JT from The Deprogam + Second Thought! Ask me anything!

Glad to have you here but how the hell did you even learn about this place lol
- One of the mods reached out to me on Discord and it sounded like fun 😁
  
  We love our big beautiful mods, don't we folks? :big-iron:

Hi JT, welcome to Hexbear! What is your opinion on trans rights?
:trans-hammer-sickle: :hexbear-trans::anarchy-trans:
- Hell yeah, trans rights ✊
  
  JT SAYS TRANS RIGHTS!! YOU HEARD IT HERE FOLX!!
  :dax-stoked:
  
  :fidel-salute:
  
  :rosa-salute:

I'm an Indian from a reservation in Oklahoma who wants to start a Marxist YT channel, and had two main questions for our supple voiced podcaster.
How would an Indigenous person even begin to tackle the ignorance around decolonization, when the ed. system produces people that will go on Twitter and call me a savage or deliberately ask other whites what 'reserves' are, instead of someone who lives on one, just to be spiteful? Americans have voluntarily clinged to an 18th century belief used to justify their settler colonialism without the need for a "Red Scare" towards Indigenous people, maybe my question is how would you get subjects of an Empire to face its historical sins, in a way that humanizes the victims and recontextualizes the stories they've grown up with as facts?
When you're writing a video script, besides having a weekly upload schedule, what keeps you from dropping it and doing something else when you hit a creative roadblock?
- Hey, that's awesome! Decolonization is one of those topics that tends to elicit a knee-jerk response from the average American. It's frustrating and I'm not sure what the correct answer is there. I think a big part of the problem is that the listener feels personally attacked or guilty, like they did something wrong and don't want to be made out to be the villain. I think taking a patient approach with them (as frustrating as that may be) could help ease them into it. American propaganda is a hell of a drug, and it's going to take a lot of work to deprogram your viewers. You'll never win everyone over, but that's just part of having a political YouTube channel. As for your second question, I've been doing YouTube a long time now, so I've got a pretty solid workflow and rarely have to deviate these days. That being said, there have been times where I just wasn't vibing with the topic I chose for the week and I had to make the decision to put it on the back burner and attempt something else. There's nothing wrong with changing topics every once in a while. Always better to work on something you're interested in than forcing yourself to work on a topic just because you picked it.
  
  My very own response from JT, thank you

Actually I did think of a question: What are your thoughts on this Parenti clip? :parenti: He has some interesting stuff to say about the state of China in the 90s here, and it's pretty negative.

revolutionary you think more people should know about?
- Thomas Sankara. Absolute baller. Vaccination campaign, literacy campaign, getting rid of outdated sexist tendencies in government, stood up to the French. Really cool guy.
  
  On that note I must say everyone should watch the documentary Thomas Sankara the Upright Man
  
  :sankara-bass:
  
  :sankara-salute:
  
  :sankara-shining:
  
  and he literally rocked, which i'm not sure any other revolutionary leader could claim.

Who's cuter, Yugopnik or Hakim?
- yes
  
  spoken like a true diplomat
- oh my god Obama, you can't just ask JT this, the whole podcast relies on Yugopnik and Hakim vying for JTs approval and affection. Their bromance is is delicately balanced.
- very important and pressing question the people need a response

Hello!
What is your favorite emoji on Hexbear.net? Please take your time and browse.
:party-parenti:

Hi JT! Big fan of your work, thanks for coming by here!
I don't have anything to really ask you, but I did want you to look at something.
In a somewhat recent video you did, I think on healthcare, you made a joke about a corgi having terminal kidney issues. My partner and I rescue corgis, and the first one we ever got together was born with the exact condition you joked about. Her name was Daisy, and she was full of sass and character when she was having a good day.
I just wanted you to know that joke made me think of her. Here she is. She was with us for 6 great months before passing in my arms.
https://imgur.com/a/nQrUvtW
- Oh my goodness what a sweet little critter. I can't imagine how difficult that was. You and your partner are doing a wonderful thing. I love dogs. My two heeler/pit mixes are rescues.
  
