Sophia and Pamela talk about the allegations that Governor Cuomo covered up mishandlings of the COVID-19 crisis and the firing of actress Gina Carano from Disney’s the Mandalorian. In the last segment our German correspondent Andreas Wintersperger catches up with Platypus members from our Leipzig and Berlin chapters to discuss the panels on COVID-19 and the Left, and the legacy of the Communist Party of Germany which were held at our 2nd German Conference. 

SPS is a production of the Platypus Affiliated Society, more at: platypus1917.org/

Links for this episode:

Platypus German Conference recordings
Corona und die Linke: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cynozxmZQsg
Psychoanalyse und Marxismus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNsU1xVWEsQ&t=5s
Was ist das Erbe der KPD?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhCDIwJtaaY&t=13s
US-Wahlen und die Linke: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykLrCoKWzJc

Zero Covid Campaign article
https://zero-covid.org/language/en/

Gina Carano, The Ben Shapiro Show, 21st Feb 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxObG659Sc0

Former President Trump speaks at CPAC, Fox News, 28th Feb 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGDmMu9McBE

Andrew Cuomo faces move by fellow Democrats to revoke his COVID-19 pandemic powers, The Wall Street Journal, Jimmy Vielkind, 2nd March 2021 
https://www.wsj.com/articles/gov-andrew-cuomo-faces-growing-calls-from-new-york-democrats-to-resign-11614703042

Andrew Cuomo accused of making unwanted advances at wedding, New York Post, Elizabeth Rosner and Tamar Lapin, 1st March 2021
https://nypost.com/2021/03/01/gov-cuomo-accused-of-making-unwanted-advances-at-wedding/amp/?fbclid=IwAR3lm_8_WJYSNScBOpPWwVd2X-qXlcnQiNT83qK2qRb_MdV0aVz0uJesjZk


Original tracks by Tamas Vilaghy
Hosted by Sophia and Pamela

Ep. 33: On Andrew Cuomo, Gina Carano, & our 2nd German Conference

On this episode of SPS, Sophia, Pamela and Andreas are joined by Aarhus Platypus member, Victor Cova, to discuss the Adam Curtis documentary series, "Can't Get You Out of My Head: An Emotional History of the Modern World" (2021). We cover the response to the series by the Socialist Workers Party (UK), Doug Lain (Zero Books) and Red Scare podcast. We debate Curtis' conservative approach to history, and what the series has to say about the defeat of the left in the twentieth century.  

At the beginning of the episode, Grant Tyler introduces the upcoming Platypus International Convention XIII: The Platypus Synthesis, featuring panels: From Protests to Politics? What was the Millennial Left?; The Legacy of Trotskyism; The Politics of Critical Theory; and the Death of the Millennial Left. All events will be held online: FB invite, https://www.facebook.com/events/301295494749910
https://platypus1917.org/platypus-international-convention/platypus-international-convention-2021/

Reference Links:

Tribune: An interview with Leo Panitch, A Decade on the Left
https://tribunemag.co.uk/2020/03/a-decade-on-the-left

Jacobin: Mike Watson, In Defense of Herbert Marcuse
https://www.jacobinmag.com/2021/02/herbert-marcuse-matt-taibbi-frankfurt-school

Socialist Worker: Adam Curtis mixes stunning images with dodgy politics
https://socialistworker.co.uk/art/51349/Adam+Curtis+mixes+stunning+images+with+dodgy+politics

Doug Lain (Zero Books): The secret (and not so secret) conservatism of Adam Curtis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76StMC0l7kU&ab_channel=ZeroBooks

Jacobin, Interview with Adam Curtis
https://jacobinmag.com/2021/03/adam-curtis-bbc-cant-get-you-out-of-my-head-interview

Building A Better Society: Have we run out of new ideas? | Adam Curtis & Russell Brand
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aN7UCUDzXGA&t=1s

Art Review: The Reverse Marxism of Adam Curtis’s ‘Can’t Get You Out Of My Head’
https://artreview.com/the-reverse-marxism-of-adam-curtis-cant-get-you-out-of-my-head-bbc-iplayer-review/

Platypus Links:

2019 Interview with Bobby Seale (Black Panther Party)
https://platypus1917.org/2019/02/03/the-black-panther-party-and-community-organizing-an-interview-with-bobby-seale%EF%BB%BF/

2019 Interview with Kathleen Cleaver (BPP) 
https://platypus1917.org/2019/02/03/the-black-panther-party-malcom-x-and-the-question-of-revolutionary-politics-today-an-interview-with-kathleen-cleaver/

2012 Interview with David Graeber
https://platypus1917.org/2012/01/31/interview-with-david-graeber/

David Graeber on "Radical Interpretations of the Present Crisis,"  Platypus public fora in London, 12.01.2012
https://platypus1917.org/2013/04/01/radical-interpretations-of-the-present-crisis-london-platypus-review/

Hosted by Sophia, Pamela and Andreas W., with original tracks by Tamas Vilaghy, and editing assistance by Michael Woodson.

Platypus Affiliated Society

Ep. 34: On Adam Curtis & a History of the Present

On this episode of SPS, Sophia, Pamela and Platypus member Erin report on the Kill the Bill & May 1st protests in London, Berlin and New York. In the second half members Ryan and Sam reflect upon seeding a Platypus chapter in Melbourne Australia. We discuss encounters with local Leftist groups, what Adam Smith has to teach us about bourgeois society, and their upcoming panel discussion: "What is Capitalism and why should we be against it?"

To learn more about Platypus in Melbourne, drop by one of their reading group meetings either on Wednesdays online via zoom, or in-person starting next semester at the University of Melbourne. Their coffee breaks are at the Clyde Hotel every second Thursday. The upcoming panel event: "What is Capitalism, and why should we be against it?" is on Saturday the 22nd of May. FB invite: https://www.facebook.com/events/1138149399985555

Reference Links:

Platypus Panel: "Corona und die Linke" (in German)
https://youtu.be/cynozxmZQsg

Chris Cutrone, The Millennial Left is dead, October 2017
https://platypus1917.org/2017/10/01/millennial-left-dead/

Spencer Leonard, Zero Squared 207: Adam Smith-Revolutionary, July 2019 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cApVoE_A-JM

Hosted by Sophia, Pamela and Andreas W, with original tracks by Tamas Vilaghy, and editing assistance by Michael Woodson. Cover photograph by Piotr Pietrus (@piotr.pietrus on Instagram).

Ep. 35 On May 1st, and Platypus in Australia

On this three-part episode of SPS, Sophia and Pamela catch up to discuss Shaka King’s Judas and the Black Messiah (2021). They reflect upon the director’s interpretation of the Black Panther Party and how questions of black nationalism, the police and the authoritarian state bear on our present moment. 

In the second segment Sophia sits down with Novara Media’s Commissioning Editor, Rivka Brown to consider the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill (PCSC Bill) and the anti-austerity Left. Rivkah touches on what the potential abolition of the police might mean for the ‘Left’. Finally, Platypus’ Chief Pedagogue, Chris Cutrone, introduces our Summer Reading Groups and gives a taster of what’s in-store.

