Ashes Ashes

Episode 87 - "Collapse Chat: On the Border" David and Daniel are in person in Tucson, AZ reflecting on their time at the US Border Patrol Museum, running into border patrol agents on New Mexico state road 9, walking into Juarez, Mexico, and much more. Chapters 01:21 Border Patrol Museum 17:10 Detention Visitation 28:51 Border Drive 40:01 Medic Training From the Show David's tweet gallery from the Border Patrol Museum: https://twitter.com/davidtorcivia/status/1159978514289954816 Where to start if you want to visit an immigrant in detention: Find the local organizations in your area: Freedom for Immigrants Read the "Freedom for Immigrants Guide to Visiting People in Immigration Detention": Visiting Guide Additional groups that may be in your area: More groups Medic stuff: NYC Action Medical: NYCAM Atlanta Resistance Medics: ARM An example of what can go wrong when you call 911: 911 Story A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website

Episode 86 - "Sprawl Above All" What began as a harmless attempt by the wealthy to escape the poor peasants they were forced to rub shoulders with in the cities turned into the greatest infrastructural nightmare ever to be unleashed upon this world: the American suburb. Countless people and generations of their progeny who got swept up in the fervor of suburban sprawl experienced a radical shift in physical space that has left communities in shambles or precluded their existence and paved over much of the land we should have conserved for agricultural use. Economically, what began as a financial shot of adrenaline to kickstart the post-war economy has now culminated in a ticking time bomb of unpaid infrastructure and health liabilities threatening to bankrupt municipalities throughout the country. If that wasn't enough, sprawl is an ecological and environmental disaster that contributes more to climate change than any other development pattern. We can trace some of these consequences to the early foundat

Episode 85 - "Ep 85 - Collapse Chat: Beach Vibes, Rockets, and Burgers" What compels a group of truck owners to drive in a procession down the sandy Florida coast (and how does racism relate to environmental issues)? How can you bypass the paywall to access the latest scientific papers? Why do you need an adblocker? Can the world create a co-op burger joint with vegetarian options? More importantly, what is the quickest and surest way to trigger David? These questions and more are discussed on the latest collapse chat. Chapters 02:47 Trucks on the Beach 22:56 ROCKET MANNNNNN 33:10 Research Tricks 36:45 Militarization of the Climate 50:53 Carbondale Spring Updates 53:51 Advertising Hate A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website ashesashes.org. Find more information along with relevant news and links on your favorite social network @ashesashescast. CC BY-SA 4.0

Episode 84 - "Carbon Bootprint" They're the single biggest polluter on earth in both chemicals and greenhouse gas emissions, their effects can be felt around the world in both rising temps and destroyed lives, in fact they're in the very business of destruction: it's the US Military. This week we are joined be researcher Dr. Patrick Bigger to discuss the paper he coauthored (Hidden carbon costs of the “everywhere war”: Logistics, geopolitical ecology, and the carbon boot‐print of the US military) covering some of the far reaching impacts of imperialist policies and what it really costs to have the most powerful military on Earth. Tune in to hear about logistics, supply chains, concrete, solar powered tanks, and so much more in our exploration of the everywhere war. Chapters 01:08 Externalities 16:31 Dr. Patrick Bigger 52:01 Thinking Big A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website ashesashes.org. Find more information along with relevant ne

Episode 83 - "Collapse Chat: Love, Life, and Salmon" Collapse Chat is back and it's here to stay. This is the first of a new period for Ashes Ashes. To keep up our high levels of research, we're going to need a little more time per episode and will be transitioning to an every other week schedule for our deep dives. But fret not, collapse chat will fill in the gaps and educate you on what's happening in our immediate worlds as well as our thoughts on everything going on in the larger world around us. This week we cover Daniel's new career shift, how both of us came to our current thinking, what media we're currently consuming, some talk about salmon, and a whole bunch of other interesting tidbits. We hope you enjoy this and stick around for our deep dive back next week! A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website ashesashes.org. Find more information along with relevant news and links on your favorite social network @ashesashescast. CC BY-SA