  Thanks JT! We're on our second corgi right now. This one is named Bailey and she is my little snuggly wumpkins. She wants to say something, hold on, I'll let her type.
  welr45tp5rtel5rel\43rel43;
  That means "hello!"

The people demand to know, will the PMC DSA Karens over at the Deprogram eat the bugs?
- Say no to the bugs 🙅
  
  Thank you for being a good sport. I hope you find our goofy shit funny l, but not funny enough that your whole fan base comes here. I don’t think the servers could take it :stalin-stressed:

Just commenting to say that one of my friends from Wisconsin, that also lived in Chattanooga for three years, recently became a comrade. I assume this is due to The Deprogram's demographic microtargeting. So, thanks!
- Our plan is working 😈
  
  Building the Peoples' Republic of Chattanooga one person at a time

- I've always had a kind of belligerent approach to intimidation, for better or for worse. So when the feds showed up my response was basically "Cool, I'll double down. Try something, asshole." This may end up getting me in hot water at some point, but I think it's important for people to see that we can't allow ourselves to be intimidated into silence and complacency. The US is a pseudo-fascist police state and we need to help others overcome the propaganda we've all been force-fed our entire lives. The nice thing is you don't have to be super public if you don't want to be. There are plenty of great content creators who prefer to remain anonymous - Hakim and Yugopnik are good examples. People know their pseudonyms, but nothing about them IRL. You can write, make videos, record a podcast, whatever your preferred medium, all without revealing who you really are. Now rest assured that the feds will know who you are, but that just comes with the territory. As a teacher you can do some real good simply by pushing back a little on the capitalist party line and revisionist history. Just offer the alternative perspective, you don't have to be super open about your beliefs, you can simply give your students the tools to think for themselves.

Let's reignite the struggle session, what are your thoughts on outdoor cats?
- I'm deathly allergic to cats, so I don't have many opinions on them other than that they're cute 😔
  
  Wise man, spoken like a true diplomat.
  :rat-salute:
  
  mood, I have to take 2 antihistamines and sit in bed for 30 mins every morning so I can great my little bastard of a tiger
  
  :meow-tableflip:
- rip birbs

Thanks for stopping by JT :soviet-heart:
What is the most bizarre take you've heard recently? Like not offensive or stupid, but just so baffling that you wonder which reality this person lives in
- Good question, I get so many weird comments. I got a one the other day that said "capitalism doesn't exist, can't exist, and will never exist. Capitalism is created as a strawman by communists to deflect from their equally impossible communism." Like...what?
  
  :very-smart: smartest economics understander :very-smart:
  
  Capitalism is either nothing or everything. It’s either something that’s made up by Marx, or invented in 100,000 BC when our ancestors traded sticks

Who is your favorite Chapo Trap House podcast member?
- They're all blessed people. I love Matt's rants, and Felix is truly unmatched with his predictions
  
  :matt: :el-chapo: :thinky-felix:

Hey JT, what's your opinion on the current state of Socialism in China?
- Optimistic. They seem to be trending in the right direction. I saw recently that a lot of jobs are now requiring a degree in Marxist studies, which is fantastic.

Have you ever thought about updating your video What if North Korea Became Democratic? or making a response to it?
I've always thought discussing realities around North Korea is particularly hard because of the absolutely insane amount of propaganda against it.
- Yep, planning on doing something with Hakim about that

Hi JT!
What's your approach to agitprop, especially given that Western audiences tend to be unaware of the basics of socialist thinking and are full of anticommunist propaganda? There are times when me or mine have to make flyers or speeches or posters and so on, and while some of us have some artistic talent (not me, though!), people will sometimes disagree about what to include.
I thought you might be a good person to ask being a big ol' internet creator commie. Or, maybe, on second thought...?
- In my experience, most people tend to agree with communist ideas until you mention the word "communism." Just go easy on the commie imagery and jargon and you should be golden. You'll notice with my videos that I routinely talk about the labor theory of value and the dictatorship of the proletariat, but never once have I used those terms. Stick to terms like "democracy," "common sense economics," stuff like that. People will slowly become communists without even realizing it. Do not, under any circumstances, put a hammer and sickle on your flyers. I'm staunchly team "hammer and sickle is good, there's no need to change it," but also you don't want to come on too strong. Ease people into it.
  