You can find our more about our Summer Reading Groups here:

Summer Reading Group 2021: Adorno’s Negative Dialectics
https://platypus1917.org/2021/05/08/summer-2021-adornos-negative-dialectics/

Summer Reading Group 2021:  Hegel and Marxism
https://platypus1917.org/2021/05/11/summer-2021-hegel-and-marxism/

Summer Reading Group 2021: The Black Question and the Left from 1776 to BLM
https://platypus1917.org/2021/05/21/summer-2021-the-black-question-from-1776-to-blm/

Resources and Reference Links:

Online: Novara Media, https://novaramedia.com/

Rivkah’s Links:

Book: Adam Elliott-Cooper, Black Resistance to British Policing, 2021

Book: Mark Neocleous, A Critical Theory of Police Power: The Fabrication of the Social Order, 2000

Platypus Links:

Article: Chris Cutrone, Republicans and riots: The Left in death, 1992 and 2020, https://platypus1917.org/2020/07/01/republicans-and-riots/

Interview: with Bobby Seale (Black Panther Party), 2019
https://platypus1917.org/2019/02/03/the-black-panther-party-and-community-organizing-an-interview-with-bobby-seale%EF%BB%BF/

Interview: with Kathleen Cleaver (Black Panther Party), 2019
https://platypus1917.org/2019/02/03/the-black-panther-party-malcom-x-and-the-question-of-revolutionary-politics-today-an-interview-with-kathleen-cleaver/

Panel: Police Brutality and the Left  (July 11, 2020) Panelists: Gerald Smith (Oscar Grant Committee), Larry Holmes (Workers World Party), Andrea Pritchett (Berkeley Copwatch), and Conrad Cartmell (DSA, Class Unity Caucus). https://platypus1917.org/2020/09/01/police-brutality-and-the-left/

Panel: Platypus at Left Forum NYC 2010: The American Left and the "black question:" from politics to protest to the post-political (2010) [Audio] Panelists: Tim Barker, Columbia U.; Benjamin Blumberg, Platypus; Pamela Nogales, Platypus; Chris Cutrone, Platypus. https://archive.org/details/PlatypusAtLeftForumNyc2010TheAmericanLeftAndTheblackQuestion

Panel: Platypus Public Panel Series: “Black Politics and State Violence” (2015) University of Chicago (03/20/15) [Audio]Panelists: Michael Dawson and Mel Rothenberg, https://platypus1917.org/2015/05/22/5-21-2015-black-politics-and-state-violence-a-panel-discussion-university-of-chicago/

Panel: Platypus Public Panel: “The American left and the ‘Black Question’: From politics to protest to the post-political” (Chicago, 2015) Panelists: Toby Chow, Southsiders Organized for Unity and Liberation (SOUL) and The People’s Lobby; Brandon Johnson, Chicago Teachers Union (CTU); August Nimtz, author of Lenin's Electoral Strategy from 1907 to the October Revolution of 1917 (2014) https://platypus1917.org/2015/05/02/american-left-black-question-politics-protest-post-political/

Hosted by Sophia, Pamela and Andreas W., with original tracks by Tamas Vilaghy, and editing assistance by Michael Woodson.

Ep 36: On Judas & the Black Messiah, Kill the Bill and Platypus Summer Readings

On this episode of SPS, Pamela and Sophia discuss the Biden bungle of the Afghanistan withdrawal and the responses by the “Left,” including Tariq Ali for the New Left Review and Branko Marcetic for Jacobin. SPS European Correspondent Andreas interviews Eduardo Maura, from the Spanish party Podemos, and asks him to reflect on his political trajectory, from his work in the Indignados -- the Spanish anti-austerity movement -- to Podemos in government, to the party’s recent electoral defeats. In the last segment, Platypus president Efraim interviews Mike Watson, a UK born art & media theorist, and author of The Memeing of Mark Fisher: How the Frankfurt School Foresaw Capitalist Realism and What To Do About It,  released by Zero Books in 2021. They discuss the different responses to the New Left by Adorno and Marcuse and the conditions of possibility for political consciousness in an administered society. 

Links:

Chris Cutrone, “Afghanistan: After 20 and 40 years” in Platypus Review 139 (September 2021)
https://platypus1917.org/2021/09/02/afghanistan-after-20-and-40-years/

Tariq Ali, “Debacle in Afghanistan” New Left Review: Sidecar (16 August 2021)
https://newleftreview.org/sidecar/posts/debacle-in-afghanistan

Branko Marcetic, “Joe Biden Was Right to Pull Out of Afghanistan” Jacobin (24 August 2021)
https://jacobin-v2.positiondevapp.com/2021/08/joe-biden-afghanistan-taliban-us-military-foreign-policy-pullout

Tariq Ali Interviewed by Chris Cutrone, on Iraq, the anti-war movement, and the state of the Left conducted on October 15, 2007 at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
https://platypus1917.org/2007/10/15/tariq-ali-interviewed-by-chris-cutrone/

“Imperialism: What is it—Why should we be Against it?” On January 30th, 2007, Platypus hosted its first public forum. It features Adam Turl of the International Socialist Organization (ISO), Kevin Anderson of the Marxist-Humanist group News and Letters, Nick Kreitman of the new Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Danny Postel of Open Democracy, and Chris Cutrone of Platypus. 
https://platypus1917.org/2010/07/09/imperialism-what-is-it-why-should-we-be-against-it/

“¿Más allá de la izquierda y la derecha? (Beyond left and right?): An Interview with Eduardo Maura of Podemos” by Lucy Parker and David Mountain with Nikos Manousakis in Platypus Review 72 (December 2014 – January 2015)
https://platypus1917.org/2014/12/01/mas-alla-de-la-izquierda-y-la-derecha/

Mike Watson, The Memeing Of Mark Fisher: How The Frankfurt School Foresaw Capitalist Realism And What To Do About It (2021) 
https://www.johnhuntpublishing.com/zer0-books/our-books/memeing-mark-fisher

Efraim Carlebach, “Forgetting Mark Fisher” in Platypus Review 115 (April 2019)
https://platypus1917.org/2019/04/01/forgetting-mark-fisher/

Hosted by Sophia, Pamela and Andreas W., with original tracks by Tamas Vilaghy, and editing assistance by Michael Woodson. To learn more about Platypus, go to Platypus1917.org.

Ep. 38: On Afghanistan, Podemos, & the Frankfurt School today

This episode includes an interview with Platypus founding member Chris Cutrone, who was interviewed by Johannes K. and Lisa on his article “The end of the Gilded Age: Discontents of the Second Industrial Revolution today”. They talked about the history of progressivism, the deferred problems of the Gilded Age that still impact us today, the unfulfilled task of the Left, as well as the things that led Chris to write this article back in 2017.

