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Delete Your Account Podcast

Delete Your Account is a new podcast hosted by journalist Roqayah Chamseddine and her plucky sidekick Kumars Salehi. Every week they will talk about important stories from the worlds of politics and pop culture, both on and off-line, in a way that will never bore you.
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Delete Your Account Podcast
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Now displaying: November, 2016
Nov 29, 2016

If you want to support the show and receive access to tons of bonus content, subscribe on our Patreon page for as little as $5 a month. Also, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the show on iTunes. We can't do this show without your support!!!

On this episode, Roqayah is out sick but Kumars spoke with Eric Holthaus, a meteorologist who writes about weather and science for a variety of outlets. He’s also the host of the podcast Warm Regards, where scientists, activists, and journalists join Eric to discuss climate change and what to do about it.  Eric and Kumars begin by reviewing the relevant science, including the effect of climate change on extreme weather events; resources like land, air and water; and living organisms and ecosystems.  We examine proposed political and technological fixes to the crisis, and their inadequacy in dealing with the magnitude of what we face.  Finally, we discuss strategies for developing the mass movement that will be required for not only eliminating the use of fossil fuels, but also replacing them with an energy economy that provides for all people, not just the wealthy and powerful.

Follow Eric on twitter at @EricHolthaus, and follow his podcast at @ourwarmregards.

 

Resource on LGBT life in Cuba discussed at the end of the episode:

Rainbow Solidarity in Defense of Cuba by Leslie Feinberg

 

Nov 18, 2016

If you want to support the show and receive access to tons of bonus content, subscribe on our Patreon page for as little as $5 a month. Also, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the show on iTunes. We can't do this show without your support!!!

On this episode, Roqayah and Kumars speak with Freddy Martinez, a computer security researcher and activist specializing in communications security and police accountability.  He is also the director of Lucy Parsons Labs.  Freddy shares some tips for avoiding state surveillance while doing organizing work.  He shares tips on securing your phone, gives alternatives to using email lists, discusses best practices for meeting security, and talks about how to avoid surveillance at protests.  Freddy also discusses his work exposing Chicago Police Department's use of Stingray technology to track and spy on the public.  Freddy shares his thoughts on FOIA as a tool for activists, including his belief that hacktivism, rather than FOIA, will be the most important driver of government accountability and transparency.

Follow Freddy on twitter at @B_Meson.

Resources discussed on the show:

Signal - encrypted text messaging

Riseup Etherpad - alternative to email lists

Stay safe everyone!

Nov 9, 2016

Yes, Trump looks like he will be our next president.

We have on @BrettPain and @MurderBryan from Street Fight Radio on WCRS in Columbus, Ohio to discuss what's next for those of us on the left following this absolutely crushing defeat at the hands of the extreme right-wing.  It's definitely a cathartic conversation, but we don't just vent, we discuss next steps for building a powerful counterweight to right-wing demagoguery. Liberalism and sectarian leftism have failed. We can't keep blaming everyone else, this defeat requires some serious introspection from liberals and leftists alike. If you are unable to organize people to your political position, that's your fault, not the fault of those you fail to convince.

It's time for those of us on the Left to get it together. No one else is going to fix this for us.

Episode Transcript:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qTQGhQc_TROM1gmiiDvWl-lxjfmfbFDPGBShzIGb1AI/edit?usp=sharing

Nov 2, 2016

If you want to support the show and receive access to tons of bonus content, subscribe on our Patreon page for as little as $5 a month. Also, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the show on iTunes. We can't do this show without your support!!!

On this episode, Roqayah and Kumars speak with a married father of one who has spent over ten years as a biologist and environmental protection specialist, planning large scale projects to minimize environmental impacts for several federal agencies. John (not his real name) was diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer in March and he's now found himself stuck in between massive gaps in our healthcare system and an out-of-control drug war.

John tells us about his initial diagnosis, a diagnosis that came many months late because of his inability to get the care he needed in a timely fashion. This delay in care happened despite him having some of the best health insurance available as a federal employee.  Once diagnosed, John tells us about how he was forced to continue working full-time so as not to lose his life insurance or health insurance policies.  Without life insurance, his family would be severely impacted if he should die, and without health insurance, he could not afford the care required to keep him alive.  If he were to get insurance on the private market, it would be too expensive to afford, even with his current salary, and the benefits would be severely limited compared to what he currently has.

John also tells us how he is at risk for losing his job (hence the pseudonym) because of his use of medical marijuana, the only treatment that has allowed him to deal with the horrible effects of his cancer and chemotherapy treatments. There are strict rules against federal employees using medical marijuana, even if they work in states where it is legal. Recently, it was announced that random drug-testing would be extended to all federal employees, putting John at-risk for losing his job, his healthcare, and his life insurance. We discuss the pharmaceutical industry's role in fighting the legitimacy of medical marijuana, as well as their role in perpetuating skyrocketing healthcare costs. We also discuss the importance of writing to government officials to speak out on behalf of John and those in a similar position who are denied life-saving treatment, whether due to cost or due to our indefensible drug laws.

Look for a story from Roqayah in Shadowproof on John's situation shortly!

 

Opening music from http://www.purple-planet.com

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