The Mad Centrist
"A sane person to an insane society must appear insane." ― Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Not Mad as in Angry, Mad as in Insane. And in an insane world, the sane are simply Mad. I am The Mad Centrist. You can be too! The Mad Centrist podcast is a middle ground, pragmatic, politically polite, and irreverently independent show. Pulling the rug out from beneath Democrats and Republicans alike, while respecting democrats and republican citizens (the distinction between Party and people is critical!). Amusing anecdotes of the crazy world we find ourselves in, how to maybe get along better, and pull the world back towards sanity, and do so while having some fun!
Episodes
A very short episode - covering the Farce in Venezuela, the crimes being committed, and why they are crimes, and not part of the "War on Terror."
Plus some show notes! Speaking of which, this week's notes for this show:
* Congress' 2001 Authorized Use of Military Force: https://uslawexplained.com/2001_aumf
* Hegseth's takes on Trump... in 2016: https://archive.is/CnNgk
5 Democrats do something uncharacteristic, but relatively normal - at least if we were in normal times. These are anything but normal times. Trump threatens enemies with death, threatens invasions of allies, threatens invasions of neighbors who are not a threat, and loads of money keep pouring into his bank accounts - As Americans try to scrape by, lose jobs, and can no longer afford healthcare.
But then there is the...
I hear it, you probably do too: McConnell's fault, or Biden's. Maybe even the Supreme Court or Aileen Cannon. It might be a bit simple to claim any one thing brought about the success of Donald Trump's brand, or kept it going. However, there are significant bricks that make up the wall of today's world that gave us Trump. This episode tries to uncover the good, the bad, and the... well, listen ...
Have you ever heard the term "Nuclear Option" and wondered what it meant?
Me too! I decided to find out, and put together the normal person's guide to the filibuster, cloture, and the Nuclear Option in the United States Senate - I found some interesting history along the way!
Plus, so old news becomes new again...again.
Show Notes:
The 2 housing market pieces from the WSJ: More Home Purchases Are Falling T...
What do you get when the SEC backs off Crypto Currency rules and regulations at the behest of the leader of the Free World? Maybe corruption at a scale never seen before on the planet.
How is the ballroom being paid for?
How is the military being paid by a donor?
Are pardons being sold?
Good questions, and no one knows. Jay Sun, Russ Albrecht, Biance, CZ, and the Binance Crypto Currency marketplace all come into play in t...
The No Kings rally was a great success. There has never been a protest this large in American history! The goal was to raise awareness of the moves being made to consolidate - or simply take - power into an authoritarian executive branch, and to remind everyone America has No Kings.
Maybe it had a side effect no one anticipated. Maybe it made some of the MAGA faithful... question their faith. Listen in and see what...
The National Guard is getting some bad press. This is not the National Guard's fault though. The Guard has a long, storied history in America, and this episode shares some of the highlights (and a low light too). It also compares President Trump's use of the National Guard to other Presidents in history.
Spoiler Alert: it doesn't do Trump any favors.
Show Notes:
Starbucks closing: Starbucks Closures Ma...
The data exists, if we want to find it. This is the job of some people. But no one seems to be able to find it. In this episode I present some data that makes me question the stability of the economy. Some of it is uniquely Maddening.
Show Notes:
Cardboard slowdown: Cardboard-Box Demand Is Slumping. Why That’s Bad News for the Economy. - WSJ
(Not) Leaving (for) Las Vegas: An Empty Strip And Fewer Tips: Is Las Vegas ...
Ask an easy question, and sometimes you get a deep thoughtful response.
What killed Charlie Kirk is one of those questions. Not who, but what. This episode is off the cuff and relies on thoughts already recorded in past episodes. Therefore, there are no real show notes - except to say... maybe listen to episode #3 again - or for the first time.
The political podcast for everyone!
Tariff, a hot button issue for sure. In America, we argue - still - over who pays them (Hint: it is not the foreign nation). We complain about how they increase prices. We largely ignore the international consequences - but we better start paying attention.
The International Community is starting to re-align, and it is doing so without America whenever and wherever it can. This is a tremendous unintended consequenc...
In the throes of COVID-19 a movement gained power. A silly on, but still, Q Anon grew unexpectedly.
In hindsight it would be laughable that it ever happened, except for the damage done to our nation, and families and individuals.
Now we have a poor-man's "Q" trying similar tactics when everyone is much wiser, and a pandemic is not keeping us inside in front of screens anymore.
A Substack post of ludicrous ...
Who would have thought we would be here? Camps now across multiple states, and most of the population recognizes them as what they are: concentration camps.
The crazy part is half of the people seem to be OK with concentration camps in the United States of America.
Show Notes:
Scientific American article: Trump’s Massive Deportation Plan Echoes Concentration Camp History | Scientific American
Jeffrey Epstein has a sorted past. Ghislane Maxwell, his partner in crime is serving 20 years for human trafficking and other sex crimes. Both of these notorious people have ties to President Trump from the 1980s to the mid-2000s.
In this episode I put together a pretty comprehensive timeline of events and crimes and how the lives of two of the most notorious pedophiles and human traffickers crossed paths so many tim...
The Trump Administration and the Supreme Court - frienemies?
Trump continues to try to bully law firms, and has some success, and some failures. Why does Trump continue to attack the legal system? How does he get away with it?
For the answer to these questions and more we welcome back Professor Balderas, first amendment lawyer and friend of the show!
No show notes - it is an interview after all!
The political podcast fo...
Sometimes things go another direction, and the perfect opportunity arrives.
I wanted to speak about how I get news sources for some time, and I also thought it would be an injustice to not touch of some of the most important current events. When scheduling conflicts kept a guest off the show, lemonade from lemons!
This week I hit REAL news, inflation, The Supreme Court (or rather, I don't), the Senate's budge...
Juneteenth just passed, so, yeah, I am a bit late. I had mentioned wanting to cover the history of "Woke," and adding Juneteenth seemed perfect, if a few days late.
This is a shorter episode, but very important none the less.
Show notes!
The history of The Choctaw and the Irish: Irish Return an Old Favor, Helping Native Americans Battling the Virus - The New York Times
The Mad Centrist plays off of the famous Kurt Vonnegut quote "A sane man, to an insane world, must appear insane." Recently this seems even more apt.
The world is hitting new levels of insanity, and we must be Mad to be so sane!
Arresting Federal Marshalls? Not able to bring back Abrego Garcia, until of course we are able to - only to make him stand trial for made up charges?
Do I have this right? The largest...
The Episode I promised long ago, in Episode #37. This episode covers the social programs Medicare and Medicaid. Two programs with similar names, but they are very different indeed! Take a listen to see if you feel they are worth our tax dollars, or if maybe you believe they are not.
Before you make up your mind though, listen and learn enough to make that an informed decision.
Show Notes:
This week's episode we have a special guest: Professor, Lawyer, and Journalist Israel Balderas. The conversation is focused on Journalism - an area of expertise where you might be hard pressed to find a better professional to give their opinion.
Even better, when questions about the legal challenges the Trump administration is putting forth come up, Balderas is also an expert in 1st amendment law.
I hope you enj...
A really rare non-political episode - well, not really. It centers on the president, but it is about his mental acuity, and not his politics. To that extent, it really is not political.
This episode asks the question, a question I think many people around the world ask: Is Donald Trump dumb, brilliant, and more of an idiot savant? I go through many situations where a questionable action or decision results in someth...
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