Links:
> 2017: Chris Cutrone, The end of the Gilded Age: Discontents of the Second Industrial Revolution today https://platypus1917.org/2017/12/02/end-gilded-age-discontents-second-industrial-revolution-today/ 

> 2017: Chris Cutrone, The Millennial Left is dead https://platypus1917.org/2017/10/01/millennial-left-dead/

> 2020: "The Legacy of the American Revolution", a Platypus Lecture Series https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNc4xGUuaRwkwEdVEwLV6X8NxT49XEtx8

SPS episodes contain original tracks by Tamas Vilaghy, and editing assistance by Michael Woodson and Tamas Vilaghy. To learn more about Platypus, go to platypus1917.org

Ep. 54: Interview w/ Chris Cutrone on his "The end of the Gilded Age" article

On this episode of SPS, Pamela & Andreas interview Spencer Leonard. Spencer is a founding member of Platypus and has recently published a two-volume selection of Marx & Engels journalism. The first volume focuses on Bonapartism, with selections from 1851–1859, and the second focuses on their writings on imperialism, with selections from 1856–1862. He speaks to us about the democratic revolution, liberalism, and the self-contradiction of bourgeois society. Spencer challenges the thesis put forth by Domenico Losurdo of an advancing "de-emancipation" alongside emancipation, and raises the problem of Marxism in the 20th century, and its legacy in the 21st.  

Links:
Marx and Engels on Bonapartism, Selected Journalism, 1851–59
https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781666928044/Marx-and-Engels-on-Bonapartism-Selected-Journalism-1851

Marx and Engels on Imperialism, Selected Journalism, 1856–62
https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781498559232/Marx-and-Engels-on-Imperialism-Selected-Journalism-1856

Domenico Losurdo in the Platypus Review (May 2012) 
https://platypus1917.org/2012/05/01/liberalism-and-marx-domenico-losurdo/

SPS #56: Spencer Leonard on Marx & Engels

In this episode of SPS, Tamas sits down with Aram Shakkour (@ShaqArama) of the Szikra Movement (@SzikraMozgalom), an oppositional movement based around Budapest, Hungary. They discuss the state of leftist politics in Hungary after the oppositional coalition which Szikra supported, United for Hungary, failed to stop Viktor Orbán’s FIDESZ from winning a two-thirds parliamentary majority. With over 54% of the vote, FIDESZ received the highest vote share of any party since the fall of communism. They reflect on the three decades since the “system change,” as the events of 1989 are known in Hungary, and the deeper history of the Left in Hungary in the 20th century

- Szikra's : www.szikramozgalom.hu/about_us
- SPS #44: After the Freedom Convoy & the Hungarian Left Today - https://soundcloud.com/platypus-affiliated-society/ep44

Ep. 60: On Szikra & Hungarian Politics

This special holiday episode of SPS comes in three parts: (1) In order to make sense of the present, Platypus is hosting an international series of panels "Left Perspectives on the Israel-Palestine Conflict". In the first segment, member Gabe G. and Pamela N. reflect on the first panel of the series, which took place at the University of Chicago. They take up disagreements as well as the assumed agreement and the response from the audience. (2) In the second segment you'll hear soundbites and brief interviews from pro-Palestine rallies recorded by our members in Philadelphia and Auckland, New Zealand. (3) The third part is a deep dive into the Platypus archives. The current conflict has prompted Rebekkah and Lisa to speak with our member Ian M. about past engagements from our archives. They talked about the founding moment of Platypus as well as past panel initiatives on the politics of solidarity and decolonization.

References from the Segment Reflecting on the Israel-Palestine Panel
- Teach-in Pamela N.: History and Helplessness (UChicago, 09 November 2023)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9BX4HGK1m8&t=148s&ab_channel=PlatypusAffiliatedSociety
- Left Perspectives On The Israel Palestine Conflict (Platypus UChicago, 29 November 29 2023)
https://youtu.be/Nw0Rc_3Hn88?si=OX1c-WYyfWvSIb7S 
- Left Perspectives On The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (Platypus Oregon State University, November 29, 2023)
https://youtu.be/lDnRfYh5tLs?si=qtf2XnPfjLs5jsG
- Imperialism! What is it, and why should we be against it? (Platypus Melbourne, 02 December 2023)
https://www.youtube.com/live/rLSj2IZOgpg?si=S4QMnYg_NpH5mgeF
- Linke Perspektiven auf den Nahostkonflikt (Platypus Germany, 03 December 2023)
https://youtu.be/OGkf83h52MY?si=BHi0Dz_WKWl2_lGX
- Left Perspectives On The Israel Palestine Conflict (Platypus London, 14 December 2023)
https://archive.org/details/left-perspectives-on-the-israel-palestine-conflict-platypus-london
- The Politics of War and Peace (Platypus Northwestern University, 17 November 2023)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACIzgf-mEi8&ab_channel=PlatypusAffiliatedSociety

References from the Archive Segment: 
- 2006: Moishe Postone, “History and helplessness: Mass mobilization and contemporary forms of anticapitalism”
https://platypus1917.org/wp-content/uploads/readings/postonemoishe_historyhelplessness.pdf
- 2008: Ian Morrison, “Ba’athism and the history of the Left in Iraq: Violence and politics”
https://platypus1917.org/2008/03/01/baathism-and-the-history-of-the-left-in-iraq-violence-and-politics/
- 2010: Against the status quo: An Interview with Iranian trade unionist Homayoun Pourzad 
https://platypus1917.org/2010/01/08/against-the-status-quo-an-interview-with-iranian-trade-unionist-homayoun-pourzad/ 
- 2021: Panel "The Politics of Solidarity: Israel, Palestine, and the Left" w/ Yoav Gal Tamir (Da'am Workers' Party), Arash Azizi (Left Party of Iran {People's Fedaian), Marco (Angry Workers of the World), Moshé Machover (founder - Israeli Socialist Organisation and its publication Matzpen) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORoCuGAPheQ&t=12s 
- 2010: Which Way Forward for Palestinian Liberation? (w/ Richard Rubin, Joel Kovel,  Hussein Ibish) 
https://platypus1917.org/2010/04/08/which-way-forward-for-palestinian-liberation-platypus-review/
- 2023: Panel "Decolonisation and the Left" w/ Ralph Leonard, James Heartfield, Andrew Sanchez
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfScpu06K_o 
- ​​2010:  Initiative Sozialistisches Forum, “Communism and Israel”
https://platypus1917.org/2010/10/08/communism-and-israel/
- 2023: Teach-in Pamela N.: History and Helplessness
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9BX4HGK1m8&t=148s&ab_channel=PlatypusAffiliatedSociety
- 2023: Teach-in Lucy P.: The Anti War Movement, Platypus And The Death Of The Millennial Left
https://archive.org/details/antiwarmovementteach-in

Platypus European Conference, 25 - 27 Jan. 2024 in Berlin
https://100yearsafterlenin.com/

Ep 63: Left Perspectives on Israel & Palestine

Andreas sits down with Berlin-based members Jakob and Tamas to discuss the upcoming sixth annual Platypus European Conference, set to take place January 25th through the 27th.

Further info can be found at:
https://100yearsafterlenin.com

---

A century after Lenin’s death, the Platypus Affiliated Society aims to critically examine the legacy of the failure of world revolution. Our sixth annual European Conference provides the time to reflect on the nightmare of the twentieth century through teach-ins, panel discussions, and presentations by international Leftist organizations. We hope thus to contribute to overcoming the present obstacles to any future emancipatory Left.

