Escape Velocity Radio

Episode 29: Escaped Velocity Radio

Thu, 12 Mar 2015 13:39:00 +0000

Well dear listeners, this is it – the final episode of Escape Velocity Radio (for the foreseeable future anyway). And it’s not even a real episode. It’s about one-tenth of an episode – and even then it barely got made. But we felt that at the very least we owed you 6 more minutes top-drawer† podcasting before we closed this chapter, so here it is. Thanks for listening and for all the support, and we’ll see you on the other side. † assessment of quality has not been verified by an independent third-party

Episode Links

Episode Music

Europe – The Final Countdown

Episode 28: Canadian Museum for Human Rights review; Winnipeg’s colonialism problem; G7 Radio 006

Tue, 03 Feb 2015 20:21:00 +0000

After celebrating Winnipeg’s triumphant victory as Canada’s most racist city, we look at the disconnect between viewing racism as bigoted acts by individuals and seeing it as a colonial system which operates beyond any individual person’s attitudes or actions. We then buckle in for the thrill ride that is the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, offering our official review of Canada’s newest national museum: from the wings of the white dove, through the bodegas of despair, and up to the tip of the flume ride and back. Lastly, on G7 Radio, we look at Rhythm Activism’s strange and amazing 1998 album Jesus Was Gay.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Rhythm Activism – Down in the Mines
Rhythm Activism – In the Darkest Hour

Episode 27: Critical feedback; extra-judicial police murder; Interstellar and human triumphalism

Thu, 18 Dec 2014 16:48:00 +0000

This month we get into the copious feedback we received from last episode, specifically reflecting on the dissonance between our discussion of sexual assault and two of our past G7 releases. Next we look at the recent spate of highly-publicized police killings of black men in the United States, and wonder aloud what might be more effective in preventing such extra-judicial murder: police body cameras, or a fundamental power shift in race, policing, and justice? Then we make the mistake of once again trying to review a Hollywood movie with Interstellar, but end up on a tangent about our obsession with science fiction and space travel, human triumphalism, alien saviourism, and the barf scene in Team America. Lastly, in the fourth installment of G7 Radio, we discuss I Spy’s 1998 discography Perversity Is Spreading … It’s About Time!

Episode Links

Episode Music

Dead Prez – I Have A Dream, Too
I Spy – Appliances and Cars

Episode 26: Jian Ghomeshi, consent, assault, and justice with Melissa Martin; G7 Radio 003

Tue, 18 Nov 2014 12:00:00 +0000

In the wake of widespread allegations detailing disgraced CBC Radio personality Jian Ghomeshi’s long history of violent sexual assaults, Winnipeg-based writer and journalist Melissa Martin (@DoubleEmMartin) joins us in the basement. We discuss her experience being introduced to the “open secret” of Ghomeshi’s unsettling behaviour towards women; how that kind of open secret is mirrored more broadly in society; why the criminal justice system is not the right model for dealing with sexual assault; and how our twisted and deficient views on consent and sexuality allow abusers like Jian to believe they’ve done nothing wrong. Then to lighten the mood, we bring you the third installment of G7 Radio, this time featuring The Weakerthans’ debut album “Fallow”.

Episode Links

Episode Music

The Weakerthans – Leash
The Weakerthans – Letter of Resignation

Episode 25: Ryan McMahon on comedy, decolonization, and podcasting; G7 Radio 002

Tue, 21 Oct 2014 14:20:00 +0000

Boo! It’s October, which means another terrifying Halloween episode! This month we visit the home of Anishinaabe/Metis comedian and podcaster Ryan McMahon (@RMComedy) – which, like most homes in North America, is probably built on a haunted ancient Indian burial ground. We chat with Ryan about his stand-up comedy and his Red Man Laughing podcast; how Idle No More has influenced his work; the history of colonization in Canada; and how we might work towards a more just and sustainable future. Then, on the second installment of G7 Radio, we discuss Consolidated’s artistically-advanced yet commercially-untenable 1997 album “Dropped”.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Tanya Tagaq – Uja
Consolidated – Schnitzel Boy
Consolidated – Fractured Fairytales
Consolidated – Shell

Episode 24: Tropes vs Women in video games, museums vs human rights in Canada, G7 Radio 001

Mon, 29 Sep 2014 19:11:00 +0000

This month we delve (very-shallowly) into our personal video game histories in order to reveal just how little we know about games and gaming, then discuss Anita Sarkeesian’s Feminist Frequency and Tropes vs Women in Video Games projects. We then touch on the new Canadian Museum for Human Rights and how it may or may not be of any value to anybody anywhere currently facing human rights abuses, and see how it compares to the nearby Museum of Canadian Human Rights Abuses. Lastly we break ground on a new segment called G7 Radio, where we step back through time and discuss the records we released while running G7 Welcoming Committee Records. This month: …But Alive’s Bis Jetzt Ging Alles Gut.

