Hey, unfuckers, Max here.

As you know, I'm currently on a beach in an undisclosed location, probably somewhat intoxicated,

reveling in quality family time with loved ones, pondering existence, and definitely thinking about the upcoming season of shows.

But as of this recording, I'm hunkered down alone in the studio, reading the introduction

to this week's special episode during our brief hiatus. It's my great honor to bring you the

wisdom of someone who has become a mentor in the podcasting world and a dear friend in the real one.

There are more than four million podcasts, over half of which are already dormant and abandoned.

Of the 2 plus million remaining, the vast majority, toil, and relative obscurity.

Unfucking the Republic isn't one of them.

We put out a quality product, and I am proud of it.

We have a dedicated and extremely talented team. We draw on outstanding resources

and weave compelling narratives that attempt to explain the state of affairs in this nation.

We're considered a success, I guess, because we have a loyal and passionate following. We post

respectable numbers and we have a clear business model and vision that should allow us to

continue growing. But we're not unique. We're lucky. Lucky because one person took a chance on us.

He listened to our early shows and thought enough of us to associate our brand on his show.

He offered us feedback and insight into the industry, introduced us to people,

encouraged us to keep digging and working at our craft. And on a few occasions, paid us the

highest compliment possible for a progressive show by featuring segments of our episodes on his show,

one of the longest running and most successful political podcasts in the world,

and that is not hyperbole. Jay from Best of the Left has been a staple in the progressive

political podcast universe for years. He's curated content from established political shows,

...