The Left is dead! Long live the Left!


Ein Jahrhundert nach dem Tod Lenins sucht die Platypus Affiliated Society nach einer kritischen Auseinandersetzung mit dem Erbe der gescheiterten Weltrevolution. Unsere sechste europäische Konferenz bietet Raum zur Reflexion über den Albtraum des Zwanzigsten Jahrhunderts – mit Teach-ins, Podiumsdiskussionen und Präsentationen internationaler linker Organisationen. Wir hoffen, damit einen Beitrag zur Überwindung der Hindernisse zu leisten, die heute der Formation einer emanzipatorischen Linken entgegenstehen.

Die Linke ist tot! Lang lebe die Linke!

2024 European Conference Teaser

In this episode of Shit Platypus Says, we introduce the first segment of Reds, a series examining the growth of new communist organizations around the world.

Hosts Tamas, Lisa, and Rebekah discuss the impetus for such a series: the sudden growth of self-styled communist organizations after a decade of social democratic activity on the Left and a dissatisfaction with liberal politics; a related revision occurring within Trotskyist organizations; and the historical echoes and discontinuities raised by the transition from the Millennial to the Zoomer generation.

For the bulk of the segment, our inaugural segment of Reds, Melbourne Platypus members Ryan and Tom sit down with Jamie and Anthony of the Revolutionary Communist Organisation and its Collective of Leninist Youth, based in Australia, for a discussion about its current outlook, challenges, and tasks. 

The RCO appeared on a panel discussion held by Platypus Melbourne: 
“Imperialism: What is it, and why should we be against it?” (Dec 2 2023 panel): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLSj2IZOgpg

More info about the Revolutionary Communist Organisation (RCO):
Program: https://www.revcomorg.info/general-clean
Publication “Direct Action”: https://directactionnewcastle.wordpress.com/direct-action-rco/
Queer liberation paper: https://www.revcomorg.info/projecto-1

Collective of Leninist Youth (CLY):
Publication “Red Youth Spectre”: www.tinyurl.com/redyouthspectre

Ep 64: Revolutionary Communism in Australia (Reds: RCO)

Episode 65 comes in two parts: In the first segment, Andreas talks with Platypus members Clay (Chicago) and Ethan (Philadelphia) about the upcoming Platypus International Convention, taking place in Chicago April 4-7 under the title "What is Left after Trump?". They discuss the various panel topics of this year's 16th Platypus Convention as well as why we keep hosting them. More information can be found at https://sites.google.com/view/whatisleft2024

In our second segment we welcome a triumphant return of the Shit Platypus Does segment - Lisa and Rebekah sit down with members Thuy Linh (Berlin), Noah (Cologne) and Liv (New School) to reflect on the European Conference, held in Berlin at the end of January this year: What did we learn about "The Legacy of Lenin" ?

Panels from the 2024 European Conference:

Legacy of Lenin panel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoX0unyoPX4
Building a Marxist Mass Party Anew: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ban_NkqrEVE
Krise im sozialistischen Lager (in German): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiYby-ScT8U

Further videos of events can be found at https://www.youtube.com/@PlatypusAffiliatedSociety

Visit our website at http://platypus1917.org

Ep 65: The Platypus International Convention & EuroCon Reflections

Episode 66 comes in two parts.

In our first segment, Lisa sits down with German members Jan and Henry to discuss post-neoliberal transformations in German politics, understood through the AfD and Sahra Wagenknecht's split from Die Linke. 

In the second segment, Andony talks with fellow West Coast members Octavio, Colin, Ishmael, and Hoang about anarchism on the West Coast, reflecting on the Heart of the Valley Anti-Capitalist Bookfair held in Corvallis, Oregon, and the inaugural Platypus West Coast Conference held in San Diego this February. They discuss the resurgence of anarchism under the Biden presidency in the context of long-standing anarchist traditions on the West Coast.

---

Further discussions of German politics (in German):

- Was ist DIE LINKE? (13.6.21 Frankfurt)
transcript: https://platypus1917.org/2022/08/31/podium_2021_linkspartei/
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZZb7BZp_bY
- Redefreiheit und die Linke (4.11.23 Leipzig)
audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Rf7K5h3h64

Further materials on anarchism:

- Heart of the Valley Anti-Capitalist Bookfair (19-21 January 2024): https://hotvbookfair.noblogs.org
- Dual Power: A Strategy To Build Socialism In Our Time (DSA Libertarian Socialist Caucus, 2018): https://dsa-lsc.org/2018/12/31/dual-power-a-strategy-to-build-socialism-in-our-time/
- Reimagining Revolutionary Organizing: A Vision for Dual Power (Institute for Anarchist Studies, 2019): https://anarchiststudies.org/reimagining-revolutionary-organizing-a-vision-for-dual-power/
- Against dogmatic abstraction: A critique of Cindy Milstein on anarchism and Marxism (Platypus Review, 2010): https://platypus1917.org/2010/07/01/against-dogmatic-abstraction/
- Social anarchism or lifestyle anarchism: an unbridgeable chasm (Murray Bookchin, 1995): https://libcom.org/article/social-anarchism-or-lifestyle-anarchism-unbridgeable-chasm-murray-bookchin
- Whither anarchism? An interview with Kristian Williams (Platypus Review, 2021): https://platypus1917.org/2021/03/01/whither-anarchism-an-interview-with-kristian-williams/
- Reform, Revolution, and “Resistance:” The problematic forms of “anticapitalism” today (2/18/24 San Diego)
audio: https://archive.org/details/reform-resistance-revolution-san-diego

Ep 66: AfD & Sahra Wagenknecht in Germany, Anarchism on the West Coast

On this episode of SPS, Pamela N. and Platypus member Adrienne F. interview Nadine Strossen, an American legal scholar and civil liberties activist. Strossen served as the president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) from 1991 to 2008; she is currently a senior fellow at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Education Expression (FIRE); and is the author of Free Speech: What Everyone Needs to Know (2023). We discuss her history on the Left, her relationship to the antiwar movement, the Students for a Democratic Society, and radical & progressive positions today. We also take up the recent illiberal turn in society, and what if any effect it has had on the ACLU, as well as her proposed solutions. Finally, we take a critical look at demands by the Left to reform the Supreme Court. 