  Thanks JT!
  Gonna have to return these 600 hammer and sickle hats I blew the whole party budget on.

- I had been subscribed to both of them for a while and really respected their work, and I had collaborated with Yugopnik once before. I knew I wanted to start a podcast and that I wanted cohosts, and they were the first two that came to mind - different parts of the world, different experiences, but the same values. The response from my audience has been pretty good. My recommendation carries some weight with my viewers, so a lot of them will give it a shot, enjoy the vibe, and become more radical. There are some annoying comments like "uhhh hakim is a genocide denier," which is bullshit and very frustrating, but that's just a consequence of a lot of my audience being barely left of liberal. No immediate plans for YouTube collabs, but I always enjoy working with people like Our Changing Climate, so I'll probably do that again in the future.

Since you became politically conscious, have your views more or less been on the left? Or did you ever have like a liberal or libertarian phase before moving left?
- Pretty much always left since my radicalization. Living in the US I've had plenty of libertarian friends who tried to convince me of their bizarre worldview, but all it takes is watching one of their presidential debates to see how goofy they are. Their rhetoric boils down to "Seatbelts are government overreach and I have the right to sell my child god damn it!"
  
  Libertarianism exists entirely within the realm of thought experiment, hypothetical, and theory.
  It's a not uncommon path for more sheltered children to emerge from their specific brand of reactionary throught, but it's also a place where bigots go to find political justification for their bigotry. Which creates a great dynamic where kids who know that there's something wrong about what they're being told are being taught by 50 year old Ayn Rand accolytes that see themselves as the fountainhead of reason.
  It's absolutely insane to anyone who has any real grasp on reality, but you throw a right wing evangelical kid who is trying to get out through that pipeline and they might get stuck. Stuff like what you do is really important for preventing that btw. Your videos are like draino for that pipeline lol

Hi JT, I'm a viewer since before you switched over to political content, and I remain one happy with your weekly dives into important subjects.
My question is:
Do you get more, less, or the same amount of viewer activity on your channel since switching to Left wing focused content?
- Thanks for sticking around! I'd say the views are more consistent. Fewer 500k+ view videos, but also fewer sub 100k videos. More engagement overall - more quality engagement, and also more negative engagement.
  
  Thanks, I've always wondered about that. Here's to many more years of enjoying your production. Always in a format I can share with those who don't already subscribe to Leftist ideology, and that I appreciate. You're doing great work. Keep it up!

o hai jt wat is your favorite shrek movie?
:shrekbear:
- Only seen the first two 😔
  
  those r both rly gud tho im hapy youve watched them. thank you 4 answering!!
  :shrek-progress: :bird-guerrila:

What do you think about the website?
- It seems perfectly functional lol

No question but I figure I better say something before going to work.
Check out some train stuff in c/urbanism while you're here. Trains are cool and you should look at them :train-shining:
Appreciate your work!
- Train go zoom, yes, very good
  
  :gold-communist: :order-of-lenin: :gold-antifa:

Well, holy shit, if it isn't a minor internet celebrity come to pay some respects to the leading online struggle session purveyor.
What are your thoughts on the Cultural Revolutionary period of China? Do you think you will have an episode that summarizes it, or is it too outside your guys general knowledge to address?
- We may do an episode on it, but we've got so many other topics and that's a pretty intense one. We'd want to treat it with the nuance it deserves, because there were definitely pros and cons.
  
  Thanks for getting back! I absolutely agree. It's one of those things that is a can of worms to get into properly, so I rarely see it addressed outside of places like RevLeft, but it would be nice to have something to flog onto people that has some 'haha funniman' aspects to it.
  Best of luck on the rest of your shows!

