Epstein Interview – Podcast January 5, 2025

Posted on January 10, 2025 by Gary LaMaster

Taking The Fight To Billionaires And Big Corporations. Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome Mitzi Epstein, Arizona State Senator, computer analyst and education activist.

Asked to explain the results of the 2024 election, Epstein notes that the Arizona House and Senate were both two seats away from a Democratic majority. Unfortunately, they are now three seats away.

She says, “I was particularly saddened when I would hear things like, well, the Democrats don’t care about working people anymore. And I thought that’s just so not true. Every single day at the legislature, every one of us is working on some project or another that will directly help people who work. But we need to do a better job of getting our message out. And we need to do a better job of helping people recognize what the real problems are.

“The real power that we’re facing at this point is the power of billionaires and big corporations. [Their] profits have increased so much more than inflation has increased that we can see…we can measure…economists can measure that inflation has in large part been caused by the greed of corporations and they are profiting mightily. And then from them our billionaires are becoming super billionaires…Elon Musk over four hundred billion dollars.”

Posted in Agribusiness, Arizona Politics, Big Oil, Capitalism, Corporate Welfare, Corporations, Corruption, Department of Justice, Disinformation, Domestic Policy, Economic Policy, Education, Elections, Fiscal Policy, Government, Health Insurance, Housing, Inflation, Interviews, Misinformation, National Politics, Political Parties, Presidential Elections, Regulatory Agencies, Technology | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Jordahl Interview – Podcast December 29, 2024

Posted on January 4, 2025 by Gary LaMaster

Israel’s Ongoing Cycle Of Violence. Steve Williamson welcomes Mik Jordahl to discuss the history of Israel and current events in Gaza. Currently, internationally-accepted figures set the number of Palestinian deaths at about 45 thousand from the ongoing war in Gaza – most of them civilian women and children. According to Jordahl, others put the number much higher. He adds that other casualties and non-combat-related deaths are almost incalculable.

Jordahl reports that many children have been shot by snipers and that some Israeli soldiers have shared videos of what appear to be war crimes. As a result, South Africa and now Ireland have accused Israel of genocide.

Regarding Israel’s success with exploding pagers and the assassination of Hezbollah’s leader, Jordahl says, “After that happens, we usually see even more extremist measures. So, I just don’t see the cycle of violence as preventing anything. And Israel’s violence is occurring on the West Bank, too, in terms of fifty villages of Palestinians have been ethnically cleansed during the whole Gaza problem in the last year and a half.”

He says, “There’s a different path that could be done, which is urging for non-violence and equality. Israelis have chosen land over peace.”

Posted in Civil Rights, Foreign Policy, Genocide, Human Rights, International Relations, Interviews, Iran, Israel, Middle East, Middle East Policy, Palestinian/Israeli Conflict, Refugees, Religion, Theocracy, Zionism | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Criminals Prepare Takeover – Podcast December 22, 2024

Posted on December 26, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

The United States’ First Openly Criminal Administration. Beginning on January 20, 2025, a convicted felon, adjudicated sexual assaulter, indicted seditionist, indicted thief of classified information, convicted tax cheat, and accused rapist will assume power as president of the United States of America.

As if that’s not bad enough, it gets worse.

The Criminal-in-Chief has also nominated and appointed an impressive array of other criminals, grifters, incompetents, and ne’er-do-wells to manage our government. These include his first nominee for Attorney General Matt Gaetz who, according to the House ethics report, committed statutory rape with 17-year-old and paid tens of thousands of dollars for prostitutes and illegal drugs.

In this show, Steve, Karen and Gary offer the highlights – err, lowlights – of the incoming administration.

Posted in Autocracy, Climate Change, Congressional Oversight, Conservatives and Reactionaries, Conspiracy Theories, Constitutional Issues, Corporations, Corruption, Deficit Reduction, Department of Justice, Domestic Extremism, Drug Trafficking, Economic Policy, Education, Elections, Energy Policy, Ethics, Foreign Affairs, Government, Health Care Policy, Immigration, inherited Wealth, International Relations, Justice System, Legal Issues, Medicaid, Medicare, Military Policy, Monetary Policy, National Debt Ceiling, National Politics, Political Contributions, Presidential Elections, Public Accountability, Public Education, Public Health Policy, Public Policy, Regulatory Agencies, Social Security, Taxation, Trade Policy, U.S. Budget | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Jordahl Interview – Podcast December 8, 2024

Posted on December 25, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

Israel, Jim Crow, And Their Impact On Our Elections. Steve Williamson welcomes Mik Jordahl and his son Lincoln to the show to discuss events in the Middle East, generational political differences, and the recent presidential election.