If you live in the East Coast, Platypus is hosting its annual East Coast Conference in Boston on Oct 11-13. There will be a variety of  panels, teach-ins and social gatherings. Panels include, "The American Revolution and Communism" held at Boston College on 10.12 and "The Role of Theory in Defeat," at Harvard University on 10.13. More information will be available at: 
https://www.facebook.com/platypusbc | https://x.com/BcPlatypus | https://www.instagram.com/platypusbc/

The French chapter of Platypus is holding a virtual panel, on "Popular Front Politics Today," held in French on Sat Sept 28 via Zoom. The panel will feature, Gilles Candar, Aymeric Monville, and a member of the Spartacist League. More information will be available at: https://www.instagram.com/platypusfrance

LINKS
- Strossen, Free Speech: What Everyone Needs to Know (2023)
https://global.oup.com/academic/product/free-speech-9780197699652

- Strossen, Hate: Why We Should Resist It With Free Speech, Not Censorship (2018)
https://www.amazon.com/-/en/Nadine-Strossen/dp/0190859121

- Strossen, Defending Pornography: Free Speech, Sex, and the Fight for Women's Rights (1995, new ed. 2024)
https://nyupress.org/9781479830763/defending-pornography/ 

- Nogales, “The Cancel Wars: The Legacy of the Cultural Turn in the Age of Trump” in Platypus Review 131 (November 2020)
https://platypus1917.org/2020/11/01/the-cancel-wars-the-legacy-of-the-cultural-turn-in-the-age-of-trump/

- ACLU Case Selection Guidelines (2017) 
https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/aclu_case_selection_guidelines.pdf

- Strossen, “The First Amendment Doesn’t Protect White Supremacists Behind Violent Charlottesville Rallies,” LA Progressive Newsletter, Dec. 7, 2021 

- Strossen, “Charlottesville Three Years Later:  The First Amendment Confronts Hate and Violence,”  Los Angeles Review of Books, Aug. 10, 2020 

- Strossen, “The Interdependence of Racial Justice and Free Speech for Racists,” 1 Journal of Free Speech Law 51-70 (2021)

- Moyn, “Socialists Have Long Fought to Disempower the Supreme Court. That’s More Urgent Than Ever Now,” Jacobin (2020) 
https://jacobin.com/2020/09/supreme-court-socialists-ruth-bader-ginsburg-death

-  Cotlin, “Mayor Eric Adams, DSA agree: expand the court” City & State New York (2023)
https://www.cityandstateny.com/politics/2023/02/mayor-eric-adams-dsa-agree-expand-court/383006/

- Lazare, “A central driver” in the Weekly Worker (2021)
https://weeklyworker.co.uk/worker/1337/a-central-driver/

- Strossen on SCOTUS term limits, in “Forum: What’s the Matter With the Supreme Court? And what can be done to fix it?” in The Nation (2018) 
https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/forum-whats-the-matter-with-the-supreme-court/

- Sublation Media with Doug Lain, “Nadine Strossen Talks to Marxists” (2023)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gd5-KoOosA

- “The Politics of Free Speech,” (04/06/24) Platypus International Convention 2024 panel, Chicago, IL. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anorBcUZ-uE

- "Free Speech and the Left," Platypus virtual panel (05/02/24), 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9xc0IIKUz8

Ep 68: Free Speech & the Left, an interview w/ Nadine Strossen

This episode comes in two parts. At the beginning of this year the PAS published its second installment of the Platypus Review Reader. This volume, in addition to Marxism in the Age of Trump and Chris Cutrone's recent publication The Death of the Millennial Left, are a curated selection of articles in our monthly publication spanning between 2013 and 2017. In the first segment, we present a roundtable with Platypus members involved in the curation, publication and digestion of the Platypus Review Reader 2, opening up a discussion about the long history of the Platypus Review, the denouement of the Millennial Left, and how we make this history meaningful as the Zoomer Left enters the  mid-2020s. In the second segment, Pam N. sits down for an interview led by our German members, Kat and Lara, to discuss the teach-in she gave in November 2023, after the October 7th attacks, and take up the horizons of possibility of the Millennial Left, the new forms of politicization and depoliticization, and the task of political education by Platypus today.

---

Platypus Review Reader 2 Roundtable links:

"The Platypus Review Reader" 1 and 2 and "Marxism in the Age of Trump" are available at 
https://platypus1917.org/publishing/

Full table of contents for the PRR2 available at https://platypus-publishing.square.site/product/pr-reader-ii-soft-/4?si=true

"Editorial Statement" for the Platypus Review: https://platypus1917.org/platypus-review/editorial-statement/


Some key articles mentioned:

"Program and Utopia" Platypus Panel  (July 2013) https://platypus1917.org/2013/07/01/program-and-utopia/

"What is a Political Party for the Left?" Platypus panel (2015) https://platypus1917.org/2015/08/30/political-party-left-3/

Teo Velissaris., "Ghosts of national sovereignty: SYRIZA and the Left in the current situation" (September 2015)
https://platypus1917.org/2015/09/01/ghosts-national-sovereignty-syriza-left-current-situation/

"1917-2017" Platypus Panel (September 2017) https://platypus1917.org/2017/08/29/1917-2017/


---


Nogales Interview links:
Pamela C. Nogales C., “Helplessness without history: Political education after the Millennial Left” in the Platypus Review 170 (October 2024)
https://platypus1917.org/2024/10/01/helplessness-without-history-political-education-after-the-millennial-left/

Pamela C. Nogales C., “Ohnmacht ohne Geschichte: Politische Bildung nach der Millenial Linken” Die Platypus Review 33 (September/Oktober 2024)
https://platypus1917.org/2024/10/01/nogales_ohnmacht_ohne_geschichte/

SPS #67 Interviews with encampment participants
https://soundcloud.com/platypus-affiliated-society/ep67

“Beyond Left and Right,” Platypus public panel, London, (July 2024)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25pD9iyQmr0&t=84s

Benjamin M. Studebaker, “Beyond Bonapartism: Breaking statephobic thought taboos” in the Platypus Review 166 (May 2024)
https://platypus1917.org/2024/05/01/beyond-bonapartism-breaking-statephobic-thought-taboos/

Pamela C. Nogales C., “Platypus at #Occupy: Lessons learned from the death of the Millennial Left” in the Platypus Review 137 (June 2021)
https://platypus1917.org/2021/06/01/platypus-at-occupy/

Efraim Carlebach, “The unchanging core of Marxism: An interview with Ian Birchall” in the Platypus Review 102 (December 2017 – January 2018)
 https://platypus1917.org/2017/12/02/unchanging-core-marxism-interview-ian-birchall/

James Heartfield “The anti-political party, Book Review: Ian Birchall. Tony Cliff: A Marxist for His Time. London: Bookmarks, 2011” in the Platypus Review 55 (April 2013)
https://platypus1917.org/2013/04/01/the-anti-political-party/

Erin Hagood, “Have we unlearned how to learn? 1968 and today” in the Platypus Review 168 (July - August 2024)
https://platypus1917.org/2024/07/01/have-we-unlearned-how-to-learn-1968-and-today/

50 Years of 1968, Platypus public panel series (2018)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMYuijyS19Q&list=PLNc4xGUuaRwmXgnewb_tYfhp8_YTn_c9F&pp=iAQB

Ep 69: Platypus Review Reader 2 Roundtable & Millennial Helplessness

In this episode, Pam sits down with Platypus members, Ethan and Gabe, to discuss Trump's reelection and the Republicans' victory in Congress, the Left's nostalgia for Bernie along with its efforts to "critique" the Democrats, and the new multiracial coalition behind the GOP. 

