Centered From Reality

Little Marco Makes Big Foreign Policy Moves, Trump Strips Security Detail for Fauci & Eric Adams Turns to MAGA (+ Roseanne Barr Spits Bars)

In this episode, Alex laments that Roseanne Barr is featured in a rap song and can’t believe that Trump has only been president for a few days. Then he spends the podcast talking about how Marco Rubio has made some bold (and dangerous) policy decisions in the State Department, how Eric Adams has made an (unsurprising shift towards MAGA), and why it is chilling that Trump has removed security protection for Anthony Fauci, Mike Pompeo, and John Bolton. 

From Carl’s Jr CEO to EU Ambassador, The Stargate Project Builds, Marco Heads to Panama & Project 2025 Has Arrived!

In this episode, Alex tries his best to keep everyone updated on what is going on in the Trump 2.0 Administration. Trump has sent troops to the border, practically threatened disloyal government workers, reassigned nonpartisan national security experts to non related departments, and has rescinded the ability of thousands of approved refugees to come to the country. At the same time, Israel is involved in a new conflict in the West Bank as Marco Rubio is heading to Panama after Trump’s conspiracies over control of the Panama Canal. Alex also talks about the Stargate Project. The Trump Administration is looking to give over $100 billion to OpenAI and Oracle to help build data facilities for AI. These events come as Trump is looking to deregulate the AI field and compete with China. 

The Frog Has Been Boiled: Unpacking the Last 24 Hours

In this episode, after taking a week off of podcasting, Alex tries to make sense of what has happened over the last 24 hours. Since the second inauguration of Donald Trump, he has renamed the Gulf of Mexico, pardoned over 1500 J6 insurrectionists, declared an emergency at the Southern Border, frozen hiring in the federal government, and so much more. Alex argues that the country has changed since 2017, as the Overton Window has surged rightwards. He thinks that we are no longer the frog in boiling water, the frog is dead, it has been cooked, and the water has mostly evaporated. 

Musk’s European Vacation, Biden Misread the Moment & Bizarre Wildfire Theories Hinder Reflection!

In this episode, Alex talks about loneliness and how it can radicalize our politics. Then he talks about some of the crazy theories around the LA fires that try to blame everything from DEI hires to our involvement in Ukraine. Alex thinks that these fires are going to get worse and finger pointing will get in the way of finding public policy solutions. Later, Alex talks about how Elon Musk has headed to Europe to try to put pressure on European governments. After he helped Trump get elected, it seems like he wants to find the same success in Europe. Finally, Alex reacts to an interview Biden did with USA Today and is enraged that he still thinks he could have won the election. He also talks about how Biden failed to realize the moment, failed to recognize that the two parties were facing a political realignment, and that he was a late regime president right before a big change. 

'Hell Fire' in LA

In this episode, Alex focuses on the tragedy and destruction caused by the multiple fires in the Los Angeles area. Dry conditions, rough terrain, the Santa Ana winds, and infrastructural issues have led to historic fires that have destroyed houses and historical locations in the area. Alex talks about the politics of this issue, first hand accounts from friends, and how climate change is clearly driving this issue even if some politicians want to blame California’s leadership.

Selling Greenland: Performative Imperialism, Annexing Canada & Renaming the Gulf of Mexico!

In this episode, Alex talks about Mark Zuckerberg doing a complete 180 in regards to how Meta will deal with disinformation and fact checking. It seems like he is also bending the knee to Trump after calculating the situation. Later, Alex talks about the performative rhetoric of Trump entertaining the ideas of buying (or taking) Greenland, renaming the Gulf of Mexico, Annexing Canada, and taking back the Panama Canal. 

The Coup Makers Won & The Internet Hid the Body

In this episode, Alex reflects on January 6th on its four year anniversary. He truly believes that the “coup makers” have won and that most of Trump’s allies, foreign leaders, and the opposition will need to memory hole J6 because everyone will need to do business with the Commander-In-Chief. Alex talks about how it seems like a lot of people just want their views justified and not challenged through social media. He also talks about how right-wing misinformation perfectly helped retcon a tragic day in US history. He worries that by 2028, Donald Trump will be completely normalized, with J6 retconned into the void. 

From Bowling Alone to Partying Alone, Spain Cools on Latin America & the EU Looks to Ratify the Mercosur Deal!

In this episode, Alex starts by talking about why he found the movie Anora to be one of the best he’d seen in years. Then he talks about how the country has gone from bowling alone to partying alone. As loneliness has become a public health issue in the United States, it seems like Americans aren’t socializing as much, are partying less, and are doing less risky behavior. Alex thinks this is a unique problem in the US and is troubling. Finally, Alex talks about Spain losing its faith in Latin American markets as the European Union is looking to ratify a large deal with Mercosur that would allow free trade between the two economic blocs. Alex gives the pros and cons. 

2025 Begins with Tragedy, Fearmongering & a Burning Cybertruck

In this episode, Alex starts by talking about how he is sold on Peloton after a nice ride through the Dolomites, then he mentions that Anora is the best movie he has seen in years. For the rest of the episode, Alex talks about tragic and insane events that have occurred within the first two days of 2025. He worries that this year may be a wild year with a lot of chaos to come. He talks about the tragic attack in New Orleans and how some Republicans are demagoguing this issue to focus on transforming the FBI and cracking down on immigration. He also talks about the Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside of a Trump property in Las Vegas. 

A Year of Brain Rot: the Costco Guys & Why Culture is Downstream from Politics

In this 2024 recap episode, Alex decides to highlight why culture clearly leads our society, and politics is clearly downstream from culture. Oxford coined “brain rot” as the word of the year and Alex thinks that this word is a proper way to unpack 2024. He looks at a new conspiracy about fogs spreading diseases (called Fogvid-24), the Hawk Tua phenomenon (and the coin that ruined her 15 minutes of fame), the drone mass hysteria (maybe people just looked at the stars for once), why people are fascinated with the Costco Guys, and more. He also talks about the MAGA circular firing squad between the “tech bros” and nativists, and reflects on how time is moving too fast.