SOLVED! SAMPLE! #27 - Watch what you say! How weaponized language changes our reality

SOLVED! SAMPLE! #27 - Watch what you say! How weaponized language changes our reality

Author: Best of the Left: Perspectives on Politics, Culture, and Economics November 16, 2025 Duration: 20:13

Air Date: 11-10-25

Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon, and Erin discuss:

  • Ch. 1 - "Pull yourself up by your bootstraps"

  • Ch. 2 - "Politically correct"

  • Ch. 3 - "Ethnic cleansing"

  • Ch. 4 - "Meritocracy"

  • Ch. 5 - Our current "wealth pump" crisis and how it has been solved throughout history

  • BACKSTAGE! Beyond the Algorithm (Members Only!): The best words to articulate the current moment

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REFERENCES

Why The Phrase 'Pull Yourself Up By Your Bootstraps' Is Nonsense - Huffington Post

How Cancel Culture Became Politicized — Just Like Political Correctness - NPR

Manifest Destiny and Zionism, a legacy of ethnic cleansing - Mondo Weiss

What Happens to Language When Authoritarianism Takes Hold - Lucid (Substack)

RSA Minimate: The Tyranny of Merit  - Michael Sandel

The Satirical Origins of the Meritocracy - Kottke

Hundreds of societies have been in crises like ours. An expert explains how they got out. - Vox

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Produced by:

Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!


For over fifteen years, Best of the Left-Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy has served as a vital, human-curated digest of voices from across the progressive spectrum. Instead of presenting a single opinion, each episode is built around a specific theme-from economic inequality to climate policy to cultural shifts-and weaves together insightful commentary from a diverse array of journalists, activists, and thinkers. This approach allows you to efficiently grasp the nuances of complex issues by hearing multiple expert angles in one sitting, all while discovering new commentators and sources you might not have encountered otherwise. The result is a richly layered analysis that algorithms simply cannot replicate, offering depth and context often missing from the daily news cycle. Since 2006, this award-winning podcast has cut through the noise, drawing from hundreds of independent and established sources to provide a coherent, thoughtful examination of the forces shaping our society and governments. Tuning in means joining a long-running conversation dedicated to understanding and advancing democratic principles, social justice, and a more equitable economy, all through the focused lens of leftist thought.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
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