Happy Monday! Emma speaks with Ståle Holgersen, Senior Lecturer in Human Geography at Stockholm University, to discuss his recent book Against The Crisis: Economy and Ecology in a Burning World. Then, she's joined by Hanno Hauenstein, independent journalist based in Berlin, to discuss the upcoming German elections and Elon Musk's increasing influence on German politics. First, Emma runs through updates on the Senates’ confirmations of Pete Hegseth and Kristi Noam, Trump’s firing of watchdogs, escalating immigration raids and their impact on Indigenous communities, ICE quotas, Colombia’s rejection of a US deportation plane on humanitarian grounds (and Trump’s response), the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza amid Trump’s musings on fully ethnically cleansing the region, Trump’s anti-abortion measures, the plunge of the AI stock market, LA’s skyrocketing rent, and more, also unpacking Trump’s hopeful discussion of completing the ethnic cleansing of Gaza. Ståle Holgersen then joins, briefly touching on the pervasion and perversion of the term “crisis” in contemporary political rhetoric before parsing through the elements that do bring these overwhelming emergencies to the level of “crisis” – namely, that it’s a transient event embedded in underlying sociopolitical structures, with ultimately negative consequences for humans and/or nature – and what makes distinguishing these “crisis” from broader catastrophes so valuable in understanding how they are created by and are used to reinforce the capitalist system we live under. Expanding on this, Holgersen explores how capitalism has been able to adapt to the myriad crises it has created over the last few centuries, often finding ways to push solutions that affirm our commitment to capitalist systems, and the utter dearth of a true left alternative in those moments, positing the need for current leftist movements to establish a blueprint (much like capital has) for responding to crisis and presenting clear solutions in opposition to the far-right and centrist options backed by capital. Hanno Hauenstein then joins as he unpacks the rapid evolution of AfD from a standard Euroskeptic party to a staunchly nationalist and nativist one, capitalizing on long-standing distrust of German political institutions and economic anxiety post-reunification. Hauenstein and Emma then explore the stunning lack of opposition amid the rise of a rampantly xenophobic and racist political party, with the political establishment in Germany largely accommodating their anti-migrant talking points, despite their constant flirting with Holocaust denial and full-on Nazism. Wrapping up, they unpack the particular role Elon Musk has played in backing AfD’s rise to prevalence in German politics, as well as the role of Germany’s unconditional support for Israel in further legitimizing AfD’s hopes of a far-right regime and undermining their strongest opposition.

And in the Fun Half: Emma talks with Connor from West Virginia about Trump’s clashes with major Latin American leaders over his inhumane anti-immigration policies, JD Vance – proud Catholic convert – calls the US Conference of Catholic Bishops a bunch of fraudsters for criticizing Trump’s immigration policy, and Danny from NYC unpacks Trump’s continued attacks on attempts to normalize US-Cuba relations. A caller dives into Starbucks’  crackdown on homeless people (or anyone else) using the bathroom, MPT from VT explores the AI industry’s rejection of consent, and Michael Knowles (proudly) proclaims the American nature of mass deportation. The MR Team also unpacks Fetterman continuing his embarrassing pivot right, plus your calls and IMs!

Check out Ståle's book here: https://www.versobooks.com/products/3130-against-the-crisis

Follow Hanno on Twitter here: https://x.com/hahauenstein

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