This week, we're analyzing the specifically online aspects of the recent Venezuela mercenary debacle. We're joined by Riley Quinn and Alice Caldwell-Kelly of Trashfuture, Nate's other podcast, who provide insight into the specific types of psychosis that inhabits the IG-Influencer-Fitness-Mercenary axis. You'll love it, folks!
2020-05-11 01:08:40 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Nate and Francis are talking how to handle small children's tempers, the metaphysics of the True Midwest, and so much more. Hope you enjoy our periodic script-free DadChat episodes, because we love recording them!
2020-05-03 23:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Francis speaks with journalist Jasper Craven (@jasper_craven) on the topic of VA care during the COVID-19 outbreak, the ways in which the Trump administration is trying to break the public sector unions that organize VA workers, and why it's very bipartisan to stealth privatize the one non-geriatric universal healthcare system in America. Hope you enjou!
2020-04-26 23:01:59 +0000 UTC View PostWe've recently had a lot of Navy talk, so we figured it would make sense to bring someone on who could discuss boats. Rich Madrid (@richjmadrid) is a leftist Navy vet who took some time to explain to Francis what life is like on a ship, why the COVID-19 situation is especially dangerous for sailors, and what one does when you're given a port call in Hong Kong. Hope you enjoy!
2020-04-19 23:01:02 +0000 UTC View PostNate and Francis assembled another episode of DadChat. This episode includes discussions of power tools, plans for home improvement projects, what sorts of food to grill, and so much more.
The jerk chicken recipe that Nate mentions can be found here: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/grilled-jerk-chicken-106516
The Fat Rice recipe for 'basic fri...
2020-04-13 00:46:52 +0000 UTC View PostThis week's bonus episode features an interview between Nate and Ben Natan (@thebennatan). Ben's an actor based in New York City, and he's involved with left-wing Jewish activism in the US, a politics he came to after growing up Jewish with one Israeli parent and one American one. We talked about Israel's relationship to militarism, what Zionism and anti-Zionism actually mean, and what sorts of fault lines exist in the Jewish experience in the US. Hope you enjoy!
2020-04-06 23:01:02 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Francis speaks with Jared and Elizabeth Kilmer from Game to Grow, an organization that uses tabletop gaming in therapy. Specifically, they discuss how they've seen tabletop gaming work to support therapy for veterans, and how roleplaying can be therapeutic in a variety of contexts. Hope you enjoy!
2020-03-29 23:01:59 +0000 UTC View PostFrancis and Carey Shockey (@shocks) review the 2012 film BATTLESHIP because, well, someone has to provide insight into its portrayal of the military, and Carey at least has experience on boats. So, please enjoy this -- and if it comes up on your streaming feed, who knows, maybe it's worth a watch (doubtful).
2020-03-23 00:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostWe've talked a lot about national service, the draft, and things of that nature (sometimes in the context of whichever politician has brought them up in an undefined way). But this week, we're talking to an actual Americorps veteran -- friend of the show Alan -- who can explain in detail what the program is like, and whether or not it's something people should join. Hope you enjoy!
2020-03-16 15:33:53 +0000 UTC View PostWe recorded this week's DadChat the day after Super Tuesday. Who even knows what's going to happen next in American politics. What we do discuss is: centrist volton, coping strategies, Biden's dementia, and how we both attempt to unplug from time to time (despite needing to be online for work). Hope you enjoy -- if you have any suggestions, please let us know!
2020-03-09 00:02:01 +0000 UTC View PostAs you may have heard, Francis' dad was trained to operated the Davy Crockett nuclear recoilless rifle, and this instigated a lifetime of curiosity about nuclear weapons and their modern roles. So, we've brought on anthropology PhD student Martin Pfeiffer (@nuclearanthro) to answer Francis' nuke-related questions. EMPs? We talk about them. Total disarmament? We talk about it, too. Hope you enjoy!
2020-03-02 00:02:05 +0000 UTC View PostAs a follow-up to last week's episode, Nate speaks with certified Zoomer Kevin F. about what it's like deploying to Afghanistan with a permanently-connected smartphone. Kevin recently returned from a 9-month deployment and has a lot to say about how war zones are no longer hermetically sealed. Hope you enjoy!
2020-02-24 00:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostWhat happens when the Matrix takes place in 1984 and Brave New World? What happens when jacked as hell Christian Bale is asked to be emotive? Francis and Nate answer these questions in their review of the 2002 sci-fi gun samurai film EQUILIBRIUM. There's a lot to talk about, even if the film is (spoiler alert) not good.
2020-02-17 00:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Nate speaks with author and journalist Hussein Kesvani (@hkesvani) on the topic of the Prevent program -- a government anti-radicalization effort in the UK that has expanded to include both the security state and large aspects of cultural events.
For example, Hussein was scheduled to speak at a book festival last year, and a few weeks before it began he discovered that its funding came from the same program ...