In the second part, Daniel and Itsï sit down with Carlos Garrido, Director of the Midwestern Marx Institute and Secretary of Education for the American Communist Party, founded this year. They discuss American Marxism, W.E.B. DuBois, the launch of the ACP, and why now might be the moment for a communist party. 

Our volume "Marxism in the Age of Trump" is now on sale and available to purchase here: 
https://platypus-publishing.square.site/product/marxism-in-age-of-trump/5?cs=true&cst=custom

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"The Left and the 2024 Election" (10/30/24 panel)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IbzY1kaG2c

---

Eugene V. Debs - The Negro In the Class Struggle  (1903) 
https://www.marxists.org/archive/debs/works/1903/negro.htm

Constitution of the American Communist Party (2024)
https://acp.us/2024-constitution.pdf

Ep 70: Trump's Reelection & Interview with Carlos Garrido

Episode 71 comes in two parts: In the first, Pam sits down with Audrey and Itsï to discuss the assassination of United Healthcare's CEO, and what the Left has to say about it. They consider the historical anarchist tactic of the propaganda of the deed, and what Marxism had to say about it. In the second part, Lucy and Wentai interview Nina Power, a writer active since the 90s on the British Left. They reflect on the experience of the Gen X and Millennial Left in the UK, the changes in feminism and gender politics during that time, and revisit her first book from 2009, One Dimensional Woman. 

Visit our website at www.platypus1917.org
---

LINKS

Unherd Interview, 26 July 2024 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI7p1UypGqA

Nina Power, One Dimensional Woman (2009)
https://files.libcom.org/files/onedimensionalwoman.pdf

Nina Power, What do Men Want? Masculinity and its Discontents (2022)
https://www.amazon.co.uk/What-Men-Want-Masculinity-Discontents/dp/0241356504

Ep 71: Nina Power Interview & the United Healthcare Assassination

Itsï and Johannes sit down with Chris Cutrone to reflect on last year's summer reading group, The Right for the Left. They discuss the historical difference between the Right and the Left, the prevalence of right-wing ideas on the Left, and how the Left conceded the contestation of ideas to the Right. 

The full syllabus can be found here: 
https://platypus1917.org/2024/05/08/summer-2024-readings-the-right-for-the-left/

Visit our website at www.platypus1917.org

Ep 72: The Right for the Left

In this episode of Sh-t Platypus Says, we focus on the German politics in the present and since the aftermath of the New Left.

In the first half, Lisa discusses the recent German elections results with Jule, Daron, and Andreas. What does the victory of Friedrich Merz's center-right CDU mean for the Left? 

In the second half, Lisa sits down with Therri, Marius, and Jo to reflect on our German language Antideutsch panel, forthcoming in English translation in the Platypus Review. They discuss the history of the Antideutsch, the current of the Antideutsch and their influence in Germany, and further questions provoked by our panel. 

---

Ep 66: AfD & Sahra Wagenknecht in Germany, Anarchism on the West Coast: https://soundcloud.com/platypus-affiliated-society/ep-66

Was waren die Antideutschen? (German language panel)
Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPbT71IExIw
Transcript: https://platypus1917.org/2024/11/03/was_waren_die_antideutschen/

preparatory readings for the Antideutsch panel: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1p01FL84oWkNOttxB3y9gA7x65zojFQn78RKuifAXNQ0/edit?usp=sharing 

Linke Antworten auf die AfD (German language panel)
Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgpaaXvMqLg&themeRefresh=1 

---

Cover image by Martin Steger
Original soundtracks by Tamas Vilaghy
Editing work by Michael Woodson
To learn more about Platypus, go to www.platypus1917.org

Ep 73: On the German Elections and the Antideutsch

Rebekah, Ismail, and Michael introduce the upcoming Platypus International Convention, featuring Bill Ayers, Chris Cutrone, Alex Higgins, Michael Kazin, Branko Marcetic, Dave McKerracher, and Pamela Nogales among many more speakers, teach-ins, and social events. 

Is There a Left in the 21st Century?
April 3rd-5th
Chicago, IL

Full line-up available at https://www.platypus.events

---

Check out our past events at https://platypus1917.org

Is There a Left in the 21st Century? (2025 International Platypus Convention Teaser)

We're back with a long episode in two parts. 

In the first half, Pam, Natalie, and Ed reflect upon the closing plenary of the 2025 Platypus International Convention, "Is there a Left in the 21st Century?" which featured Andrew Hartman (author of Marx in America), Branko Marcetic (Democratic Socialists of America & Jacobin author), Chris Cutrone (Platypus), and Alex Higgins (Prometheus Journal). 

In the second half, Tamas and Andony sit down with Doug Lain to discuss his experience of the 80s and 90s counter-cultural Left, and possible parallels with our current moment. 

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Is there a Left in the 21st Century? (4/5/2025) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE0zr2hs8i4

SPS Intro to the Platypus International Convention 
https://soundcloud.com/platypus-affiliated-society/2025-convention

Platypus Summer 2025 Reading Group: Pre-Marxian Socialism
https://platypus1917.org/2025/05/22/summer-2025-readings-pre-marxian-socialism/

The Legacy of the 1980s (3/31/22) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EG4uFkcNhHE
Why Does Society Have Politics? (4/5/25) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a_-4JRdi6c
The Left in the 1980s (2013) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhtI3AfGjcY

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Original soundtracks by Tamas Vilaghy
Editing work by Michael Woodson
To learn more about Platypus, go to www.platypus1917.org

Ep 74: The Left in the 21st Century & Interview with Doug Lain

Lisa sits down with Erin, Danny, and Tim to discuss recent iterations of our Immigration & the Left Panel, as well as the trajectory of immigration politics from the Millennial Left to the present. 

---

IMMIGRATION & THE LEFT PANEL SERIES

UC San Diego (5/22/25) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_KvcJddPp4
Columbia University (4/28/25) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DG4vBqNDQ4w
University of Illinois in Chicago (11/07/16) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw9UbFW37U4
University of Houston (10/23/16) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyblZjZjBfs

Immigration and the Left: An Interview with David Wilson (Sep 2011) - https://platypus1917.org/2011/08/31/immigration-and-the-left-david-wilson/

---

Summer Reading Group on pre-Marxian socialism: https://platypus1917.org/2025/05/22/summer-2025-readings-pre-marxian-socialism/

---

News Coverage Source: CBS Evening News 9/7/25

Ep 75: Immigration & the Left

Bekah welcomes back SPS's resident financial guru to discuss the impact of Trump's tariffs on the state of world finances, markets, and leftist politics on both sides of the Atlantic. 

