Chris and Jim begin by discussing recent developments in the Middle East, with tensions running high and fears of escalation after Israel reserves the right to respond to Iran's launching of drones and missiles at Israel (itself a retaliation for Israel's attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus). The bulk of the episode consists of a discussion of the notion of fragility, introduced in the previous episode, but developed here in relation to the climate emergency. Chris and Jim explore how political and cultural fragility, exemplified by the unresponsiveness of political systems to reality and the wishes of the population and the prevalence of disinformation in the public sphere, prevent productive debate around specific responses to the climate emergency, using the polarised debate around the introduction of LTNs (low traffic neighbourhoods) in their hometown of Oxford and the absurd misrepresentation of the notion of a 15-minute city as examples. The discussion then broadens out into a consideration of the way the climate movement has begun to engage with wider political and social justice issues, and the magnitude of the task of achieving the kind of profound social change required in a non-violent fashion.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

Political discussion with Jim Driscoll and Chris Floyd. In this episode, Jim begins by asking Chris about his experiences growing up in rural Tennessee during the Civil Rights era. They then use these experiences to explore the relationship between cultural anxiety and economic stability, and to begin to develop a notion of 'fragility', a feature that societies can have that renders them more liable to conflict and vulnerable to shocks. They then discuss ways in which society has become more fragile in recent years and think about why that may be the case. We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

Chris and Jim discuss the several concerning developments in Gaza over the Easter weekend and ask why it is that the West sees fit to continue arming Israel even as its actions are condemned in ever stronger terms.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

After catching up on some of the recent developments with respect to Gaza, Jim and Chris discuss possible ways in which those on the left can deal with the political situation as it confronts us. The focus in this episode is mainly on the UK, with discussion of a campaign for a hung parliament and the idea of a progressive alliance, before getting on to the topic of the importance of a new political party to occupy the large space to the left of Labour and the requirement to reconnect politics with the people via grassroots organising.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

Jim and Chris discuss parallels between the current moment and the post-9/11 situation, and what the Iraq War can teach us about now.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, Chris and Jim discuss the increasing extremism of the political establishments of the US and the UK in relation to the continuing horrors in Gaza. They talk about the Uncommitted movement in Michigan and the degree to which it might have influenced Biden's 'ice-cream' ceasefire announcement; the continuing fallout of the chaotic ceasefire vote in the UK, most recently exemplified by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's hijacking of the airwaves on 1st March to blether on about dangers to democracy (ie people marching in support of a ceasefire); and the election of a Communist MP to the House of Commons.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this epsode, Chris and Jim discuss the absurd weakness of the Labour Party in the UK in the face of criticism, before moving on to the way in which democracy has been hollowed out by the adoption by the political class of a narrow consensus which seems to move ever rightwards . Chris introduces his idea that we are living in the 'Age of the Unsayable' as a way of explaining how this has happened.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

What is artificial intelligence? Is it going to take over the world, or is it just coming for our jobs? Chris and Jim discuss the political issues raised by AI and how they relate to the crisis of Western democracy.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

Chris and Jim discuss the situation at the Texas border and the UK government's  Rwanda scheme, and what the dire state of the immigration debate in the two countries says about the crisis of democracy.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

Political discussion with Chris Floyd and Jim Driscoll. This series of Boondoggle will be providing commentary on the run-up to the 2024 US and UK elections.In this first episode, we provide a broad prospectus of how we see the political scene in both countries at the current time. 0.00-3.15 introduction3.15-6.25 the situation in Gaza6.25-52.25  the US52.25-1.17.50 the UK 1.17.50-1.18.05 outroChris Floyd has been a journalist and columnist for nearly forty years and has written for the Nation, the Moscow Times, and Il Manifesto (Italy), amongst others. He has a long-running political blog, Empire Burlesque, and writes a regular column for Counterpunch. He is also a musician and song-writer and is the singer for The Holy Fools. His twitter handle is @empireburlesque.Jim Driscoll is a musician and recovering philosopher, currently working on his third unpublished novel. He plays guitar for The Holy Fools and folk duo The Hex Collective.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