2020-02-10 16:23:09 +0000 UTC View PostLook, it was bound to happen. We were supposed to review a movie (we're getting to that soon!) and we completely messed up our timing. But, we devoted an hour of dadchat to the following topics: is it really a good idea for a communist future with only communal kitchens? What is the goal when we talk about private sufficiency and public luxury? What sorts of decorations do troops use to make their living space seem slightly more like home? Why did Nate put up Spanish propaganda posters in his...
2020-02-03 00:02:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Francis discusses a book about propaganda and explains why propaganda isn't that bad. Or is it? Honestly working out the details ourselves
2020-01-27 00:32:50 +0000 UTC View PostYou've asked your questions, and we're here to answer them. What sorts of red flags let you know that someone is the Rick and Morty fan of veterans? What MOS would you pick if you could do it all again? What are your favorite nonfiction books? Hear these and many more answered in this month's Q&A.
2020-01-20 12:22:08 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Francis speaks with Isiah James (@isiah4congress), an Army infantry veteran running as a democratic socialist in the Democratic primary for New York's 9th Congressional District. Isiah discusses his platforms, why he got into politics, how he approaches topics like gun control, ending the Drug War, and combatting imperialism. Isiah gives a fascinating interview and we hope you enjoy it.
You can read hi...
2020-01-13 14:24:30 +0000 UTC View PostWe saw the Matrix when we were teenagers, and we haven't addressed this film because, at first glance, it's not really a standard war movie. However, given the prevalence of chuds using the expression 'redpill,' we decided that we needed to explore it. So, we reviewed the Wachowskis' 1999 action classic and provided a verdict. And honestly, it was a lot of fun because this remains a truly solid film.
2020-01-06 00:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Francis watches a video about the odd weapon prototypes of Ghana, from drone cars to gundams that don't move, we discuss just why Ghana isn't going to become a world power with the Kantanka Corporation
2019-12-30 15:55:26 +0000 UTC View PostThis week's bonus features Francis and Brock in discussion of yet another classic video game. Brock loves BioShock Infinite, and he and Francis discuss its strangely libertarian themes, its unintentional forward progress of representing diverse characters, and its mind-control overtones that are, frankly, depressing. Hope you enjoy!
2019-12-23 00:02:01 +0000 UTC View PostThis week's bonus features Francis in discussion with investigative reporter Alex Kotch. They discuss the current Democratic primary: why Warren and Sanders don't take PAC money, Pete Buttigieg's background as a consultant, the sources of money that candidates take from high-income donors, and what a management consultant actually does. Hope you enjoy!
2019-12-16 13:59:08 +0000 UTC View PostOur favorite congressman has done it. He's leaving government because he got caught vaping and gaming too much. In order to understand the legal ramifications of the case, we've brought on friend of the show Carey Shockey (@shocks) to discuss.
2019-12-10 15:21:17 +0000 UTC View Post
Francis ordered a Combat Application Tourniquet and a first aid kit on Wish and goes through them, discussing what he does and doesn't like about them
2019-12-01 22:51:12 +0000 UTC View PostThis week's bonus features Francis speaking with Jasper Craven, a journalist who covers military and veteran issues, about a recent piece he wrote for The Baffler about how the military has conducted drug dosing experiments on service members. They also joke a bit about mefloquine Mondays and all the ways in which the military makes you a guinea pig.
You can read Jasper's article here: https://th...
2019-11-25 00:02:01 +0000 UTC View PostIt's the three-year anniversary of this podcast and we recorded it the day after Veterans Day. Nate and Francis set out to do a full DadChat episode but instead talked about the civilian-military divide, the weirdness of pitting veterans against people who didn't join, and a World War II poem by Kenneth Koch. Thank you so much for your support of the show -- hope you enjoy!
2019-11-18 18:29:54 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Nate and Francis discuss the entirety of the Rambo series. Why has it gotten less plot-driven and more fixated on violence? Is the entire series fascist? Why are post-9/11 action movies so grim and centered on the worst depictions of horror? And why does the original Point Break rule so much? Find out by listening.
2019-11-11 18:13:06 +0000 UTC View Post
For the bonus this week, Francis shows off some of his hydroponic growing, the differences between the different systems, and what you need to get started yourself
2019-11-04 15:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post(Apologies for the delayed release — Nate got a little too pastoral back in Indiana and didn't make his deadline). This week's bonus features Francis in discussion with longtime friend of the show Brock Wilbur on the topic of the 2004 video game Katamari Damacy. It's a game about rolling things up, a game with a profoundly unique approach, and a game that envisions the King of All Cosmos as a gender-fluid wild man. So, the question remains: is it fascist? Listen to find out.
2019-10-28 22:41:34 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Nate speaks with Marine veteran and anti-war activist John Motter (@JohnMotter) about organizing in Los Angeles, how he went from infantry grunt to leftism, the perils of tunnel vision in activism, and why war movies wind up always managing to seem like endorsements of war. Hope you enjoy!
You can follow About Face: Veterans Against the War here: 2019-10-20 23:01:59 +0000 UTC View Post