Episode Links

Episode Music

...But Alive – Zeit, An Gott Zu Denken
...But Alive – Ausverkauf Vs. Ghettoromantik
...But Alive – Korrekt III (Das Letzte Kapitel)

Episode 23: Nora Barrows-Friedman on Israel/Palestine; debunking Sam Harris’ defense of Israel

Sat, 30 Aug 2014 16:50:00 +0000

We return from our summer travels (and travails) with stories of colonial homesteads and colonial privilege, followed by a debunking of prominent atheist and neuroscientist Sam Harris’ absurd article and podcast defending Israel over the (apparently) mindless barbarian Arabs who comprise “her enemies”. We then chat with Electronic Intifada associate editor Nora Barrows-Friedman (@norabf) about the origins of the Israel/Palestine conflict, Zionism as a colonial project, what the deal is with Hamas, and what lies ahead.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Punch – Worth More Than Your Opinion

Episode 22: Jean Kilbourne on women in advertising and rape culture; Cowspiracy documentary

Tue, 22 Jul 2014 15:12:00 +0000

We start by discussing the new documentary Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret, which delves into how animal agriculture is the primary source of environmental degradation on the planet, and asks why major environmental organizations aren’t doing anything about it. Then we are joined by veteran lecturer and media analyst Jean Kilbourne to discuss her pioneering work looking at how advertising depicts women; how it creates and enforces gender roles and impossible beauty standards; and how it contributes to rape culture. Lastly, we review some feedback on the Chris Hedges plagiarism debacle.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Clann Zú – There Will Be No Morning Copy

Episode 21: Australia, plagiarism, addiction, and the end of food

Sun, 22 Jun 2014 21:29:00 +0000

As we return from our extended absence, Chris brings us tales of Propagandhi’s Australian sojourn, including their introduction to the RISE organization, and their time with Sea Shepherd. Then we give our half-a-cent on the plagiarism charges being levelled at Chris Hedges; look at new and probably-terrible ideas to alter how we eat via technology; and relatedly review some feedback on last episode’s interview with Leigh Phillips about GMOs. Lastly, we discuss Dr. Gabor Maté‘s humane yet difficult perspective on the Rob Ford spectacle; and on Kickstarter Corner®, we bring word of Will Potter’s Drone on the Farm project.

Episode Links

Episode Music

RVIVR – The Seam

Episode 20: Noah, Cosmos, #sealfies, and Leigh Phillips with a left defence of GMOs

Wed, 30 Apr 2014 21:25:00 +0000

In this month’s extended installment of the podcast, we begin by taking a field trip to a corporate chain movie theatre to watch better-than-average Hollywood slop in the form of Darren Aronofsky’s Noah. Then we take a field trip to our houses to watch better-than-everything sciencey television in the form of Cosmos. Next, our interview guest – science writer and EU affairs journalist Leigh Phillips (@leigh_phillips) – joins us to mount a leftist defence of genetically-modified food. Lastly, we review some listener feedback, and discuss the Inuit #sealfie campaign (and the Canadian government’s success in conflating the commercial and subsistence seal hunts to its own shit-mouthed benefit.)