Jim and Chris talk about Chris's time in Moscow in the mid-90s working as a journalist for the Moscow Times and his experiences of the new post-Soviet society. They then look at the similarities and differences between the situation in the USSR in the mid- to late-80s and the situation in the US today.This discussion is prompted partly by the rash of articles discussing Barbara Walter's book How Civil Wars Start, see for example the review in the New York Times here,  and this more sceptical piece in the same paper.Second-hand Time by Svetlana Alexievich (available here) is a remarkable window into what it was like to live through the collapse of the Soviet Union. I can't recommend it enough.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, Jim and Chris discuss the recent hearing in the Supreme Court on the Mississippi abortion case, and what it might mean for the future of abortion provision and more in the United States.The article by David Gans mentioned by Chris is here - https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/10/mississippi-abortion-birth-control-lgbtq-scotus.htmlYou might also find the following interesting - https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/09/what-can-be-done-protect-womens-abortion-rights-if-roe-falls/https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/07/supreme-court-abortion-rights-constitution/We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this first episode of the new series of Boondoggle, Jim Driscoll and Chris Floyd discuss the recent verdict in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial, what it says about American politics in this moment, and how we got into this mess.The discussion proceeds from consideration of Patrick Blanchard's article on Gawker, 'Kyle Rittenhouse is an American' (available at https://www.gawker.com/news/kyle-rittenhouse-is-american).In the next episode, we will be discussing the impact on politics of the climate catastrophe, and will be starting by discussing this excellent (and slightly less than despairing) article by Alex Steffen, 'The Transapocalyptic Now' (https://alexsteffen.substack.com/p/the-transapocalyptic-now).We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, recorded on 17th February 2021, Sasha Abramsky (The Nation), Chris Floyd (Counterpunch), and Jim Driscoll discuss the difficulties of democratic discourse in America given that one party has gone off the authoritarian deep-end, and possible ways in which the Democrats might seek to get politics back on an even keel.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, recorded on 30th January, Chris Floyd (Counterpunch) and Jim Driscoll discuss the first ten days of the Biden administration and the future of the Republican Party as it binds itself ever tighter to Trumpist Q-Anon lunacy.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

What does the future hold for Trump, the Republican Party, and the American Republic? With Sasha Abramsky (The Nation), Chris Floyd (CounterPunch) and Jim Driscoll.Read Sasha's most recent article for The Nation is here.The article by Timothy Snyder from which we derive the terminology of 'breakers' and 'gamers' that structures much of our discussion is here.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, recorded 24 hours after the events of Wednesday 6th January, Sasha Abramsky (The Nation), Chris Floyd (Counterpunch) and Jim Driscoll discuss what should happen next, the prospects for Trumpism and the Republican Party going forward, and their thoughts on the way forward for the incoming administration.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, with Trump's legal challenges grinding on under the tender care of court jester Rudy Gulliani (see this helpful video for a good discussion of their slender prospects), Chris, Sasha, and Jim discuss what the future might hold for Trump, Trumpism, and the GOP, with reference to Sasha's latest article in the Nation (here). They also discuss the prospects for the senate run-offs in Georgia, with the whole team expressing cautious optimism regarding the Democrats' chances.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, Chris, Jim, and Sasha discuss the post-election situation, unprecedented in modern times, with Trump and increasing numbers of Republican officials refusing to accept the results of the election and crying fraud. Is this a mark of desperation or a serious escalation of anti-democratic strategising? Or perhaps both? All three of us are more pessimistic than a lot of the media seem to be. (See for example this headline in the Washington Post.) But Trump has been signalling his intentions for months and so far it is all unfolding as he said it would. The only question is whether the Republican party will go along with the charade, and so far the signs are not good. Is the Democrat's current strategy adequate for the moment we find ourselves in? Will they be able to step up to the plate if the Republicans' anti-democratic intransigence continues? If you too feel a resurgence of that familiar anxiety as Trump and his enablers trash America's democratic norms, I'm afraid this episode will not make you feel any better.Nor will these commentators - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jJrmPQf4NQhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jco8c6nCUoOn the other hand, there is thishttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAyh2xPrFvoWe'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020

In this episode, recorded on Tuesday 27th October, Chris, jim, and Sasha discuss the recent confirmation to the US Supreme Court of Amy Coney Barrett and its implications for the election. In the second half of the episode, Chris and Jim talk about their hopes and fears for a possible Biden administration.Earlier in the day, Sasha discussed many of the same topics on act.tv - you can watch that interview here.There is an interesting article from the Washington Post discussing in some detail Brett Kavanaugh's opinion in the Wisconsin election case, issued ust as Amy Coney Barrett was being confirmed, which you can read here.We'd love to hear from you -@Boondog44421386BoondogglePodcast2020