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Episodes
Friday Nov 13, 2020
Friday Nov 13, 2020
For years now, the Catholic Church has been defined as much by sex-abuse scandals as by worldwide charities. But simmering conflicts between abdicated Pope Benedict XVI and reigning Pope Francis – on issues like married priests, same-sex marriages, and even pedophile priests – threaten a holy schism that would make those scandals and charities seem irrelevant.
After all, sectarian tensions between Benedict's conservative and Francis's liberal acolytes could blow the Catholic Church asunder.
Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 20 min 11 sec
Saturday Nov 07, 2020
Saturday Nov 07, 2020
Arguably, the stress the US presidential election induced rivals the fear the Covid pandemic has this year. But, while we have to wait for a vaccine to allay the latter, I can think of no better way to alleviate the former than a talk on the fairytale lives of the British royal family.
However, if you are a fan of royalty, I feel obliged to warn you to listen at your own risk.
Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 19 min 53 sec
Saturday Oct 24, 2020
Saturday Oct 24, 2020
Saying this is the most important presidential election of our lives is probably the oldest cliché in the history of American politics. But there’s no denying that, for obvious reasons, this was the case in 1800, 1860, 1960, and 2008; and is also the case in 2020.
Ironically, nothing demonstrated this quite like trying to get a Nigerian friend to talk about his country’s #EndSARS protests, only to have him deflect to talk about this US presidential election.
This is why no citizen worth their salt should let it go by without participating. But, if you’re still trying to decide whom to vote for, you are probably just too stupid to vote.
This is also why today's talk focuses more on the importance of voting early and in person than on the reasons why it’s better to vote for Joe Biden than Donald Trump.
Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 17 min 17 sec
Sunday Oct 18, 2020
Sunday Oct 18, 2020
Reports abound about the way President Putin is manipulating President Trump as a useful idiot to sow chaos, confusion, and civil strife in the United States. But all the norm busting, law breaking, and race baiting Russia is masterminding pale in comparison with the seeds our own social media companies are sowing for our destruction.
Given how the 2016 presidential election threw this foreboding dynamic into stark relief, the eve of this 2020 election seems a critical time to sound yet another alarm.
Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 22 min 59 sec
Saturday Oct 10, 2020
Saturday Oct 10, 2020
Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson headline a litany of entertainers who killed themselves trying to live up to the famous personas they themselves created, respectively. This is why I am so heartened that Lady Gaga appears to have come to her senses before it's too late. This talk pays homage to her epiphany.
Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 7 min 32 sec
Saturday Oct 03, 2020
Saturday Oct 03, 2020
What a week! And that's saying a lot given the norm-busting chaos that has unfolded every week of the Trump presidency. But this one began with everyone panning President Trump for his bullying fact-free performance during his debate with Joe Biden. It ended with Biden leading the nation in wishing a speedy recovery to Trump, his wife Melania, and a metastasizing number of his COVID-defying sycophants who have all now tested positive. Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 12 min 01 sec
Saturday Sep 26, 2020
Saturday Sep 26, 2020
The world of tennis has seen many pretenders to Serena's 20-year reign come and go. This episode explains why Naomi Osaka is the most promising of them all.Contact:ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 15 min 20 sec
Sunday Sep 20, 2020
Sunday Sep 20, 2020
Legal commentators hailed her as the female Thurgood Marshall. It was intended as a compliment. But too many of them failed to realize the cultural phenomenon that was the “Notorious RBG”. This episode pays tribute to all she was and presages the political warfare her death portends.
Contact:ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 11 min 26 sec
Wednesday Sep 16, 2020
Wednesday Sep 16, 2020
The Trump Presidency has spawned a cottage industry of books. This episode explains why reading each one is like a junkie getting a fix.
Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 13 min 03 sec
Tuesday Sep 15, 2020
Tuesday Sep 15, 2020
The Talking iPINIONS podcast is the inevitable complement to my BLOG, The iPINIONS Journal - Commentaries on the Global Events of Our Time, which I launched in 2005. As with my commentaries, my talks will be on topics that run the gamut and span the globe. I am all too mindful that practically everyone with a smartphone has a podcast these days. But I hope you will find my podcast like an oasis of reasoned and informed commentary in a desert of visceral snark! Please check back every weekend for a new episode.Contact:
ipinionsj@gmail.com
Length: 2 min 16 sec