money.  WNHNFM.ORG  productionMusic: David Rovics, "Time to Act", for Will Von Sproson
  • This is a repeat of a previously aired show.Part 1:Our Guest is Karin Vasby Anderson., Professor of Communication Studies at Colorado State University. We discuss how Tucker Carlson and Donald Trump have taken on the role of "strict father" and how are turning into the "creepy uncle".Part 2:We talk with  Sophy Bjork-James, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Vanderbilt University. She discusses the hesitant medicine being practiced by medical professionals as a result of the anti-abortion legislation in the US. WNHNFM.ORG  productionMusic: David Rovics, "Time to Act", for Will Von Sproson
  • Part 1:We talk with Mel Goodman the indictment by the ICC of Netanyahu as a war criminal. We also discussed the reasons for the indictment.Part 2:We talk with Molly Reddin of Pr:oPublica.  We discuss how Project 2025 is being implemented,. In addition, We discuss how Trump is planning to use impoundment as a way of assuming the power of the purse, thus the powers of Congress, to allocate or not allocate moneys for projects that have been voted on and approved by Congress. WNHNFM.ORG  productionMusic: David Rovics, "Time to Act", for Will Von Sproson
  • Part 1:We talk with Ken Makin, writer and podcster from Augusta, Ga.We discuss what the role of Howard University should be, now that dreams of an alumna as president have been dashed. Makin discusses the effect on Black Americans, and how they should fight to realize a Third Reconstruction. This victory for Trump is a victory to continue racism, and will also have ramifications in the international arena. Young Black people should redirect the anger to true targets, voice a stern rebuke of racism, and redefine this country. Part 2We talk with Nitish Pahwa, Associate writer for Business and Tech at […]
  • Part 1The discussion was first, a short discussion about the election, and what it means for the American government. Voters do not seem to trust the government to do anything positive in their lives. Part of that is that they don't know about all the positive things for which the government (local, state, national) is responsible. "The government is only noticed when it fails." Just as we don't report all the planes that land safely in the news, the successes of the government are not reported. The big turning point was Vietnam, when the failures of government action were demonstrated. What should we do […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Cassandra Jaramillo, reporter at ProPublica.We discuss the effect of the Texas abortion ban, which is phrased deliberately vaguely when exceptions are mentioned. This deliberate vagueness has prevented women from being able to cite the "exceptions to the ban", and has pressured doctors and other health care workers to do nothing to help women who are suffering the "exceptions" conditions. Women have died as a result.Part 2:We talk with Bill Curry and Harold Meyerson, Editor of the American Prospect.We discuss the work before the Democratic party. The party is seeking a new chair, and we discuss what […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Lindsay Fenlock, a Senior Researcher at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), based in NM, Geneva, and Washington, D.C.We discuss the practice of "blue-lining" which prevents people living in poor housing from obtaining homeowners' insurance. For many people, this means that they cannot buy a home, because banks require insurance as a condition for writing a mortgage contract. We discuss how government could help solve this problem.Part 2:We talk with Andy Hoffman, Holcim Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the U of Michigan.We discuss the insurability crisis. Insurance rates are rising across the US. We have […]
  • Part 1:We talk to Don Leonard about the economy, and how it affects working people. We examine how the CPI is calculated. We also discuss the living wage required by Americans.Part 2:We talk with Gautam Jan, Senior Research Scholar at Columbia University.What can Trump do, and what can't he do about the climate crisis. Trump's "energy dream team" can and will likely withdraw the US from the Paris Climate Accords, but find it more difficult to withdraw from the 1992 international agreement, which was approved by Congress.Market forces will likely force some kind of climate action. The steps taken will […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Phil Galewitz, senior correspondent for KFF Health News.We discuss the problem of the inaccessibility of health care, even if people are 'covered' through a government plan. Specifically, we talk about residents of Vermont, many of whom are unable to get get health care because there are not enough providers, and the state regulates insurance prices heavily. Hospitals are regulated. We look at many of the problems, and possible outcomes and solutions.Part 2:We talk with Jonathan Shaw, managing editor of the Harvard Law magazine.We discuss the problem of unaffordable housing. Many of the rising costs are driven […]
  • This is a panel discussion.The participants are:Stephen Pimpare is Professor of Public Policy at Vermont Law and Graduate School. He is the author of four books, including "A Peoples History of Poverty' and, most recently, 'Politics for Social Workers: A Practical Guide to Effecting Change'Susan Milligan is a political writer and former White House and congressional correspondent for the Boston Globe, U.S. News and World Report, and the New York Daily News.Lincoln Mitchell teaches political science and public policy at Columbia University. He is the author of eight books and his writings have appeared at CNN, Reuters, the New York […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Ryan Cooper, the Managing Editor of The American Prospect.We discuss the election and how Texan Latinos voted. We talk about the contributions that migrants make to the Texas and US economies.Part 2:We talk with Bill Curry and Jeff Sharlet. Curry is a former WH aide to Bill Clinton, and Sharlet is a professor at Dartmouth College.We discuss the choices that Trump is making for his cabinet. We also talk about whether we are now living in a democracy or a regime. Trump has signaled that he would like to use the military against the civilian US […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Matthew Cooper, Executive Editor-Digital at the Washington MonthlyWe discuss with Matthew the change in NJ's demographics, and how that affected voting patterns. We look forward to the election of a new governor in NJ as a result of the demographic shift.Part 2:We talk with Anders Croy, Communications Director at Florida Watch, and DeSantis Watch.We discuss the election patterns in Florida, and how this will affect the nation as a whole. We can expect the 'floridification of the country." The climate crisis cannot be mentioned by order of DeSantis, but will affect the state anyway. Property insurance […]
  • Part 1:We talk with Art Jipson, Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Dayton.We discuss the "new apostolic reformation" (NAR), which is part of a charismatic pentecostal movement to remake society by using their interpretation of the bible. We discuss some aspects of this in detail, and how political power is used to advance their religious goals.Part 2:We talk with Jeannette Wick-Lim, a Research Professor at the Political Economy Research Institute.We discuss how the sub-minimum wage was set, and how it has not budged since 1991. This is for tipped and agricultural workers. This wage level does not support […]