Thanks for doing this JT,
Do you ever get to feeling discouraged about communism as a project? More often than I'd like, I start to think that things will have to get substantially worse before there's enough motivation for proletarian solidarity in the west - and that at that point it'd be a real crap shoot how things pan out. How do you stay motivated (or even sane) while confronting the real and very uncomfortable contradictions of modern capitalism?
- That's a good question, and a tough one. I'm a naturally optimistic person, so that helps. But what's also been very helpful to me is keeping in mind the fact that Lenin didn't think he'd see revolution in his lifetime, and two years after he wrote that he was helping forge a path for arguably the most significant socialist project in history. Change seems impossible until it happens, then looking back it seems inevitable. I get discouraged from time to time like anyone else, but I know that we will win in the long run. As long as we can tackle climate change (it will be disastrous, but the species will survive) we will achieve communism in the future. I'm certain of that.
  
  :rosa-salute:

Hi JT! What are your thoughts on the immortal science of Posadism?
:hexbear-posadist: :posad: :possadist-ufo::posadist-nuke:
- We must develop birthing centers underwater to forge stronger relations with our dolphin comrades
  
  :pog-dolphin: :hammer-sickle: :pseudorca:

I know another person asked a similar question about podcast crossovers but is it possible that there'll ever be a deprogram / TrueAnon crossover episode / inviting one or both of the hosts on
- Maybe! We're always open to inviting other podcasters on. We've had Brendan from Blowback on in the past and that was fun.

I don't have a question just want to say hello :lenin-laugh: I think it's cool that such a high profile leftist ytber is taking the time to check out this place. I definitely love to see this community grow
- Howdy! Glad to come hang out 😁

what's your favourite chip?
- Probably gotta be Kettle's Jalapeño chips
  
  A truly refined palette.

hello, what is your favorite cryptid and why?
:angel-biblical:
- MOTHMAN, idk why, just seems cool
  
  wise choice. the prophecies hold true, inshallah.
  
  Because he's West Virginian, probably fought in the coal wars and was just trying to warn people about the absolute fucking state of American infrastructure when those bridges collapsed. Alas, it took WV asking the Soviet Union for help for America to ever take the bridge repairs seriously.

Which historical figure do you find most fascinating? Could be either in a positive or bewildering sort of way.
- Fidel has to be near or at the top of the list. Just an incredible story. I would give anything to have been able to meet him before he died.
  
  Meet me in Havana at The Hotel Nacional. First round is on me.
  :fidel-salute-big:
  
  :porky-scared-flipped: :fidel-bat:

Who would win in a fight between Hakim and Yugopnik?
- My money's on Yugopnik (unless Hakim is armed with pocket fentanyl)
  
  getting a medical license just so he can beat him in a fight sounds like the exact kind of long game I'd expect from Hakim tbh
  
  sips kvass loudly

What are your thoughts on Enver Hoxha (the Albania Marxist) and do you think his critiques of Post-Stalin USSR and Post-Mao PRC are valid?
Also, where did you take that lovely Twitter pfp of you and the giant tortoise?
- No real opinions on Hoxha, but the memes are fun. I'm not familiar enough with his specific criticisms to pass judgment. My Twitter pfp was taken on the island of St. Helena, the remote island where Napoleon was exiled. The tortoise's name is Jonathan, he's the world's oldest living land animal. Fun fact, he was there when Napoleon was, so I'm one degree of separation from Napoleon, which is crazy.
  
  Thank you for your answers on both Hoxha and tortoises!
  :hoxha-turt:
- Credit to @Jane_The_Stalinist and @Balaur01 for both of these.
  :arm-L::soviet-huff::arm-R:

Does Hakim have a mustache?
Also big thank you to all 3 of you for your hard work and inspiration
- I don't know actually! I've seen his torso and arms, but never his face. Thanks for watching and listening!

Besides the DHS visit, have you received any attention irl good or bad from your vids?
Also who are you supporting in the futbôl tonight?
- Thankfully I've never been recognized in public, which is my preference. The worst I've gotten is some emailed death threats, but they're always laughable. I regret to admit that I don't watch sports 😔
  
  I don’t watch sports
  :gigachad-hd:
  
  Damn thats fucked, i hope yall stay safe

thoughts on alternative leftist social media?
- Without significant funding and mass adoption it'll fizzle out. Just the nature of social media.
  
