Fireside Breakdowns Podcast

Hey friends! Fireside Breakdowns Podcast is hiring! We're looking for a (very part-time) research and social media assistant.
Estimated 6-8 hours per week, totally flexible work hours.

This would be a great job for:
⭐ Someone looking for a cool hobby that pays a little, too (but not a lot);
⭐ A poli-sci, marketing, or social sciences major;
⭐ Or even a pretty mature high schooler hoping to build their resume for college.

If you know someone who might be interested, please send 'em my way!

🎧️ https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session20

The made its first appearance in 1947, conceived by the (and designed by artist Martyl Langsdorf) as a way to call attention to the dangers of nuclear violence after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

On this week's episode of , we're talking all about the clock, why it moved closer to catastrophe, and why this might actually be a good thing.

This week, we’re diving into the complexities of the world's most recognized symbol of existential threat: the . That’s right, the metaphorical clock that slowly marks our advancement toward certain doom due to humanity’s constant thirst for better and more efficient methods to completely wipe ourselves out. Okay, that may be a little melodramatic. But it is true! Learn along with us on *probably* not the last podcast episode you'll ever listen to.

📸 Jamie Christiani,

🎧️ https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session19

Join us this week as we venture into the (un)known with a quick (for us, anyway) discussion about the backstory of the Dungeons and Dragons Open Game License, how OGL 1.1 is splitting the party, and whether or not Wizards of the Coast is the BBEG in this campaign. And, because we are who we are, we also delve into the fallacy of false choice and explain that this (and so many other situations) really isn’t an Us vs Them encounter.

It’s the first episode of 2023, and that means it’s time to take a look back at the episodes, what-ifs, and general pandemonium that was 2022. Plus, we made some predictions about…
👉🏽 The pandemic to endemic shift
👉🏽 Turmoil for social media platforms
👉🏽 Changes in how and where we work
👉🏽 The growing irrelevance of Donald Trump.. were we right? Find out wherever you get your podcasts, or at https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session17

The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has been marked by controversy. From corruption in the bidding process to human rights violations against migrant workers, the event is wrought with issues. And, it’s causing an ethical dilemma for many of the world’s soccer teams and fans.

In this episode we’re taking a closer look at the allegations against FIFA and Qatar, and asking what kind of social responsibility the organization, the teams, and the fans have when ethical situations like this arise. Oh! And in this week’s Patron only bonus content, we’re talking about beer.

We’d love it if you join us for the full conversation. Find Fireside Breakdowns, Season 3 Session 15: https://bit.ly/FBWorldCupControversy or wherever you get your podcasts.

Hint: You could sing the answer to the same tune as 🎵 "The Leader of the Pack."

Get a rundown on why party leadership roles matter to legislative progress in this week's episode of .
👉🏽 To see the answer. 📌https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session14 to watch or listen to this episode.

Hint: The answer is NOT NOT the debt ceiling.

Wondering exactly how the debt ceiling works, and why it's a really big deal? We explain it all in this week's episode.
👉🏽 To see the answer. 📌 https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session14 to watch or listen!

Think you know the answer to this one?
We're talking about some topics this week, but we're doing it style which is WAY more fun.
👉🏽 Swipe to find the answer. 📌 https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session14 to watch or listen to this episode.

Get out there and do the damn thing.

🎧️ https://firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session12

This week, we’re going unscripted with a potpourri of election-adjacent topics centered around one theme: What’s really on the line this Election Day? We’re talking about:
📣 How political messaging is making Americans feel like they have to choose between putting food on the table and saving democracy.
📣 The difference in the pre-election narratives we’re seeing from the Republicans and the Democrats.
📣 The differences in red and blue economic policies.
📣 The rise of stochastic terrorism after the 2020 election, especially against political figures.
📣 The number of election deniers on midterm ballots, and how that might undermine the integrity of elections in the future.

🎧️ linkin.bio/firesidebreakdowns
Governors Abbot (TX), Ducey (AZ), and DeSantis (FL) have made news recently for bussing - and now flying - migrants from their states to other (democrat-led) states. But these stories have left us with so many questions… Why are they doing this? Who are the people they are transporting, and do they understand what's happening? And who is paying for all this?

🎧️ Link in bio.
If America is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, why are 38 million of us food insecure? On August 29, President Biden announced the official date of his planned Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health to kick off an initiative that would end food insecurity and hunger in the United States by 2030. But, this isn’t the first time we’ve tried to solve this problem.

In this episode, we're taking a look at how many Americans are going without the food they need, what it really means to end food insecurity in the U.S., what kinds of programs might have a shot at it, and how a plan like this could work better than the ones we came up with 50 years ago.

🎧️ https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session6

The Fireside team tackles our first ever book report! We read Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men, and in this episode we’re going to share what we learned about how women (and data about women) is ignored or excluded in areas of life we interact with every day. We’ll talk about what surprised us, what didn’t, what made us angry, and how we can all work to recognize this kind of data bias in the world around us.

🎧️ https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session5

In many places, fall primary elections have ended and the final slate of candidates for your November ballot is set. In just a couple of months, you’ll (hopefully) be headed to your local polling place - or filling out an absentee or mail-in ballot - to choose the folks who will represent you for the next several years. You don’t want to wing it. So, we put together a practical guide.

🎧️ https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session4

In this Fireside Unscripted, we (Jon, Robin, and Savannah) talk through three articles with clickbait headlines that reeled us in recently... and one that really confused Savannah for a minute.

We take some time to talk about the headline and first impressions, and then explain why these particular articles caught our attention and why exactly they count as clickbait. We discuss the articles in order of angry-making-magnitude, and have some good rants about scope creep and the nature of clickbait.