---

Further Materials:

What is the Relevance of the EU for the Left? (Leipzig, 06/24): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DlJpbdI4rs
Tariffs, Trade War & the Working Class (Independent Labor Club of New York, 29.3.25): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anLh3-U9jKs
D.L. Jacobs' remarks published as Liberation Day: https://www.sublationmag.com/post/liberation-day

The Crisis of Neoliberalism (Vienna, 05/17): https://platypus1917.org/2017/05/03/the-crisis-of-neoliberalism/
The Millennial Left is Dead (10/17): https://platypus1917.org/2017/10/01/millennial-left-dead/
Beyond Left and Right? (London, 07/24): https://youtu.be/xschDfeBlDg?si=Ydiu0Ps7u5GaDsqR

Radical Interpretations of the Present Crisis Panel Series:
New York, 11/14/12: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSUlDcXEnR8
London, 12/01/12: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qH7ofme8_bE
Chicago, 12/03/12: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFepPXbu13o

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Original soundtracks by Tamas Vilaghy
Editing work by Michael Woodson
To learn more about Platypus, go to www.platypus1917.org

Ep 76: Tariffs and Trade

Sh!t Platypus Says, special quarantine edition, comes in three parts: (1) Pamela talks to Platypus members about the left’s response to the Corona Virus. She talks to Laurie Rojas, Chris Cutrone & Stefan Hain to figure out just what, David Harvey, Naomi Klein, the Socialist Workers Party, U.S., Spiked online, and Žižek are saying in these times of Corona. (2) A record 3.3 million people filed claims for unemployment in the US last week. We hear from Wentai, our resident financial guru, to learn about how this pandemic is impacting the world economy. (3) In the last segment, Sophia sits down with Philip Cunliffe in London for a post-panel reflection on our "After the Election" panel at the London School of Economics: https://platypus1917.org/2020/01/29/after-the-election-whats-left-lse-29-1-20/ Philip is a political scientist and Senior Lecturer the University of Kent, he is also the founder of the Full Brexit: https://www.thefullbrexit.com/. They discuss the failure of “fully automated luxury communism” and the relationship between the Left and democracy.

The Platypus Convention 2020 will be hosted online, next week on Thursday 04/02 to Sat. 04/04. The panels are: (Th:) Politics of Environmentalism as Utopia, (Fr:) The American Revolution and the Left, (Sat:) Bonapartism: How is the State Revolutionary? , (Sat:)Socialism in the 21st Century? Speakers include Christian Parenti, August Nimtz, Alex Gourevitch, Helena Rosenblatt, John Beacham, Chris Cutrone and yours truly. Viewers will be able to ask questions on the online platform. Links to each panel on the FB event: https://www.facebook.com/events/199797064708367/

Hosted by Sophia and Pamela 
Edited with the help of Michael W.

e-mail: shitplatypussays@gmail.com

Platypus Affiliated society

Ep. 23: The one about the 'rona, and democracy & the Left

On this episode, Pamela and Sophia discuss the destruction of statues depicting American Revolutionary figures. Our members James Vaughn and Spencer Leonard join us to discuss the legacy of the American Revolution and the repercussions of the 1619 project.  And Sophia catches up with Rory Hannigan and Clint Montgomery in light of our Summer Reading group on Kautsky’s Marxism. We reflect on Karl Kautsky as a leading figure in Second International Marxism and how it might be important to consider Kautsky today.

If you want to learn more about Platypus, and get involved, read the Platypus review or join the American Revolution lectures online, visit us on Facebook under the Platypus Affiliated Society or visit www.platypus1917.org.

If you like the podcast, share it, rate it, and write us a review!

(1) Trump’s address to the Young Conservatives of America: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf8R3LTAarI
(2) American Revolution Lecture Series:
https://platypus1917.org/2020/06/06/the-legacy-of-the-american-revolution-a-platypus-lecture-series/
(3) Summer Reading Group on Kautsky’s Marxism: https://platypus1917.org/virtual/

Hosted by Pamela C., Sophia, with editing assistance by Michael W.

Ep 26: On 1776 and reading the Renegade Kautksy

In this episode of SPS, Sophia and Pamela discuss the moral panic surrounding Netflix's new film, Cuties (2020), and take up the responses by Spiked Online and Jacobin magazine. Platypus members Marco Torres and David Faes join us to reflect on Polanski's critically-acclaimed J'Accuse (2019)and how it speaks to the present. In the final segment, Sophia interviews Jack Conrad from the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB). They consider how the 'Left' uses and abuses Karl Kautsky's legacy in order to avoid Kautsky's Marxism and discuss what the CPGB is up to.

If you want to learn more about Platypus, and get involved, read the Platypus review, visit us on Facebook under the Platypus Affiliated Society or visit www.platypus1917.org. You can follow us on Instagram: ShitPlatypusSays, and on Twitter: @PlatypusSays. If you like the podcast, share it, rate it, and write us a review.

Mentioned: 
(0) Theodor W. Adorno, "Sexual Taboos and the Law Today" (1963)
https://platypus1917.org/wp-content/uploads/readings/adorno_sexualtaboostoday.pdf
(1) Brendan O'Neill, Cuties Review
 https://www.spiked-online.com/2020/09/15/in-defence-of-cuties/
(2) Eileen Jones, Cuties Review 
https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/09/cuties-scandal-netflix-controversy-french-movie

 (3) The Spartacist League on Polanski, “Stop the Puritan Witchhunt Against Roman Polanski!” printed in the Workers Vanguard, No. 192, 10 February 1978
https://www.icl-fi.org/english/wv/944/polanski.html 

(4) Platypus' 'Kautsky in the 21st Century' Panel (2020) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aL2TWNd1ntc
(5) Communist Party of Great Britain's website
https://communistparty.co.uk
(6) The CPGB's Weekly Worker website
https://weeklyworker.co.uk
(7) The CPGB's Communist University 2020
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOkaFWQNpCTrQfT65UszE4A

Hosted by Pamela C., Sophia F., with editing assistance by Michael Woodson, Audrey Crescenti and music from Tamas Vilaghy.

Ep. 28: On Cuties, Polanski & the "Pope of Marxism"

Pamela and Sophia discuss the shaming of black celebrities who dare to question the black loyalty to the Democratic Party. In particular we address the Left’s reception to Ice Cube’s ‘Contract for Black America,’ proposed to both the Democratic and Republican parties. Pamela sits down with Chris Cutrone to discuss  what another four years of Trump--or Biden--might mean for the Left. In the last segment Sophia catches up with our new EU Correspondent, Andreas Wintersperger, to discuss the Left’s response to the on-going migrant crisis and their reaction to the recent fires that have destroyed large migrant camps in Greece. 

Links:

(1) West Coast Platypus election watch party, Tuesday Nov 3, starting at 7:00pm Pacific time: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrcuCvrTsjHtaNlh1UVGprn63LKqpSuV-K

(2) Chris Cutrone, Marxism in the Age of Trump, Articles from the Platypus Review 2015 – 2017: https://www.amazon.com/Marxism-Age-Trump-Articles-2015-2017/dp/0996206132 

(3) Efraim Carlebach, Returning to Marxism in the Age of Trump, 2020: https://platypus1917.org/2020/11/01/returning-to-marxism-in-the-age-of-trump-in-2020/

Hosted by Pamela, & Sophia, with editing help from Michael W. 
Music by Tamas Vilaghy

Ep 29: On the US Election 2020 & the EU's Migrant Crisis

***U.S. election special***

On this episode Pamela and Sophia catch up with Conrad Cartmell (Class Unity caucus, DSA), Mara Henao & Kaitlin Buck (Philly Socialists) and Benjamin Studebaker (British Academic Union) to reflect upon the Left under Trump - and what lies ahead under a Biden administration. 