Episode Links

Episode Music

Corrosion of Conformity – Technocracy
The Flatliners – Drown in Blood

Episode 19: Media sausage parties; Canada Reads; decolonial veganism

Tue, 25 Mar 2014 17:09:00 +0000

To celebrate the vernal equinox in the tradition of Chris’ ancestors, we at once lamely lament the continued dearth of female voices on our podcast, and simultaneously criticize The Agenda for their disingenuous comments about their own sausage party. We then recap this year’s Canada Reads series and how it brought some passionate discussion about colonization onto the mainstream airwaves, as well as the critiques and responses around Joseph Boyden’s book The Orenda. Then Chris launches an Escape Velocity Radio Reads segment featuring books he hasn’t yet finished, and we discuss some ideas on how decolonization, indigenous resurgence, and animal liberation might relate to each other.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Bikini Kill – Statement of Vindication

Episode 18: Jules Boykoff on the Olympics and “Celebration Capitalism”

Tue, 18 Feb 2014 17:06:00 +0000

With the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia just winding down, we sit down with Jules Boykoff – author of Celebration Capitalism and the Olympic Games and Activism and the Olympics – to talk about what’s inspiring and what’s sickening about the Olympics. Chris and Jules discuss the gargantuan (and publicly-funded) cost of the games, the ubiquitous corporate sponsorship of athletes, the politics of Olympic boycotts for both athletes and spectators, and ideas for reclaiming the Olympics from corporate profiteers. Also: Chris and Derek recap the Maple Leafs “Forces Appreciation Night” parody website; reflect on Joshua Oppenheimer’s insane documentary The Act of Killing (brief re-enactment included), and note the recent resurfacing of two of the left’s most controversial activist scholars (excluding your charming hosts of course).

Episode Links

Episode Music

Greg MacPherson – 1995

Episode 17: The Zapatistas 20 Years On with Alex Khasnabish

Thu, 16 Jan 2014 13:53:00 +0000

We take the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Zapatista uprising in Chiapas, Mexico to interview teacher, researcher, and author of Zapatistas: Rebellion from the Grassroots to the Global, Alex Khasnabish. Alex takes us through the roots of the rebellion; the military conflict and subsequent negotiations; the unique and refreshing character of the movement; its broad influence both inside Mexico and internationally; and the ongoing grassroots work the Zapatistas continue to do today. In our debrief, we discuss the influence the Zapatistas had on us as young, irritating, and pedantic but well-meaning twits, and the connections between indigenous movements in places like Mexico and indigenous resurgence here in Canada. But more importantly: Propagandhi tour news, and a new song from War On Women!

Episode Links

Episode Music

War On Women – Servilia
Rage Against the Machine – People of the Sun
Against Me! – Transgender Dysphoria Blues

Episode 16: We Steal Secrets: The (Unpaid) Story of Antibiotic Resistance

Thu, 19 Dec 2013 20:04:00 +0000

While on a short break from our clandestine preparations for liberating Santa’s reindeer from chattel slavery, we recount some of the feedback we received on last month’s Chris Hedges interview. Then we review Alex Gibney’s documentary We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks; do what may be our first ever science segment, about the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and the coming post-antibiotic age; and have our plans for an Escape Velocity Radio intern dashed by Charles Davis’ article about poorly-paid (and unpaid) interns, “The Exploited Labourers of the Liberal Media”.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Slapshot – Punk’s Dead, You’re Next
Living Colour – Cult of Personality
Christmas in the Stars – What Can You Get a Wookiee for Christmas (When He Already Owns a Comb?)

Episode 15: Interview with Chris Hedges

Wed, 27 Nov 2013 20:21:00 +0000

This month we bring you our conversation with Pulitzer prize-winning journalist and author Chris Hedges. Recorded during his late-2013 visit to Winnipeg, we discuss the idea of human progress; religion’s role in the world and the “new” atheists; his controversial attacks on the black bloc tactic; the role of electoral politics in agitating for social justice; and more. Then your intrepid hosts debrief on where some atheists go astray, and enter the fray regarding living clown celebrity Russell Brand, concluding that he and Chris are basically living parallel lives.

Episode Links

Episode Music

warsawpack – Doomsday Device

Episode 14: Interview with Robin Hahnel on Participatory Economics

Fri, 18 Oct 2013 19:38:00 +0000

On this month’s terrifying episode, which may or may not have been recorded in an actual haunted house, we spend the hour with activist and economist Robin Hahnel discussing his book Of the People, By the People: The Case for a Participatory Economy. Robin tells us about the bone-chilling failings of free market capitalism, the spine-tingling reasons why he feels viable alternative economic models need to be part of activist discourse, and the blood-curdling details of how his proposed alternative to capitalism — called Participatory Economics — works in practice. Join us for this mortifying discussion about how humans organize their economic affairs — if you dare!