🎧️ https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session2

In Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the U.S. released a decision penned by Justice Samuel Alito which held that the right to an abortion outlined in under the Due Process clause of the was errantly determined. In the decision, Alito wrote, “the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment… has been held to guarantee some rights that are not mentioned in the Constitution, but any such right must be “deeply rooted in this Nation’s history and tradition” and “implicit in the concept of ordered liberty.”

Many legal scholars believe that this sets a dangerous precedent for the many rights afforded to Americans under the 14th amendment, and undermines many of the liberties that Americans - conservative and liberal - have come to rely on. Could this be two steps backward on the path to equal treatment and equal protection for all Americans?

⭐️ Bonus discussion, Let’s Talk About States’ Rights + Episode 3 of this series, Runaway Train, are live on Patreon NOW!

🎧️ https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s3-session1

We’re wasting no time this season - we’re jumping straight into the deep end with a series about how the decisions that were handed down this Summer could potentially affect life for ALL Americans. We feel like we saw the beginnings of a well-lined path being laid out for the U.S. - some might even say a train track - and we’re concerned about where it will lead us if we don’t pay attention.

That’s why we’re going to start by taking a closer look at some of the decisions released by the Supreme Court in May and June 2022. Many of these cases were widely publicized. Some were published without much fanfare. But each of them could have significant impacts on the way we live our lives from this point on.

⭐️ Bonus discussion of Shinn v Ramirez + Episode 2 of the series - 1 Step Forward, 2 Steps Back - are available NOW on Patreon.

⚖️ Cases discussed: Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization, West Virginia v EPA, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc v. Bruen, Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta, and Vega v. Tekoh.

We're on a break, but you can catch our most recent episodes on YouTube!
Bonus: YouTube episodes are UNCUT - bloopers, jokes, and our smiling faces.

We...uh...know this is awkward.
But if we never let you know we have a Patreon, then you'll never know!
If you want access to our - like bloopers, newsletters, our Groovy Dance Jams playlist, and clips of Jon singing said Groovy Dance Jams... well, you can check out www.firesidebreakdowns.com for more info.

🎧 https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s2-session48

NOTE: This episode was recorded on Tuesday, June 21, 2022 - previous to the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v Wade. This conversation seems much more significant now that broader reproductive rights - and LGBTQ+ rights - are at such incredible risk. While the focus of the episode was not specifically abortion access, we felt this episode art was most reflective of what many people with uteruses are experiencing today.

Join us for a special Fireside Unscripted where Robin and Savannah share their unfiltered (and sometimes unsophisticated) thoughts on navigating hot topic issues that involve people with uteruses, womanhood, women's rights, and women's bodies.

What’s in this episode?
-We discuss the question of womanhood
-We ponder, “who is making decisions for us?”
-We get in the weeds talking about abortion and trans athletes

Are you on Spotify? We are too! Search Fireside Breakdowns for all our latest episodes.

🎧 https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s2-session47

Why do some people view life with a win or lose perspective? Is it possible to find solutions where everyone benefits when we’re talking about taxes, immigration, or workforce equity? Is it true that someone always gets the short end of the stick?

In this episode, we’re talking about another one of the foundational struggles that (the collective) we face when we’re trying to have conversations about difficult topics. We’ve already done episodes on bias, conspiracy thinking, good and bad faith arguments, and now we’re going to round things out by talking about zero sum thinking.

We're on ! Search Fireside Breakdowns to find our newest episodes!

🎧 https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s2-session46
Today, we’re talking about arguing. Specifically, arguing in bad faith. We’ve done it; you’ve done it; and politicians, pundits, and public figures do it all the time. But no one ever takes the time to explain what it means!⁠
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In this episode, we’re breaking down:⁠
⭐Good Faith vs Bad Faith Arguments.⁠
⭐Why debating in bad faith is harmful to actual progress⁠
⭐Examples of bad faith arguments about gun violence⁠
⭐Some good faith talking points for each argument⁠
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We're on ! Search Fireside Breakdowns to find our newest episodes.

🎧 https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s2-session45 🎧
For this week’s unscripted episode, we thought it would be fun to take stock of where we stand on some current cultural and political hot topics. You see, we’ve all seen our opinions on topics like this change over the last several years and we wanted a way to document where we are now so we can compare in a year, or even two.

Oh! And we wanted to give you the same chance as well. You can fill out the survey we talked through (completely anonymous, if you wish). Then, you can do your own check-in later down the road.

🎧https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s2-session44🎧
Imagine my surprise when I read the headline: “South Carolina marks Confederate Memorial Day on Tuesday.” I thought to myself surely this had to be some sort of clickbait situation, and that I was going to get to the end of that article and be embarrassed that I fell for their tricks.
But it wasn’t.
So here we are to talk about Confederate Memorial Day! Like almost everything else we talk about here, we quickly learned that there was more to this day than meets the headline - including a connection to the Ladies Memorial Associations of the Reconstruction South and the Lost Cause narrative that has influenced how the entire nation talks about the Civil War. We also want to take some time to talk about how the perpetuation of holidays like this makes it much more complicated for us, as a nation, to work toward our racial justice goals.

This one’s unscripted, folks, and we’re confessing a few cringeworthy things we can’t believe we used to think.
🎧 https://www.firesidebreakdowns.com/episodes/s2-session43

What’s in this episode:
Jon was really bad at sports physiology
Savannah didn’t know something she said was racist
Robin used to be kind of an elitist
And, Jon got drugged