Hello, we are transmitting to you from our present, which we can only assume is your distant past, the turbulent time that was the early 21st century.

Fearing the great cataclysm that will surely befall our civilization, we began this monumental reference of strange and obscure human knowledge.

These recordings represent our attempt to compile and preserve wonders and esoterica that would

otherwise be lost.

Whether you're listening from an advanced civilization or have just reinvented the technology

to decrypt our transmissions, this is our legacy to you.

This is our time capsule.

This is the omnibus.

This is the omnibus. You have accessed entry 7.6.

817. Certificate number 26694. The Astor Place Riot.

Hello, David Hyde.

Welcome to the show.

Hello, John Roderick.

David is recording here in the bunker.

And the only reason that we allowed him in the house is that, first of all, he's local.

Second of all, he's a verified public radio producer at a public radio station that I know and have been a frequent, frequent guest. And third and foremost, I was just a guest

on your podcast. Yes, Blue City Blues with my co-host, Sandeep Kashik. And tell us about

Blue City Blues. It's a podcast that emerged

out of our interest in local politics. And the idea for this one is to take what is currently

local, mostly, the local section of your newspaper, and look at it from a national perspective.

What if we treated all blue cities

as a kind of urban archipelago and understood or tried to analyze their problems sort of collectively,

...