  Hexbear owned :sicko-no:
  
  :ooooooooooooooh:
  
  You've got our number, that's for sure

I’m sorry, but I got to ask the two questions: Will there be a Deprogram-Chapo crossover episode? Will there be a Deprogram-Citations Needed crossover episode?
- Maaaaaybe, stay tuned 👀
  Not something we've considered at this point
  
  Thanks for taking the time!

Probably one the most suggested thing for The Deprogram is to get BadEmpanada on one of the episodes. Do you know much about him? Or any thoughts or opinions?
Some people have mixed feelings about him, as he makes some takes (some bad, some good) that don't really fly wither other leftists.
- I've personally never watched his stuff, but we're aware of all the requests to have him on. We'll see! We've got a long list of guests.

My IRL friend group is broadly Bernie-tier, explicit leftist thought doesn't really come up but I don't imagine it would be unwelcome. Got any stories about crossing that rubicon, whether from your own experience or just other people telling you about theirs?
- What gave me the push was the fact that I was confused about the difference between socialism, social democracy, and democratic socialism. While I was reading and learning the differences, I slowly started to agree more with the ideas of proper socialism than either social democracy (still imperialist) or democratic socialism (basically liberalism with a radical aesthetic). A little theory goes a long way! Have them read Blackshirts and Reds or State and Revolution, that will likely help.

What's the weirdest/most entertaining rightwing comment or email you've received?
- Oh man there are so many. I post some of my favorites to Twitter. Have a scroll through my profile and you'll find some absolute gems.

What I your opinion on the CPUSA? My experience is my local branch isn't bad, but the national org sucks ass.
- That pretty much tracks with my experience. Great radical local branch, constantly disappointed with the liberal takes of national.
  
  Thanks comrade! And since i have you cornered, if you and your sweet bois could sound boost this:
  https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/12/new-hampshire-bill-ban-gender-affirming-care-minors-many-adults/
  Your trans comrades would greatly appreciate it. Much love and good health to your family.

Hi JT! Thanks for doing this. What are your thoughts on Red Sails, the website run by Roderic Day with contributions from other writers? Do you have a favorite essay on the site?
- I haven't read a ton of their work, but from what I've seen it seems pretty cool. Roderic Day quote tweeted me kind of passive aggressively one time, I think he assumes I'm some breadtube type, but I've never interacted with him.
  
  I appreciate the super quick response! Yeah I get the impression that Roderic Day tends to go pretty hard in the rhetorical paint for better or for worse from his Twitter generally lol. Have a nice rest of your day!
  
  That's definitely his typa move (he roasted me for a post I made on here), don't take it personally, he's all in on discourse. I like his curation/editing though, this interview with Fidel was first translated by him https://redsails.org/fidel-in-guadalajara/

growing up in the good ol’ us of a, how much anti-communist brainwashing would you say you got and how did you first start unlearning it?
- An incredible amount, from every possible angle - in school, in the news, in movies and TV shows, everything is anticommunist. The first step for me, like a lot of Americans, was hearing Bernie's rhetoric. From there it was a simple matter of learning he's not actually a socialist, then getting curious about what socialism really is, then going down the rabbit hole. Education is the cure for propaganda of any sort.

What's your advice on biting your tongue in public situations? I run into so many situations where I overhear someone saying something racist or otherwise reactionary and I often don't know how to handle it. It's even worse when it's from people I know.
- Depends on the situation. I have the habit of telling people off if they're being rude to workers (just something simple like "don't be that guy") and they'll usually shut up or storm off, both of which are wins for the worker being harassed. If it's just in casual conversation, a disappointed look can do a lot of work. You don't have to say anything at all. If you feel compelled, maybe pull the person aside later so they don't get defensive. Just depends on how egregious the offense is.

There is economic pressure to have many room mates in the imperial core when you are a wage labourer, which leads to people being in relationships who are having kids often moving together and not having room mates anymore.
Would cluster flats be good to have more communal living situations, which would lead to children learning more collective skills instead of them experiencing two parents being in control of their life till they move out?
If so what would be your ideal (communal?) living situation be if you are 70 and living a life of leisure?
- I've never heard of cluster flats, but I've long been a proponent of bringing back soviet-style superblocks - apartment complexes with a central green space, with amenities like small grocery stores, childcare, etc, and public transportation hubs at each superblock to shuttle people to and from the cities where they work. This would reduce sprawl, increase social interaction, and reduce car dependency. Suitable for all ages, in my opinion.
  