Episode Links

Episode 13: Informants and infiltrators

Thu, 19 Sep 2013 13:31:00 +0000

This month, we take time out from exposing each other as undercover operatives working for the corporate state to discuss Jamie Meltzer’s new documentary Informant, about the bizarre case of activist turned FBI lackey Brandon Darby. We then look at Canada’s recent history of undercover operations in activist movements, and hear from Toronto-based organizer Sharmeen Khan about her experiences being infiltrated by the Ontario Provincial Police during the G20 protests in 2010.

Episode Links

Episode Music

The Rolling Stones – Undercover of the Night
I’m A Policeman – Disneyland Children’s Sing-Along Chorus
Dead Kennedys – I Spy

Episode 12: Ethical life under capitalism; speculative futures; alternative economies; cultured meat

Wed, 21 Aug 2013 16:27:00 +0000

Come, sit by the lake and eavesdrop while we review your copious feedback to episode 11’s discussion of the BDS movement against Israel; debrief on Propagandhi’s European tour and the ubiquity of corporate sponsorships in music; and reflect on what it means to live an ethical life under capitalism. Next we discuss Neill Blomkamp’s film Elysium, Kim Stanley Robinson’s book 2312, and alternative economic models which take inspiration from the past. Then Derek gets hungry and eats a cultured hamburger while Chris simultaneously praises lab meat and compares it to dog shit.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Shellac – Boycott
Antillectual – Cut the Ground From Under Our Feat
G.A.S. Drummers – Blind
Deltron 3030 – 3030
Judas Priest – Eat Me Alive

Episode 11: The BDS movement and Israel; Stefan Christoff on the Quebéc student strike

Tue, 02 Jul 2013 18:14:00 +0000

Derek barely reviews World War Z (the shitty movie, not the excellent book), which segues into a discussion of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel (wherein Chris calls for a Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Canada). Then we sit down with Montréal-based activist and journalist Stefan Christoff to discuss the 2012 Quebec student strike and its historical significance, outcomes, and legacy. Also: Chris airs his grievances against the armchair audio engineers amongst our listenership.

Episode Links

Episode Music

The Rebel Spell – Please Resist
Temps Libre – Brahja & Christoff

Episode 10: Interview with Dave Zirin on sports and politics

Sun, 02 Jun 2013 13:22:00 +0000

Derek backpedals on calling Jared Diamond “douchebaggy”, we give wildly divergent recommendations of who to follow on Twitter, and we attempt to convince you to back the new Media Education Foundation/Tim Wise documentary on Kickstarter. Then, Chris interviews sports columnist and author Dave Zirin about the intersection of sports and politics, discussing sexism, homophobia, racism, militarism and labour in the professional sports world. Plus: listener feedback!

Episode Links

Episode Music

The Doughboys – Never Sleep

Episode 9: Interview with Colleen Patrick-Goudreau; the death of Chávez; Propagandhi release news

Tue, 07 May 2013 03:00:00 +0000

After a month-long absence we explode back onto the scene with a hilarious skit about the media coverage of Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez’s death, followed by a recap of Propagandhi’s European tour, and news regarding the 20th anniversary re-release of a certain “seminal” album. Then, after a pit-stop at “what Derek’s been reading” corner, we talk with author, podcaster, chef, and vegan educator Colleen Patrick-Goudreau about her new book On Being Vegan, “fake meat”, effective advocacy, and more.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Crumbsuckers – Rejuvenate

Episode 8: Interview with Chris Mooney on The Republican Brain; SodaStream boycott; war propaganda

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 17:01:00 +0000

Sink your teeth into our discussion of the hypocrisy and absurdity behind the horse meat debacle; the real scandal behind SodaStream’s SuperBowl ad; the 10th anniversary of a key propaganda coup for the selling of the U.S. invasion of Iraq; and the utterly sad Gun Appreciation Day events held this past January. Then our interview guest — author and journalist Chris Mooney — talks with us about political psychology and his book The Republic Brain: The Science of Why They Deny Science — and Reality.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Drop Dead – At the Cost of an Animal
Kim Mitchell – Go For A Soda
Voivod – The Getaway
M.O.D. – True Colors

Episode 7: Interviews with Leanne Simpson and John K. Samson on Idle No More; author William Blum

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 13:44:00 +0000

Join us for a discussion about the Idle No More First Nations movement in Canada, as we review the key issues and timeline of events; talk to John K. Samson about the Canadian Artists Statement of Solidarity; and chat with author, storyteller, and academic Leanne Betasamosake Simpson about Indigenous resistance and resurgence in Canada. Plus, a conversation with the only person we know who has ever received a book endorsement from an international terrorist figurehead, William Blum, on the occasion of the release of his new book America’s Deadliest Export: Democracy.

