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The John Batchelor Show

S8 Ep293: DOMESTIC MELODRAMA AND THE FOG OF RHETORIC Colleagues Gaius and Germanicus, Friends of History Debating Society, Londinium, 92 AD. Turning to domestic matters, the speakers discuss a controversy in Minnesota involving an ICE-related death, describing the

The John Batchelor Show

John Batchelor

Society & Culture, News, Arts, Books

4.52.8K Ratings

🗓️ 12 January 2026

⏱️ 9 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

DOMESTIC MELODRAMA AND THE FOG OF RHETORIC Colleagues Gaius and Germanicus, Friends of History Debating Society, Londinium, 92 AD. Turning to domestic matters, the speakers discuss a controversy in Minnesota involving an ICE-related death, describing the situation as a "melodrama" obscured by a "fog of rhetoric." Germanicus contrasts this "theater" with the genuine violence of 19th-century labor strikes and the Spanish Civil War, warning that while current events are performative, the specialized training of opposing factions is dangerous. They conclude that these domestic battles follow a script of performative chaos similar to foreign policy, risking a slide into real insurrection if the "talk" ever crosses the threshold into actual violence. NUMBER 2
1953

Transcript

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0:00.0

It the year is early 92 AD.

0:07.0

The mission to set the table, the mission is our emperor.

0:12.0

He's the last of his brood, the Flavians, and after him comes an assassin, Irva, who is an elderly figure in the Senate,

0:23.2

and after his assassination, early death, who knows?

0:28.3

It comes a couple of successes for the second century,

0:33.0

and then we will come to the third century, and we'll speak to that because it was a bad patch,

0:46.3

and history doesn't repeat itself it rhymes so we're aware that we could go through a bad pat and still be the successful american empire right now we have a domestic situation that is

0:53.3

fog of rhetoric and there's nothing to be gained other than to follow it as best we can.

1:01.3

It's in the state of Minnesota.

1:04.5

And Minnesota was where you found agreement, liberal agreement for many decades.

1:13.6

You will recall that Ronald Reagan won a big victory over Hubert Humphrey one time.

1:18.6

Hubert Humphrey? No, it was... I don't remember who he went.

1:23.6

Oh, Wal-Dumptial. Humphrey came from Minnesota.

1:28.3

Germanicus, that just sort of popped out.

1:30.3

I've forgotten that over Walter Mondale.

1:33.3

And I think Ronald Reagan took all this, every state but Minnesota.

1:37.3

I'm remembering this incompletely.

1:39.3

That's right.

1:40.3

In 84, that is the outcome.

1:43.3

And Hubert Humphrey, by the way, was vice president for time with Lyndon Johnson.

1:50.4

And Johnson abused him badly.

1:54.8

Yes.

...

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