  Recently Barcelona has been working to reimplement superblocks and I find it very very funny that the media coverage surrounding them has just referred to it as a "relatively new urban planning concept" with no mention of the soviet blocks.

when are you going to let hakim and yugopnik out of your basement
- never

is revolution in the imperial core impossible?
If it is, what should the left inside the core do?
- I don't think so. I believe it works like anywhere else - once the internal contradictions become too acute revolution becomes inevitable. Places like the US have the advantage of centuries of exploitation of the third world, which has allowed the accumulation of tremendous wealth and relative political stability, but as the imperial core's grip on the rest of the world begins to fail (see China's rise and the forging of new international alliances without the US), the fascist tendencies of the imperial powers will turn inwards, rapidly accelerating the decline of standard of living for first-worlders. It's only a matter of time until the hegemony of the US implodes, it's just a matter of how dramatic the fall will be. Could be a slow and painful decline or a massive spectacle. We'll see.
  
  as the imperial core’s grip on the rest of the world begins to fail (see China’s rise and the forging of new international alliances without the US), the fascist tendencies of the imperial powers will turn inwards, rapidly accelerating the decline of standard of living for first-worlders. It’s only a matter of time until the hegemony of the US implodes, it’s just a matter of how dramatic the fall will be.
  :yes-hahaha-yes-r:
  :sicko-pig::amerikkka: :fidel-cool:

Hello JT, thanks for doing this. What do you make of people like C Wright Mills and his contemporaries Aaron Good and Peter Dale Scott? Off base? Also how would you suggest left wing movements deal with the CIA?
- Thanks for stopping by! I've actually never heard of those people. What's their deal in a nutshell? As for dealing with the CIA...that's a tough one. I think spreading awareness of their crimes is essential - there are plenty of books that go pretty deep into the atrocities they've committed. Killing Hope by William Blum is a good one to recommend people. I've found that talking about the shadowy world of the CIA is a good way to get your foot in the door towards deprogramming right-wingers.
  
  From Wikipedia for C Wright Mills: "According to Mills, the eponymous "power elite" are those that occupy the dominant positions, in the three pillar institutions (state security, economic and political) of a dominant country. Their decisions (or lack thereof) have enormous consequences, not only for Americans but, "the underlying populations of the world." Mills posits that the institutions that they head are a triumvirate of groups that have inherited or succeeded weaker predecessors:
  
  "two or three hundred giant corporations" which have replaced the traditional agrarian and craft economy, a strong federal political order that has inherited power from "a decentralized set of several dozen states" and "now enters into each and every cranny of the social structure," and the military establishment, formerly an object of "distrust fed by state militia," but now an entity with "all the grim and clumsy efficiency of a sprawling bureaucratic domain.""
  Basically these guys are left wing conspiracy types that pioneered ideas like the CIA and NATO being mercenaries for the rich.
  Good and Dale Scott expand on his theories because of his questionable death in the early 60's. They really focus on 9/11, state drug running, the Kennedy assassination, and post WW2 nazi ratlines. They occasionally show up on Trueanon.
  I'll have to check out Killing Hope. Heard it mentioned, but never picked it up.

I know you’ve talked about working in film, specifically documentaries, is there anything you’ve worked on that you would recommend checking out? Also, are you interested in or have you made a feature or are you just interested in the documentary side of filmmaking?
- I've shot a couple things for Wendover Productions and one for Real Life Lore. Both IRL friends of mine. The Final Years of Majuro was cool. That one's on YouTube. I have a lot of respect for people who do narrative work, but I'm mostly interested in documentary.

Hi JT, thanks for coming here.
What are you thoughts on the communist party of the philippines and their late lider José María Sison
- I know very little about them, unfortunately. Definitely gonna have to do some reading when I get the chance. It seems like Sison was well loved.

