Patricia Kullberg hosts this episode of the Old Mole, which includes the following segments:
The United States of Israel: Laurie Mercier speaks with Connor Echols, a reporter for Responsible Statecraft (published by the Quincy Institute), about some of the deep relationships between the US and Israel and how these connections affect US policies.
For more on Echols’ work, see:
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/us-cluster-munitions/
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/israel-ice-minneapolis/
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/iran-and-israel-war/
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/evangelicals-and-israel/
The Predator and the Professor: The release of the millions of files through the congressional Epstein Files Transparency Act provides a disturbing window onto the global network of elite individuals—politicians, business leaders, academics, and celebrities—whose wealth and privilege protected them from accountability in connection with the criminal activities of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Among the disturbing revelations in these files is the longstanding close relationship between Epstein and beloved left intellectual and activist Noam Chomsky. In their Left & the Law segment, Jan Haaken and Mike Snedeker probe the development of this relationship and their mutual dependency through the lens of six years of email exchanges. The email correspondence is now available through Jmail.world, a viral, browser-based research tool that allows users to access thousands of publicly released emails, documents, and photos belonging to Jeffrey Epstein. Jan and Mike discuss conflicts between recognizing the contributions of Chomsky to the left and confronting his blind spots and his failure to take seriously sexual abuse claims against Epstein as well as those against close colleagues.
Country Joe (1942-2026): In the late sixties, no song quite captured the rage of America’s youth over the Viet Nam War like the darkly humored “I Feel Like I’m Fixin’ to Die Rag,“ by Country Joe and the Fish. Protest songs like this were key to galvanizing resistance against the war. Country Joe McDonald went on to a lifetime of producing music with social justice themes. He passed away this month at the age of 84. In this musical segment, Patricia Kullberg pays tribute to Country Joe McDonald.