Glen Greenwald & Alex Jones, Migrant Crisis, Comedy Cancellations, Homework

Rikki then turns to a pair of cancel culture moments in the comedy world of late, pointing to two high-profile comics facing public pressure these days: Andrew Schulz and Dave Chappelle. The hosts discuss the nature of our social discourse and comedy’s place in it.

Ravi shines a light on the booming black market business of smuggling migrants across the U.S.-Mexico border. The hosts discuss why immigration has soared over the last four years and how smugglers have risen to meet that demand.

Cory explains how the border crisis is creating a round of interstate finger-pointing across the country, as blue city mayors like Eric Adams and Muriel Bowser criticize red state governors like Greg Abbott and Doug Ducey for sending migrants to northeast cities. The hosts discuss the ethics and politics of those officials’ moves and lament the lack of humanity in the political back-and-forth.

Cory lays out the cases for and against homework as the hosts engage with the national debate around a key feature of our education system and whether it’s beneficial or detrimental to students.

Finally, the hosts go through a couple of rapid fire updates from a stacked news week: Manchin getting on board to pass Democrats’ climate legislation, and new studies asserting COVID-19 originated in a wet market rather than a lab.

Glen Greenwald/Alex Jones [0:55] 

Glen Greenwald interviews Alex Jones (Rokfin, 7/23)
Glen Greenwald Makes Case Against Lying in Fawning Interview With Alex Jones (Mediaite, 7/27)
“Parents of Sandy Hook Victim at Alex Jones Trial Seek $150 million in Damages” (New York Times, 7/26/22)
Trump ally Alex Jones thinks Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are literally demons from hell (Vox, 10/10/2016)
In Washington Pizzeria Attack, Fake News Brought Real Guns (New York Times, 12/5/2016)
Megyn Kelly interviews Alex Jones (NBC News, 6/19/2017)

Comedy Cancellations [13:04]

Comedian Andrew Schulz Makes More than $1 Million in Sales After Ditching Amazon (TMZ, 7/8)
No, Canceling Chappelle Is Not a ‘Win for Free Speech’ (Newsweek Op-Ed, 7/25)
Comedy has consequences (Minneapolis Star Tribune Op-Ed, 7/26)
Andrew Schulz Joke (Instagram, 7/5)
Kevin Gannon Tweet (7/22)

Smuggling Migrants [21:01]

Smuggling Migrants at the Border Now a Billion-Dollar Business (New York Times, 7/25)
Two men indicted in Texas tractor-trailer tragedy that left 53 dead (Washington Post, 7/21)
Human smugglers peddle misinformation to US-bound migrants on Facebook, watchdog says (CNN, 7/27)
Ohio congressman to propose ‘Stop the Cartels’ Act (NewsNation, 7/27)
Biden Administration Prepares Sweeping Change to Asylum Process (New York Times, 3/24)
Here’s what you need to know about Title 42, the pandemic-era policy that quickly sends migrants to Mexico (Texas Tribune, 4/29)
CBP Enforcement Statistics, Fiscal Year 2022 (U.S. Customers and Border Protection)

Migrants —> DC/NYC [27:43]

NYC estimates 2,800 asylum seekers arrived by bus from Texas and Arizona (WABC, 7/21)
Transcript: Mayor Eric Adams Provides Update on Asylum Seekers (NYC.gov, 7/21)
Adams claims Texas, Arizona busing asylum seekers to New York (Politico, 7/19)
Adams Blames Migrants for Shelter Woes. Critics Say That’s Too Simple. (New York Times, 7/25)
Texas’ Busing of Migrants to D.C. Isn’t Having Abbott’s Intended Effect Yet (New York Times, 4/26) 

Homework [34:53]

The Movement to End Homework Is Wrong (NYT Opinion, 7/25)
“You Need to be More Responsible”: The Myth of Meritocracy and Teachers’ Accounts of Homework Inequalities (SocArXiv, 7/15)
The Cult of Homework (The Atlantic, 3/28/2019)

Rapid Fire Updates [44:04] 

Manchin’s latest shocker: A $700B deal (Politico, 7/27)
Summary: Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Democrats.Senate.gov, 7/27)
Scientists hone argument that coronavirus came from Wuhan market (Washington Post, 7/26)
The Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan was the early epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic (Science, 7/26)