Episode 82 - "Cash Out" South Korea is eliminating coins and requiring shoppers to upload their cash receipts to a digital database; Indians are still reeling from a 2016 decision that turned 86% of the country's cash worthless in a matter of hours; migrants and refugees are being targeted for new schemes of financial inclusion, but not experiencing the promised benefits; US cities are retaliating against cash-only retailers eager to speed the flow of customers, increase spending, and surveil our every purchase while excluding undesirable demographics; and despite our technological proficiencies, fiction writers 500 years ago still had more creative solutions to our money woes. It seems like a straight-forward topic and yet we still manage to ramble off script. Chapters 09:08 The Age of Cashless 16:30 Resisting 21:11 Ancient Wisdom 25:56 India Demonetization 35:32 Refugee Services 47:54 Migrants and Music Festivals 51:37 The High Cost of Banking 58:19 The Psychology of Cashless 1:06:01 Surveillance

Episode 81 - "This Is Not a Place of Honor" It has threatened to start wars and it has (arguably) finished them; its effects and influences can be found throughout our world today; it has nearly limitless power for creation and destruction; and according to some people it may be our only hope. This week (and the last one too) we are digging deep into the controversial world of nuclear power generation. Over the course of two episodes we'll explore the basics of this technology (which is coincidentally where most other podcasts and videos seem to stop) and go from there to really truly explore the pros and the cons - including plenty that you've probably never considered. Is this technology our best hope for a carbon free future? Or is it another example of too many promises and technological optimism clouding out the realities of our situation? All this and more in a special two part series on everything nuclear power. Chapters 12:16 Unexamined Costs 17:25 Megatons to Megawatts 24:16 Thoughts from former

Episode 80 - "The Nuclear Option" It has threatened to start wars and it has (arguably) finished them; its effects and influences can be found throughout our world today; it has nearly limitless power for creation and destruction; and according to some people it may be our only hope. This week (and the next one too) we are digging deep into the controversial world of nuclear power generation. Over the course of two episodes we'll explore the basics of this technology (which is coincidentally where most other podcasts and videos seem to stop) and go from there to really truly explore the pros and the cons - including plenty that you've probably never considered. Is this technology our best hope for a carbon free future? Or is it another example of too many promises and technological optimism clouding out the realities of our situation? All this and more in a special two part series on everything nuclear power. Chapters 01:47 Nature First 09:07 The Atomic Age 12:18 Controversy 15:01 The Strong Nuclear Forc

Episode 79b - "Death Dealers Part II" Part II of Ep 79 - Death Dealers Merchants of Death. War Profiteers. Death Dealers. These are the people who fan the flames of war to transmute human suffering into profit. They play one nation against another to sell to both sides. Although the international community condemned these actors as conspirers in the tensions leading up to WWI, no policy effectively curbed their influence. In fact, such is the clout of wealth and power accumulated through arms deals that these merchants of death now litter the administrations of our governments’ institutions. Their presence is felt in the profligate overspending that results in $10,000 toilet seats for military cargo planes, it is seen in the constant rebuke of humanitarian law, and it is revealed through the habits of our politicians who espouse ideals of democracy and freedom while pedaling billions of dollars of weapons into regions rife with human rights abuse and violent conflict. As our world clings ever more desperat

Episode 79 - "Death Dealers" Merchants of Death. War Profiteers. Death Dealers. These are the people who fan the flames of war to transmute human suffering into profit. They play one nation against another to sell to both sides. Although the international community condemned these actors as conspirers in the tensions leading up to WWI, no policy effectively curbed their influence. In fact, such is the clout of wealth and power accumulated through arms deals that these merchants of death now litter the administrations of our governments’ institutions. Their presence is felt in the profligate overspending that results in $10,000 toilet seats for military cargo planes, it is seen in the constant rebuke of humanitarian law, and it is revealed through the habits of our politicians who espouse ideals of democracy and freedom while pedaling billions of dollars of weapons into regions rife with human rights abuse and violent conflict. As our world clings ever more desperately to life, it seems our leaders can thin

