Populist Dialogues

Guest Jules Boykoff, Political Science and Government professor at Pacific University in Oregon, talks about the militarization of the Olympic games, and the prospect of protests happening during the games at Sochi. Jules sees the Olympics as Celebration Capitalism, a form of public private partnerships in which the benefits move from the public to the private. The grisly underbelly of the games are talked about, especially the militarization and the affect on dissent.

First broadcast January 26, 2014

Guest David Hill is a volunteer working with Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility on their program to stop the use of nuclear power. He delivers a modified version of his power point presentation: “Why Not Nuclear? The Case Against Nuclear Power.” He provides a broad overview of how nuclear works (fission vs fusion), the environmental and health dangers of nuclear energy, discussion of Fukushima and the Columbia Generating Station at Hanford and why it needs to be closed down.

First broadcast December 29, 2013

Leah Rodgers, Dep Exec Director of Friends of Family Farmers (FofFF) describes how and why the organization formed in order to be a community voice supporting small socially responsible family farmers in opposition to a corporate farm in Oregon. FofFF is a non-corporate alternative for family farmers to the Farm Bureau, which is entrenched in the status quo of big corporate farming. Discussion covers challenges faced by small family farmers including access to capital.

This program features an address by Thomas Linzey, Exec Director of Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF.org) on how we have gotten to the situation we find ourselves in and how using the regulatory system to escape that situation has failed. Why? Because the regulations were written by those who are supposed to be regulated. Tom goes on to address how English Common Law and the US Constitution have been used to establish the regulatory system and corporate power. And looks at the use of preemptive law to limit local democracy.