Episode Links

Episode Music

John K. Samson with Nikki Komaksiutiksak and Blunderspublik – Keewatin Arctic
A Tribe Called Red – The Road
Christ on a Crutch – Caveat Emptor

Episode 6: Interview with Against Me!‘s Laura Jane Grace; Liberator comic; pipeline activism

Wed, 02 Jan 2013 16:48:00 +0000

Ring-in 2013 by listening-in on our conversation with Laura Jane Grace from Against Me! where we discuss gender dysphoria, her decision to transition, and the band’s forthcoming album. We also discuss the Duets for Abdelrazik project, activism opposing the Keystone XL pipeline extension, and the Liberator comic Kickstarter project. Plus, Chris tries to convince Derek to stop suckling at the corporate teat and join alternative social networking sites.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Duets for Abdelrazik – Shalabi & Christoff
M.D.C. – Dead Cops/America’s So Straight
Against Me! – New Wave
Against Me! – I Was A Teenage Anarchist

Episode 5: Interview with Shawna Potter (War on Women/Hollaback! Baltimore)

Mon, 03 Dec 2012 23:14:00 +0000

After reflecting on both the outcome of the recent U.S. elections and Israel’s latest bombardment of Gaza — and after getting immolated in a Predator drone strike — we interview Shawna Potter of Baltimore hardcore band War on Women (and founder of her local chapter of Hollaback!) about music, feminism, activism, street harassment and more.

Episode Links

Episode 4: Ralph Nader’s Seventeen Solutions; the 2012 U.S. elections; Stanford organic food study

Thu, 01 Nov 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Make yourself a sandwich and listen in while we examine the Stanford organic food study and media illiteracy; get a report from Chris on Propagandhi’s north-eastern tour; discuss Ralph Nader’s new book The Seventeen Solutions; tell you definitively how you should (and will) vote in the 2012 U.S. presidential election; look at the nefarious legal and PR forces behind the NHL lockout; and review some of your feedback from previous episodes.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Disaster Strikes – Faith in Fiction
These Days – Can’t Relate
Steve Earle – Christmastime in Washington

Episode 3: Interview with Will Potter (Green is the New Red); the Chris Hedges/black bloc flap

Tue, 16 Oct 2012 13:42:00 +0000

Join us as we dissect the controversy around Chris Hedges’ “Cancer in Occupy” article and the Occupy Tactics debate; discuss the excellent documentary If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front; and talk to author and journalist Will Potter about his book Green is the New Red: An Insider’s Account of a Social Movement Under Siege.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Lee Reed – Same Old Same

Episode 2: Interview with Dave Nickarz (Sea Shepherd crew member); gun control in sick societies

Tue, 04 Sep 2012 16:23:00 +0000

This month we review your feedback on episode one; solve once and for all the issue of mass shootings and gun violence in one 15 minute discussion; hear the latest news from local four-piece band Propagandhi; and talk to environmental activist and Sea Shepherd crew member Dave Nickarz about his experiences interfering with the capture and slaughter of whales and seals in Canada, the Antarctic and beyond.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Propagandhi – Duplicate Keys Icaro (An Interim Report)
Dead Kennedys – Frankenchrist
Van Halen – When It’s Love

Episode 1: Interview with Wab Kinew; Propagandhi preview; Enbridge and climate change

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 14:55:00 +0000

In this, our inaugural episode, we discuss and preview Propagandhi’s forthcoming album “Failed States”; gawk with jaws slack at the unmitigated gall of the executives at Enbridge; pontificate on the possibility that the earth has entered a period of rapid state change that could transform the lives of the next generation into an unrecognizable shit-show; lapse into a spontaneous book-club segment; and for the main event, bring you an interview with hip-hop artist and broadcast journalist Wab Kinew.

Episode Links

Episode Music

Propagandhi – Failed States