Mik and Lincoln have both been to Israel and the West Bank. In response to whether the situation for Palestinians resembles the Deep South, Mik says, “For sure on the West Bank…and this may be difficult for some listeners to hear, but it is definitely a Jim Crow system, and what some of the human rights organizations have concluded, meets the international law definition of apartheid.”

Lincoln adds: “There’s such a pervasive cognitive dissidence there. Being in Tel Aviv, being on the beach, out in the nightclubs there, it’s this beautiful progressive-seeming society that does feel like a democracy. And then you cross the line into the West Bank and Palestine, and you see military checkpoints that they set up. You see certain sections of cities that people aren’t even allowed to walk in based on whether they’re Arab or not. And you have this huge class of people that is subjected to a separate legal system, that don’t have the right to vote. It was shocking to see.”

The pair go on to discuss the effect of the Israel-Palestinian War on the Harris Campaign and future elections.

Posted in Bigotry, Citizens United, Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, Civil Society, Corruption, Democratic Governance, Elections, Foreign Affairs, Genocide, Health Care Policy, International Relations, Interviews, Israel, Justice System, Legal Issues, Mass Media, Middle East, Middle East Policy, Misinformation, National Politics, Palestinian/Israeli Conflict, Presidential Elections, Racism, Social Media, Zionism | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Helstein Interview – Podcast December 1, 2024

Posted on December 5, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

Will Traditional Media Be Replaced By Social Media? Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome Charles Helstein of KAZM, Mellow Mountain Radio in Sedona, to discuss the current mediascape and its impact on political and social issues. (KAZM, of course, has been the radio home of Democratic Perspective for the past 11 years.)

Asked why he recently purchased the radio station, Helstein responds by saying radio is more critical than we give it credit for. “Radio is kind of that warm blanket you fall back into all the time,” he says, “It’s there whether you’re thinking about it or not…Radio has a really strong reach to a lot of people throughout America that people tend to overlook.”

To further his point, Helstein tells the story of what happened when he changed the station’s programming and missed some baseball games. “You’d be shocked at the people who suddenly just call in. It’s very much part of their routine. Having altered that was upsetting to a lot of people.”

By contrast, Helstein says, “Social media and the things you guys are talking about are not for everybody.”

Posted in Broadcast Schedule, Business, Community, Cultural Change, Disinformation, Elections, Interviews, Mass Media, Misinformation, Public Service, Technology | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Helstein Interview – Podcast December 1, 2024

Ploog Interview – Podcast November 24, 2024

Posted on December 5, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

Planning Sedona’s Future. Karen McClelland welcomes Holli Ploog, Sedona Vice Mayor and City Council member to discuss results of the recent election and many of the issues facing the City.

Ploog says Sedona has hired a Development Consultant to help envision how facilities and needs can be addressed.

Posted in Arizona Politics, Community, Democratic Governance, Development, Federal Lands, Fiscal Policy, Government, Housing, Infrastructure, Interviews, Local Politics, Public Accountability, Public Lands, Public Service | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Ploog Interview – Podcast November 24, 2024

Kuttab Interview – Podcast November 17, 2024

Posted on December 5, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

Israeli War With Gaza Continues Amidst A Virtual Media Blackout. Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome international human rights attorney Jonathon Kuttab to discuss the human rights conditions in Gaza and the Middle East. Kuttab is a co-founder of the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq and co-founder of Nonviolence International. 

Despite being largely pushed from the front pages of most news organizations, the war continues with many civilians being killed and humanitarian conditions worsening. Indeed, Kuttab says, “People talk about it as a war. It’s not really a war. It’s basically a slaughter because the Palestinians don’t have an air force, don’t have a navy, don’t have really an army, and they are totally surrounded, they are totally under control. They have been under a siege for 17 years.”

