Description

In this episode, Niki, Neil, and Natalia discuss the history of binge drinking, why McCarthyism is back in the news, and the political power of women’s rage.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: 

• Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination hearing has brought attention to the prevalence of binge drinking among young people. Natalia referenced Matt Damon’s Saturday Night Live portrayal of Brett Kavanaugh, and cited Sarah Hepola’s memoir of binge drinking, Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget.
• McCarthyism is back in the news as Mitch McConnell has accused Democrats of such tactics. Neil mentioned a Jonah Goldberg essay in the National Review that argued Joe McCarthy had been right.
• A series of books out this fall look at women’s rage: Rebecca Traister’s Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger; Soraya Chemaly’s Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women’s Anger; and, Brittney Cooper’s Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower. Natalia added both Phyllis Schlafly’s Power of the Positive Woman and Audre Lorde’s “The Uses of Anger” as two other very different works on the politics of women’s rage.

In our regular closing feature, What’s Making History:

• Natalia talked about her upcoming involvement in the event, “Yeah She Did: Witches Get Stuff Done” taking place in New York City on October 24.
• Neil commented on Joe Pinsker’s Atlantic article, “Why Some Parents Turn Boys’ Names Into Girls’ Names.”
• Niki discussed the expiration of the Violence Against Women Act.