Episode 78 - "Grounded" Sweeping deregulation of the Airline industry in 1978 brought big changes to air travel. Lower prices, more routes, and consolidation of the market allowed for regional hub-and-spoke models of logistics and greater access to air travel with the associated massive surge in passengers. Now, with the current climate crisis and an industry responsible for 10% of US GHG emissions, we may be suffering from success. What does the future hold for a business sensitive to many different climate factors? What is the responsibility we each have for our own transportation choices? Will carbon credits or fuel efficient technology save us? And what might we expect for the future of air travel? All this and more on Episode 78 - Grounded. Chapters 4:32 MAX 8 15:37 Regulation 25:35 Jevon 31:39 The Climate Crisis 44:43 Centralization & Shocks 52:51 Limited Dreams 1:07:45 Grounding 1:11:26 More Jevon 1:14:33 The Future 1:20:58 Slowdown A full transcript is available as well as detailed links an

Episode 77 - "Coping with Collapse" Awareness of the systemic threats to our world comes at a cost. Often, that cost includes feelings of isolation, existential dread, depression, shock, and other uncomfortable realities. But these emotions do not define the final stage of our journeys. This week we read from listener emails, each describing a different point along the path of coming to terms with uncomfortable truths, and from these we learn that there is a way to move forward. Through confronting the denial that our society wants us to consume, pushing past hopelessness, and expressing our grief, we can begin to reconnect with other humans, build communities, "prep" for the future, and build a better world together. Chapters 08:38 Denial 14:32 Hopelessness 20:40 Grief 34:27 Preparing 49:32 What can we do? A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website ashesashes.org. Find more information along with relevant news and links on your favorit

Episode 76 - "Self-made" For once we thought it would be nice to look at a culture of building things up, rather than the slow collapse of everything around us that we normally discuss. We find this culture in a huge variety of different fields from repair in the home to hacking and building in farming fields to careful experimentation on our bodies to filling in gaps in the beauty world to digging deep into the source code of the software that runs everything. In so many worlds this vibrant idea of "let's do it ourselves" has empowered people, spurred innovation, saved lives, and helped to end the alienation that society so frequently forces on us in our modern economic system. This week is everything DIY as Ashes Ashes digs into the culture of creativity and seeks to learn why this idea is so powerful and pervasive. Chapters 05:10 David Does It Himself 11:09 Farming 17:42 Repair Cafes 21:09 Beautiful Hair 42:07 The DIY Body 1:00:36 Free Software 1:25:24 D I Why 1:31:46 What Can We Do? A full transcrip

Episode 75 - "Business. School." The past few decades has seen explosive growth in the number of universities around the world, but it may not be for the noble reasons we would like. Decreased public funding, and new conceptions of universities as engines for economic growth has spurred an intensity of competition for student fees. This shift may help explain rising trends in managerialism, over-quantification of students and researchers, commodification of education, and an 'amenities arms race.' Not to mention staggering student debt, elitism, college admission scandals, and whole countries in protest. Will we be able to turn this failing grade around, or will class be dismissed? Chapters 05:38 Speaking of Universities 17:58 Dystopian Future of Universities 20:53 Bolsonaro Assaults Education 33:36 U.S. Education Scandals 38:46 Managerialism and Quantification 47:56 Student Debt; Predatory For-Profit Schools; Competition 56:47 What Can We Do? A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and

Episode 74 - "Eco-lapse" The IPBES Global Assessment summary is out and we're digging in to all 39 pages this week. The report lays out a grim picture of our current world in terms of life on earth, the ecosystems they create, and our relationship with them that our civilization as we know it depends upon. While not the full 1500+ page report due out later this year, this study is perhaps the most important look at the state of our world that we've ever seen - and if we don't act quickly to fix the problems it so clearly exposes, then nothing less than very the future of humanity may be at risk. Chapters 4:07 "The IPBES report findings on biodiversity, ecosystem services, agriculture, and more" 30:23 Indigenous and Marginalized People 54:02 What Can We Do? A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website ashesashes.org. Find more information along with relevant news and links on your favorite social network @ashesashescast. CC BY-SA 4.0

