Hello, I'm Dr. Stephen Hassan with another episode of the influence continuum.

And today I have a special guest, Jason Van Tettanhove, who wrote this amazing book, The Perils of Extremism, How I Left the Oathkeepers, and Why We Should we should be concerned about a future civil war.

And Jason, this is our first time meeting each other, but I saw you at the January 6th committee

testifying in 2020, I believe, and then a slew of interviews, and people wanted to know what was Stuart Rhodes like,

and how could you ever become an oathkeeper or involved with the oathkeepers?

I read your book, but we'll unpack it for our audience.

But I guess I want to just give a little background to say, you are not the typical

right-wing extremist fascist type, militia type, at all. You were a very cool, artistic,

you know, self-professed queer, tattoo artist and writer, and you loved Hunter Thompson,

and abstract expressionist movement, artists, and wow, what a journey.

And now you're involved with your own podcast and writing career at the Colorado Switch

Blade.

So, you know, my listeners know that I've been interested in right-wing extremism since I got

out of the Moone's because I was a right-wing extremist.

But I think these days there's psychological warfare happening online and radicalization.

I think it's going to be a very interesting interview.

Welcome to the influence continuum, Jason. Thanks for having me on.

Yeah, Mike. I don't really fit the mold all that well. You know, I, it was more of a,

almost like a Chuck Thaunuch, fight club sense of misadventure that kind of landed me in all of this,

because I come from a very, very left household.

I was kind of raised by the remnants of the New York City beatwriters and abstract expressionists

and hippies.

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