Hey JT, What are you currently reading and what is your favorite piece of leftist theory?
- Currently working on The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine by Ilan Pappe. It's taking me awhile because it's a real downer, but very enlightening. Favorite piece of theory is probably Lenin's State and Revolution. Highly recommended for anyone who hasn't read it!

Finally back home from my friend's place in another state so i can ask some questions.
Hi JT, thanks for coming on here to answer some of our questions. I've got a few to ask. What advice might you give to someone who is overeducated, interested in writing theory and exploring the content space, but not really sure how to start contributing content? I'm interested in writing longer form pieces on our current social reality/politics/capitalist economics, but I'm concerned about some notions of like expertise I suppose. I'm personally highly educated in a STEM field, but trying to get out of it because I can't stand the lack of impact I have on making people's lives better.
I also promised to ask a theory question, so what are your thoughts on the way that our capitalist social reality interacts with our level of technological development? It seems to me that there are some profound consequences of contemporary technology and especially the internet that lack a good Marxist explanation, and I'm curious if you've ever turned towards pondering it.
Matt Christman / Second Thought crossover when? I know others have asked about chapo, but personally, I just want to see Matt Christman and you all bouncing ideas off one another.
Anyway, thanks for coming by, hope you stick around in our space for a bit. :Care-Comrade:
- Good questions! To your first one, getting started in producing content of any sort can be daunting. I remember that feeling myself. You've got a couple options: you can either reach out to lefty publications and see if they'd be interested in hosting some of your content, or you can go your own way and start a substack or similar outlet. I'm not super familiar with the intricacies of getting writing published, but those are two general avenues that come to mind. The Deprogram may hypothetically have a long-term plan to do something in that vein, but we'll see, stay tuned 👀
  Regarding your question about the intersection of technology and capitalist society, that's an interesting one. I think our current society, where technology is generally seen as simply a tool to increase productivity, has a net negative effect on human flourishing. We're all tied to our screens and are on-call at all hours of the day. We have a hard time truly disconnecting. A Marxist theory of the internet would, in my opinion, center around the privatization of the internet (call it the enclosure of the digital commons, for a historical parallel) and the transition from a public research utility to a privately owned advertising and consumption machine. There's a lot to consider there.
  We'd love to have Matt on the show. He's a brilliant guy. Hopefully at some point!
  Thanks for your questions!

Hey JT, thanks for doing this.
Bit of a personal question but do you ever feel a bit frustrated when you can't radicalise people, or when you see completely idiotic takes that people just lap up because their from a "respectable" person (i.e. a teacher or professor). Do you ever feel like you're unable to do anything to help?
Thanks again
- Absolutely. I get hundreds of thousands of views every week, and thousands of comments. Some of them are incredibly disheartening. It's sad to see how many people are just completely closed off from the possibility of changing their minds. We have to acknowledge that we can't win everyone over, and some people are simply lost causes. It's much better to focus on the people who ask genuine questions, because if they're intellectually open and honest we can absolutely help them adjust their perspectives.
  
  I like to think everyone is one good question away from “getting it” but that is a lot to hope for sometimes

- I might do that!
- Oh cool! The current mods are doing a great job, no need for me to join and mess everything up haha

JT from The Deprogam + Second Thought! Ask me anything!

:trans-hammer-sickle: :hexbear-trans::anarchy-trans:

:dax-stoked:

:fidel-salute:

:sankara-bass:

:kremlins:

:fidel-wut:

:chairman-moa-panic: :denguin:

:maduro-katana-1::sicko-biker:

:rat-salute:

:meow-tableflip:

:matt: :el-chapo: :thinky-felix:

:shrekbear:

:shrek-progress: :bird-guerrila:

:gold-communist: :order-of-lenin: :gold-antifa:

:hexbear-posadist: :posad: :possadist-ufo::posadist-nuke:

:pog-dolphin: :hammer-sickle: :pseudorca:

:angel-biblical:

:fidel-salute-big:

:hoxha-turt:

:arm-L::soviet-huff::arm-R:

:yes-hahaha-yes-r:

:sicko-pig::amerikkka: :fidel-cool: