Best Matthew Aldrich Podcasts (2025)

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The Wrap It Up Episode 54:06

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3y ago54:06

54:06

Listen as Mike and Matt wrap up Project 1982. You'll hear what they think of this year in movies now that they're at the end, discussions about how good the year really is and if it's still worth remembering.By Michael Shantz and Matthew Aldrich

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The Oscar Bait Episode: Part 2 1:02:31

3y ago1:02:31

1:02:31

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the Best Picture nominees from 1982. You'll hear if we think the Academy got it right with Gandhi, if there's another movie we love and if there's any film that was overlooked in this incredible year for movies.By Michael Shantz and Matthew Aldrich

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The Oscar Bait Episode 1:05:28

3y ago1:05:28

1:05:28

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the Oscar bait movies of 1982. You'll hear the nominees for the major categories and whether or not we think they got the winners right, discussions about our personal favorites for each category and if there were any omissions the academy made when giving out the nominations.…

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The Best Buddies Episode (48 HRS. & The Toy) 1:11:42

3y ago1:11:42

1:11:42

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the buddy movies of 1982 including 48 HRS and The Toy. You'll hear discussions about just how much these movies are deeply problematic and why, which of the movies is the greater offender and if either of the movies still has something to offer today.By Michael Shantz and Matthew Aldrich

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The Kids Are (Probably) Alright (The Dark Crystal & The Secret of Nimh) 53:46

3y ago53:46

53:46

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the children's movies of 1982 including The Dark Crystal and The Secret of Nimh. You'll hear how impressed we were by these movies and how well they hold up, discussions about the directors of these movies and what they think children can handle in entertainment and how nostalgic we feel about the kinds of animation …

1
They're Here: Part 2 (Friday the 13th: Part 3 3D, Cat People, Creepshow, Halloween III: Season of the Witch and Swamp Thing) 1:04:58

3+ y ago1:04:58

1:04:58

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the schlock of 1982 with five separate horror movies. You'll hear them discuss Friday the 13th: Part 3 3D, Cat People, Creeepshow, Halloween III and Swamp Thing, the two different ways in which they decide to rank these movies and how Matt has not at all come around to thinking Halloween III is a good movie.…

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They're Here: The Horror Movies of 1982 - Part 1 (The Thing and Poltergeist) 1:01:59

3+ y ago1:01:59

1:01:59

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the prestige horror movies from 1982 including The Thing and Poltergeist. You'll hear which of us is unimpressed with The Thing, how much we like Poltergeist and were surprised by it on a rewatch and discussions about these prestige horror movies before we get into the schlock of horror next week.…

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The Future Not So Bright Episode (Blade Runner, The Road Warrior and Tron) 1:01:04

3+ y ago1:01:04

1:01:04

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the movies with a not so bright future from 1982. You'll hear them discuss Blade Runner, The Road Warrior and Tron, hear which of us had never seen the original Tron and if these movies still hold up today.By Michael Shantz and Matthew Aldrich

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O Brothel Where Art Thou? (The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Porky's and Night Shift) 54:59

3+ y ago54:59

54:59

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss all the brothel movies from 1982. You'll hear speculation as to why brothel movies were so big in this year, which of the three movies they think still holds up and which of the three holds up the least. Travel back in time with us to a place and time where you could put the word Whorehouse in the title of your movie…

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The Men in Dresses Episode (Tootsie, The World According to Garp and Victor Victoria) 59:31

3+ y ago59:31

59:31

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the men in dresses movies from 1982. You'll hear them talk about Tootsie, The World According to Garp and Victor Victoria, which of these films they think holds up the best and which doesn't hold up much at all for them and discussions about what exactly makes a man in a dress automatically funny in 1982.…

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The Macho Grande Episode: Part 2 (Conan the Barbarian, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, Death Wish II) 52:06

3+ y ago52:06

52:06

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss Part Two of the macho revenge films of 1982. You'll hear the few nice things they have to say about Death Wish II, what nice things they have to say about Ricardo Montalban and his performance in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, and what works and doesn't work in Conan the Barbarian.…

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The Macho Grande Episode: Part 1 (Rocky III & First Blood) 42:43

3+ y ago42:43

42:43

Listen as hosts Mike Shantz and Matthew Aldrich discuss the Part 1 of our Macho Grande Episode. You'll hear them discuss the 1982 Stallone films Rocky III & First Blood, which of the hosts has major problems with Rocky III, whether or not we think First Blood is still a good film, and how much salt is required to watch these movies today. Enjoy!…

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The Coming of Age Movies (E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and Diner) 39:11

3+ y ago39:11

39:11

Listen as Mike and Matt discuss the coming of age films from 1982. You'll hear what your hosts have to say about Fast Times at Ridgemont High, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial and Diner, which of the films they feel you can watch guilt free and which has problems we never considered before.By Michael Shantz and Matthew Aldrich

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Introducing the 1982 Project 11:25

3+ y ago11:25

11:25

Listen as hosts Michael Shantz and Matthew Aldrich introduce what you can expect from the 1982 Project. You'll hear the astonishing list of movies that came out in the year 1982, as well as the list of directors who are first ballot hall of famers that directed a movie this year and finally which actors we saw at the beginning of their careers at t…

1
Adam Gurri talks Constitutionality | Focus Interviews 43:06

3+ y ago43:06

43:06

-Important References- Adam's Article -Table of Contents- 00:00— Getting started, a note on Uvalde 02:00— What are "lawfulness" and "constitutionality"? 05:04— How about "law and order"? 13:11— Can we reform our way forward? 23:42— What about the role of violence in order? 35:12— Is bureaucracy a challenge to lawfulness? 42:00— Wrapping up -Usual L…

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Brent Giannotta talks Democracy Promotion | Focus Interviews 44:51

3+ y ago44:51

44:51

We sit down to discuss how to effectively combat authoritarianism, assist the spread of democracy, and learn from our past foreign policy mistakes. -Table of Contents- 00:00 — Getting started 01:01 — How should we deal (or not deal) economically with authoritarian powers? 06:46 — Are we comfortable being as sanguine about China as we are about Russ…

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Matthew Slaboch talks Progress | Focus Interviews 47:42

3+ y ago47:42

47:42

Professor Slaboch joins us to discuss his book and the topic of "progress." Is it real? If not, what are we to do? -Important References- Professor Slaboch's book, A Road to Nowhere -Share If You Care- Share via Twitter Share via Facebook Share via LinkedIn Share via Email -Usual Links- Leave a comment! Subscribe to our newsletter! Listen to Specta…

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Author Daniel Aldrich | Focus Interviews 47:07

3+ y ago47:07

47:07

Professor Daniel Aldrich sits down with us to discuss his most recent book, Black Wave: How Networks and Governance Shaped Japan’s 3/11 Disasters. (Table of contents below.) -Important References- Check out Black Wave -Usual Links- Leave a comment! Subscribe to our newsletter! Listen to Spectacles Out Loud! Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!…

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Mayor Sly James | Focus Interviews 40:16

3+ y ago40:16

40:16

Former Mayor of Kansas City Sly James sits down with us to discuss political leadership, local government, and how to restore faith in American politics. -Important References- The Opportunity Agenda -Usual Links- Subscribe to our newsletter! Read or comment on this article! Write with us! Listen to Spectacles In Conversation! Follow our Twitter! /…

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Angelica Oung | Focus Interviews 36:33

3+ y ago36:33

36:33

-Important References- Angelica's blog, Taipology Listen to the article we're discussing -Usual Links- Leave a comment! Subscribe to our newsletter! Listen to Spectacles Out Loud! Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!By Spectacles Media

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Ambassador Allan Katz | Focus Interviews 33:32

3+ y ago33:32

33:32

We're joined by former Ambassador to Portugal Allan Katz to discuss civil discourse, polarization, and how this all applies to the situation in Ukraine right now. -Important References- American Public Square's website Our interview with author Thomas Main -Usual Links- Leave a comment! Subscribe to our newsletter! Listen to Spectacles Out Loud! Fo…

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Where's the Dollar Going? | Guest Reflection 20:15

3+ y ago20:15

20:15

Harry and Philip sit down with Bryce to discuss today's article from him, "The Power of the Dollar," how CBDCs are promising, who's displacing the dollar, and why China may be facing an uphill battle in popularizing the Yuan. -Important References- Listen to the article we're discussing. Bryce's previous piece for Spectacles, on CBDCs -Usual Links-…

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What To Do About Doctors | Reflection 22:20

3+ y ago22:20

22:20

Harry and Philip discuss today's Insight, "The Disease of Medical Lobbying." We talk the nature of policy fights with lobbyists, cost disease socialism, and more! -Important References- Listen to the article we're discussing! -Usual Links- Leave a comment! Subscribe to our newsletter! Listen to Spectacles Out Loud! Follow our Twitter! // Follow our…

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Author Thomas J. Main | Focus Interviews 53:13

4y ago53:13

53:13

Today, we’re joined by Professor Thomas J. Main to discuss his recently released book, The Rise of Illiberalism. -Important References- The book, The Rise of Illiberalism Professor Main's Twitter -Usual Links- Leave a comment on this interview! Subscribe to our newsletter! Listen to Spectacles Out Loud! Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!…

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Cougars or Duplexes: Which Are Scarier? | Reflections 19:51

4y ago19:51

19:51

Last year, we thought California had killed single-family zoning. But this Bay Area enclave would rather have mountain lions than new homes. Read, listen to, or comment on this article here! Correction: Woodside has dropped this claim to a wildlife habitat to prevent SB9, though I would still predict other communities making other legal attempts to…

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Candidate for US Senate, Dr. Gillian Battino | Focus Interviews 42:30

4y ago42:30

42:30

Today, we're joined by a very special guest who's with us to discuss healthcare policy, democracy reform, the filibuster, campaign finance, and her dream policy for her home state of Wisconsin. Tune in for our conversation. -Important References- Campaign Website Facebook Twitter Instagram -Usual Links- Subscribe to our newsletter! Comment on this …

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The Future of Peace, III: What's Next? | Bird's Eye 32:19

4y ago32:19

32:19

Harry and Philip wrap up their series on international institutions and the future of peace by discussing the decline of American hegemony and what it means for international order. Can international institutions pick up the slack? What does the future hold? -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To comment on this episode, click her…

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The Future of Peace, II: IR Theories | Bird's Eye 37:25

4y ago37:25

37:25

Join Harry and Philip as they break down three major theories of international relations. From dark and scary to bright and beautiful, they'll discuss which seems to have the best grip on things. -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To comment on this episode, click here! Let us know your thoughts about these theories! To listen to…

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The Future of Peace, Part 1 | Bird's Eye 19:30

4y ago19:30

19:30

Join Harry and Philip as they begin a discussion of international institutions and how they contribute (or fail to contribute) to global peace. What are institutions? How do they emerge at the international level? What do international institutions promise? -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To comment on this episode, click here…

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Bad Guys Winning or Good Guys Losing? | Bird's Eye 40:31

4y ago40:31

40:31

Join Harry and Philip as they wade into a current debate about the global competition between autocracy and democracy. Is this really happening? Is it a decisive feature of democratic decline? Or are our problems mostly domestically rooted? We will be looking at three articles on the subject from Anne Applebaum in Atlantic Magazine, Max Fisher in T…

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The Problem with Districts | Reflection 16:24

4y ago16:24

16:24

Harry and Philip discuss today's Insight, "Beyond Gerrymandering" to dive deeper into an explanation of what's wrong with America's single-member district system. On the other hand, it turns out there are some benefits. -Important References- Our chat with Benjamin Singer of Show Me Integrity, about approval voting The recent Bird's Eye about Hunga…

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Nominal Losses, Real Gains? | Reflection 23:33

4y ago23:33

23:33

Join Harry and Philip as they discuss today's Insight, "A Different Perspective on Inflation" and talk over the role of the media in this situation, how poll-chasing is bankrupt, and much more. -Important References- Harry's recent article on popularism and poll-chasing -Usual Links- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To read, comme…

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American Backslide | Bird's Eye 35:10

4y ago35:10

35:10

Join the Harry and Philip as they wrap up their discussion of democratic backsliding. Today, we're on the home turf—the United States. We discuss executive aggrandizement, how Congress let this happen, and what it will mean in the future. -Important References- The Bird's Eye episode on partisan sorting and voting systems Harry's Insight on the lac…

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Election Manipulation, Nicaragua | Reflection 19:50

4y ago19:50

19:50

Harry and Philip discuss today's Insight, "Ortega’s Propaganda Peddlers," and talk about Nicaragua's example of how modern election-rigging works. -Important References- The recent Bird's Eye episode discussing Hungary's example of similar behavior -Usual Links- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To read, comment on, or listen to th…

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Backsliding in Budapest | Bird's Eye 34:13

4y ago34:13

34:13

Join the editors as they discuss backsliding in Hungary under Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. How did Viktor Orbán find himself in a position to dismantle Hungarian democracy? What are the precise mechanism's that he is using to undermine rule of law and popular government? Tune in! -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To comment on t…

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Josh Hawley Needs Your Help | Reflection 21:37

4y ago21:37

21:37

Join Harry and Philip for a discussion of today's Insight, "The Post-Liberal Roller Coaster," about the national conservatism movement. It's a lively one full of Twitter beefs, poking fun at Philip's high school's alum Mr. Hawley, and some disagreements between the editors. Tune in! -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To read, com…

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The Modern Authoritarian Playbook | Bird's Eye 38:08

4y ago38:08

38:08

Join the editors as they discuss professor Nancy Bermeo's article "On Democratic Backsliding." What is democratic backsliding? Why do today's aspiring autocrats use different tactics than their predecessors? -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To comment on this episode, click here! To listen to written articles from Spectacles re…

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Robber Barons and Stationary Bandits | Bird's Eye 33:26

4y ago33:26

33:26

Join the editors as they apply the theoretical and historical lessons from our past two episodes on the "stationary bandit" to the United States! Are there latent authoritarian characteristics in the political and economic institutions of the US? To what extent have we eliminated them, and to what extent to authoritarian legacies persist? How can d…

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Some Challenges to European Integration | Reflection 21:19

4y ago21:19

21:19

Join Harry and Philip as they discuss today's Insight, "Time for Europe to Get Serious," and talk through some errors of European leadership, the shortcomings of the promises of European integration, and how this connects to our other recent articles. -Important References- Philip's article on "sleepwalking" German foreign policy Harry's article fr…

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Globalization's Accidental Children | Reflection 17:47

4y ago17:47

17:47

Join Harry and Philip as they discuss today's Insight, "Putin's 'Power' Politics," and how globalization has empowered some autocratic regimes. -Important References- Episode 1 on the 'Stationary Bandit' theory Episode 2 on Portugal's Salazar, including a brief discussion of this topic & China -Usual links- Visit our website and subscribe to our ne…

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Bird's Eye - The Bandit in Portugal? 34:11

4y ago34:11

34:11

Join Harry and Philip as they continue their analysis of dictatorship! This week, we turn to midcentury Portugal to apply the "stationary bandit" theory from our last Bird's Eye. Was António de Oliveira Salazar, the autocratic ruler of Portugal from 1932 to 1968, an example of the stationary bandit? How well does Olson's theory hold up in a histori…

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Bird's Eye - The Stationary Bandit 35:47

4y ago35:47

35:47

Join the editors for the first episode of our newest series, on dictatorship, democracy, and development! As an introduction, we discuss political scientist Mancur Olson's paper of the same name. Americans are increasingly wondering just how democratic their country is, and whether dictatorship might be a better fit. Next week, we'll be looking mor…

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Reflection - Housing Policy, Free Market, and "Good Regulation" 21:42

4y ago21:42

21:42

Join Harry and Philip as they talk over today's Insight, "Squamish First Nation Provides a Glimpse at The City of Tomorrow." They go over housing policy, anti-development motivations and confusions, and the tensions (or lack thereof) between smart regulation and free, competitive markets. -Important References- Recent article on California SB 9 & 1…

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Reflection - The History, Pros, and Cons of Global Trade and Finance 19:22

4y ago19:22

19:22

Join Harry and Philip as they talk over how we got our current state of global trade and finance, its virtues, and its vices. It's a fascinating conversation in which you will certainly learn a lot. -- Read or listen to Philip's Focus on Estonia Read or listen to the Bird's Eye episode on "Small Government Visions of Liberal Democracy" Visit our we…

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Bird's Eye - Making American Elections Healthier 42:04

4y ago42:04

42:04

Join Harry and Philip as they welcome their first guest to Bird's Eye! Benjamin Singer, the executive director of the Missouri-based voting reform organization Show Me Integrity, sits down with the editors. We discuss "approval runoff," an alternative electoral system that Show Me Integrity helped enact in St. Louis, the value of political parties,…

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Reflection - The Dangerous Dilemmas of Democratic Decline 16:47

4y ago16:47

16:47

Join Harry and Philip as they discuss today's Insight, "Tunisian Democracy Sheds the Burden of Reciprocity," to learn about how Tunisian leaders made the decisions they did and why. -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To read, comment on, or listen to the article we discussed, click here. Read or listen to our previous coverage of…

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Reflection - Freight Trucks in the Pacific 22:15

4y ago22:15

22:15

Join Harry and Philip as they discuss today's Insight, "As Shortages Abound, What Can We Do?", to learn some interesting things about supply chains, trucking, freight rail, global trade relations, flat screen TVs, debt peonage, and security dilemmas. It's a fun one. -- Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter! To read, comment on, or liste…

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Bird's Eye - The Basics of Two-Party and Multi-Party Systems 36:49

4y ago36:49

36:49

Join Harry and Philip to learn more about the two-party system and alternative multi-party political set-ups. We discuss what they each are, how they come about, advantages, disadvantages, and American lessons. Next week, you don't want to miss our conversation with Benjamin Singer, Executive Director at Show Me Integrity, as we talk over possible …

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Bird's Eye - The Political Spectrum and Political Alignment 34:05

4y ago34:05

34:05

Join the editors as they begin an exploration of the political spectrum, the way citizens align themselves with political parties, and the nature of the two party system. Is a single-axis political spectrum the best way to conceptualize American politics? What are the effects of more disciplined political parties? How can we best understand what vo…

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Reflection - No More Pacifism in the Pacific 20:53

4y ago20:53

20:53

Join Harry and Philip as they discuss today's Insight, "The Promises and Perils of Australia’s New Submarines." Is the buildup of tensions China or America's fault? Are we right to respond by arming our allies, and how do we pick those allies anyways? -- To read or comment on the Insight discussed in this episode, click here. To listen to that same…