Episode 73 - "Tear Up, Tear Down" Protests around the world in 2011 gave riot-gear dealers a three-fold increase in sales of tear gas. In 2013, Turkey used up an entire year's supply of tear gas in just two days, before promptly ordering more. 2015 was the year Kenyan police fired tear gas into a group of schoolchildren as young as 7, and its use is so popular in Uganda that a girls rugby team named themselves the Police Teargas Rangers. Such profligate use of tear gas tempts us to take for granted the conflicts between unruly protesters and the police who demand order. Indeed, Israeli Defence Forces have employed tear gas for close to 90 years against Palestinians. But tracing the history of tear gas tells the story of a tool that did not simply emerge naturally, but was created from the ground up for the singular purpose of domination. Of countries opposed to the use of gas against citizens on ethical grounds, but eventually caving from the economic necessities of colonial empire; of industrial owners, r

BONUS EPISODE (there is no episode) Well we fucked up and here we are without an episode (it would've been really great, we swear). We didn't want to leave our loyal listeners hanging, so we put something together anyway. Listen in and find out how and why we made such a big screw up, get updated on the state of the show, find out how to grab some sweet swag, and learn about a couple important apps and reports because David and Daniel can't go more than a few minutes without lecturing about things. It's got everything a regular episode would have (except the episode) and so much more! Chapters A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website ashesashes.org. Find more information along with relevant news and links on your favorite social network @ashesashescast. CC BY-SA 4.0

Episode 71 - "The Mean, Big Green, Corporate Machine" The world may be burning, but more and more companies are giving us green alternatives to our favorite products so we can continue to shop and consume the same way we always have, but without hurting the Earth - or so they would like us to believe. Greenwashing, the practice of making bad things seem environmentally friendly, has run rampant across the shelves of our favorite stores and even carried over to the actions of companies, NGOs, and nations themselves. Is there any hope to the allure of shopping in an environmentally friendly way? What are the greatest greenwashing sins occurring right now? Is there any hope outside of radical change if we want to save the Earth? We think you probably know the answers to these questions, but join us this week as we explore all this and much more in our dive into the mean, green, corporate machines of the world. Special thanks to fans of the show, The Matching Shoe, for the outro track "Pickin' Up Speed." Be sur

Episode 70 - "Thinner Ice" New reports find the Arctic to be the warmest it's been in millennia, and complex feedback loops mean this warming could continue unabated for decades to come. While the Arctic may feel like a distant place far removed from the concerns of daily life to many of us, the connections between melting sea ice, global ocean currents, and local weather patterns mean that the effects of a warmer Arctic are closer to home than we realize. It's cooler than cool this week as we discuss enthalpy of fusion, albedo, exploding methane in Siberia, and what it all might mean for our future. Chapters 07:56 Ice formation and the link to the world's oceans 10:13 Albedo 14:55 How are we connected to the Arctic? 24:08 Enthalpy of Fusion?? Also the Blue Ocean Event 31:25 Arctic opening: shipping, militaries, and ticks 42:49 Permafrost 50:00 What can we do? A full transcript is available as well as detailed links and sources (plus credits and more) on our website ashesashes.org. Find more informatio

Episode 69 - "Rent Seekers" Half of America's poor pay at least 50% of their income on rent, while a quarter of them pay over 70%, and this trend is worsening as the number of affordable housing units continues to outpace Americans' abilities to pay for them. How did we get in a scenario where so many Americans are surrendering so much just to have a place to live? What incentives drive people to prey upon the needs we have for basic necessities? What does eviction actually mean? All these questions will be answered and we'll get to listen into a special interview with a guest joining us from Santa Cruz to discuss tenant organizing, legislative solutions, and how all of us could be making a difference in our lives and those of our neighbors in this intro episode to housing rights. Chapters 5:51 "Multifamily Evictions, Large Owners, and Serial Filings: Findings from Metropolitan Atlanta" 13:22 Maximizing that Mailbox Money 24:57 "Do the Poor Pay More for Housing? Exploitation, Profit, and Risk in Rental Ma