Posted in Foreign Affairs, Genocide, Human Rights, International Relations, International Terrorism, Interviews, Israel, Mass Incarceration, Middle East, Morality, Palestinian/Israeli Conflict, Poverty, Refugees, Zionism | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Kuttab Interview – Podcast November 17, 2024

Election Results – Podcast November 10, 2024

Posted on November 11, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

Have You No Sense Of Decency? That has to be the question asked of the majority of America’s voters. It will be difficult for future generations to understand how a serial liar and sexual predator who was twice impeached, indicted four times and convicted on 34 counts of felony – a candidate who has expressed admiration for Hitler and shows all the signs of being a sociopathic fascist – could possibly be elected to the office of President of the United States.

The primary contributors to Democratic Perspective try to explain the causes and look ahead to what promises to be a dismal four years.

Posted in Abortion, Afghanistan, Arizona Politics, Autocracy, Bigotry, Campaign Finance, Civil Liberties, Civil Society, Climate Change, Conservatives and Reactionaries, Constitutional Issues, Corporations, Corruption, Cultural Diversity, Department of Justice, Disinformation, Domestic Extremism, Elections, Ethics, Government, Health Care, Human Rights, Immigration, Inflation, Judicial System, Labor Shortages, Labor Unions, LGBT Issues, LIberals and Conservatives, Mass Media, Misinformation, Morality, National Politics, Palestinian/Israeli Conflict, Political Lies, Political Parties, Presidential Elections, Privatization, Propaganda, Public Education, Refugees, Regulation, Regulatory Agencies, Religion, Social Media, Taxation, Trade Policy, Voting, Women's Rights | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Election Results – Podcast November 10, 2024

Bruce Interview – Podcast October 20, 2024

Posted on October 28, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

A Primer For Arizona’s Ballot Propositions. Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome Jim Bruce from Democrats of Rim Country to discuss the propositions on the ballot.

Bruce explains, “All the ones that start with a 1 are amending the Constitution. All the ones that start with a 3, you’re passing a law.” McClelland adds, “Anything that begins with a 4, that’s local.”

While there is some disagreement among Democrats regarding Proposition 140, which calls for open primaries, there is unanimous agreement on the other propositions. For example, Bruce states, “There are a total of, I believe, 14 propositions and all the ones that start with 3 are just a quick ‘no’ and an easy ‘no’ and I don’t think there’s any discussion about that.” There’s also agreement that 133 is a giant ‘NO’.

And, of course, there is unanimous agreement to vote ‘YES’ on 139, the citizens initiative that will enshrine abortion access into the Constitution.

As for the rest, 138, is intentionally written to be confusing. It’s labeled “Tipped Workers Protection Act.” But if it passes, it will cause substantial harm to tipped workers.

Other propositions are transparent attempts by MAGA legislators to end-run the legislative process. Some were bills that failed to carry in the legislature. Others were bills that passed but were vetoed by the Governor. The legislature failed to have enough votes to override the vetoes, so it added them to the ballot.

Posted in Arizona Politics, Constitutional Issues, Democratic Governance, Elections, Government, Health Care, Human Rights, Initiative and Referendum, Interviews, Judicial System, Legal Issues, Local Politics, Political Clubs, Voting, Women's Issues, Women's Rights | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Bruce Interview – Podcast October 20, 2024

Lenze Interview – Podcast October 13, 2024

Posted on October 21, 2024 by Gary LaMaster

When Will It End? Steve Williamson welcomes Paul Lenze, Senior Lecturer for the Department of Politics and International Affairs at Northern Arizona University, back to the show to discuss Israel’s expanding military conflict in the Middle East.

More than a year after the horrific attack by Hamas in which nearly 1,200 people were killed and roughly 250 were taken hostage, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) has killed at least 42,000 Palestinians, nearly obliterated Gaza, and has more recently attacked Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran.

“It’s effectively a low-grade regional war at this point with the United States supporting Israel in its efforts to defend itself against terrorist attacks from Hamas and Hezbollah,” says Lenze. But he notes that Israel, as well as the United States, is concerned about Iran. The U.S. does not want to see Iran gain further influence in the Middle East.

Posted in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Genocide, International Relations, International Terrorism, Interviews, Iran, Israel, Middle East, Middle East Policy, Military, Palestinian/Israeli Conflict, Refugees, Religion, Russia, Ukraine, Zionism | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Lenze Interview – Podcast October 13, 2024