This episode contributes to a larger body of work by the Platypus Affiliated Society, attempting to make sense of the Left’s reaction to the changing political reality. A panel event, with a similar topic was recently held at George Mason University(1). 

Be sure to follow us on social media. On Instagram were ‘shitplatypussays’, and on Twitter: ‘platypussays’. Visit us on Facebook under the Platypus Affiliated Society or visit www.platypus1917.org.

If you like the podcast, share it, rate it, and write us a review!

(1) Platypus Panel, held at George Mason University: "The Future after the Election: What's Left?": https://youtu.be/7SPBRSfqB5Q
(2) Beyond the Vote: Base-Building for Class Independence in Philadelphia: https://regenerationmag.org/beyond-the-vote-base-building-for-class-independence-in-philadelphia/
(3) This Time Isn’t Different: DSA leadership should shut up about supporting Joe Biden, Class Unity: https://classunity.org/this-time-isnt-different-dsa-leadership-should-shut-up-about-supporting-joe-biden/

Hosted by Pamela, Sophia, with editing assistance by Michael W. Music by Tamas Vilaghy.

Ep. 30: The Left After the Election 2020

In the latest episode of the cancel culture saga, social media companies have taken into their own hands to censor content. Trump’s tweets, Zero Book’s videos, & Brad Troemel’s memes, have all been subject to the policing eye of so-called “fact checkers.” In the first part of this episode, Laurie joins Pamela to discuss the new wave of censorship under our Silicon Valley dystopia and the realignment of liberals in the Age of Trump.

In the second part of the episode, we focus on how the German-speaking Left has responded to the recent terror attacks in France and Austria. Our European Correspondent, Andreas, joins Sophia and Pamela to discuss the responses by the anti-imperialist left, featuring Der Funke, the Austrian faction of the International Marxist Tendency (IMT) and Marx 21 in Germany. Second, Andreas interviews Michael Fischer, an Austrian anti-fascist and recent contributor to the anti-German publication Bahamas. Fischer presents his critique of political islam and his thoughts on the anti-imperialist left today. Finally, Frankfurt Platypus member, Jan Schroeder joins us to reflect on the trajectory of the anti-German Left, from its origins through its opposition to the Balkan Wars and support for American intervention in the Gulf, and their present iteration as defenders of “class politics”.

Links:

Brad Troemel’s Biden-Clinton meme
https://www.instagram.com/p/CI3pSqUBevY/

Glenn Greewald, “Instagram is Using False “Fact-Checking” to Protect Joe Biden’s Crime Record From Criticisms” (December 2020) 
https://greenwald.substack.com/p/instagram-is-using-false-fact-checking

Pamela C. Nogales C., “The Cancel Wars: The Legacy of the Cultural Turn in the Age of Trump” (Platypus Review, November 2020) 
https://platypus1917.org/2020/11/01/the-cancel-wars-the-legacy-of-the-cultural-turn-in-the-age-of-trump/

Laurie Rojas, “The Culture Wars in the Age of Trump” (Platypus Review, November 2020) 
https://platypus1917.org/2020/11/01/the-culture-wars-in-the-age-of-trump/

Der Funke, “Wien: Gegen Terror und nationale Einheit” (November 2020) 
https://derfunke.at/aktuelles/oesterreich/11526-wien-gegen-terror-und-nationale-einheit

Marx 21, “Frankreich: Muslime unter Generalverdacht” (November 2020) 
https://www.marx21.de/frankreich-muslime-unter-generalverdacht/

Efraim Carlbach, “The Unchanging Core of Marxism: Interview with Ian Birchall” (Platypus Review, December 2017 – January 2018)
https://platypus1917.org/2017/12/02/unchanging-core-marxism-interview-ian-birchall/

Spartacist League, "Down with the Islamic Reaction! For Workers Revolution in Iran! A Special Issue on Iran" (Women and Revolution, Fall 1979)
https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/w&r/WR_019_1979.pdf

Michael Fischer, “Die neue Rassenlehre: Moderne Rassenideologie im antirassistischen Gewand” (Bahamas 85 / 2020)
http://redaktion-bahamas.org/artikel/2020/85-die-neue-rassenlehre/

Jan Schroeder, “Althusser’s Marxism” (July–August 2019)
https://platypus1917.org/2019/07/02/althussers-marxism/


Jan Gerber, panelist on the “Crisis Of Neoliberalism” panel at the Platypus German Conference (January 2020) (in German) 
https://archive.org/details/25.01crisisofneoliberalism/25.01+Crisis+of+Neoliberalism.mp3

SPS Reflections on the 2020 German Conference can be found here:
https://soundcloud.com/platypus-affiliated-society/ep22


Hosted by Pamela & Sophia
with European Correspondent, Andreas W.
music by Tamas Vilaghy

Ep. 31: On Social Media Censorship & Left Responses to the Terror Attacks

In this special episode of SPS, we discuss Joe Biden's inauguration and the relationship between Art and the capitalist state. Professional creative artists are facing unemployment at rates well above the national average. We take up the proposals for WPA-style intervention, a Ministry of Culture, and a White House Office for Culture. In the second half, we consider the artist Brad Troemel and his attempt to reinterpret “Liberal Cringe” into meme art.

Images and videos for this episode can be found at: https://caesuramag.org/montezsps01292021

SPS is a production of the Platypus Affiliated Society, more at: https://platypus1917.org/

 
Links for this episode:
 
Alison Hewitt Ward, 2010, RIP Art Trump
https://caesuramag.org/posts/rip-trump-art
 
Letter of resignation from the President's Committee on the Arts & the Humanities (2017)
https://twitter.com/kalpenn/status/898547257062174724/photo/1
 
Chris Cutrone, 2010, What was postmodernism? -- Habermas’s critique 
An incomplete project? Art and politics after postmodernism 
http://chriscutrone.platypus1917.org/?p=955
 
Platypus Art & Politics syllabus
https://platypus1917.org/2020/06/17/art-and-politics/
 
Brad Troemel, Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/bst
 
Barbra Kruger’s Selfridges campaign in London with Behance,
https://www.behance.net/gallery/58329969/Selfridges-Co-Sale-campaign
 
Ryan Long, 2020, When Wokes and Racists Actually Agree on Everything
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ev373c7wSRg
 
Jason Farago, "The Arts Are in Crisis. Here’s How Biden Can Help," New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/13/arts/design/arts-stimulus-biden.html
 
Susan Buck-Morss, response to Visual culture questionnaire (1996)
https://platypus1917.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/buckmorss_visualcultquest.pdf

Efraim Carlebach, “Forgetting Mark Fisher” Platypus Review 115 (April 2019)
https://platypus1917.org/2019/04/01/forgetting-mark-fisher/
 
Original tracks by Tamas Vilaghy
Hosted by Sophia and Pamela

Ep. 32:  On Brad Troemel, and Art & the Capitalist State

The commentary on the commentary on the Left.

Sh*t Platypus Says

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