Nice Things Podcast – Episode 3

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On the third episode of the Nice Things Show our hosts begin with an in-depth discussion of Emma Watson’s United Nations speech and the critiques from within feminism.

The first point is a correction from last week’s episode, as it turns out the 4Chan threat to post nude photos of Watson was a hoax. (Apparently a viral marketing firm that thought impersonating a group of online vigilantes would be a good idea.)

We also discuss the “HeForShe” campaign, and whether it is an actual solution to the problem of women’s inequality, or just feminism with training wheels. Our hosts then delve into critiques of the campaign from the radical feminist camp. Thanks to Occidental’s own professor Regina Freer, we are able to gain a better understanding of “secondary marginalization.” As Freer explains it, secondary marginalization occurs when the issues of queer women, women of color and other minorities are put aside to focus on mainstream feminism.

On a totally unrelated note, photos from NASA indicate the Aral Sea (located near Kazakhstan) has almost completely dried up.  Now, toxic dust from oil wells is free to poison local towns.  Clean air? Water? An ecosystem? All nice things we can’t have.

In part two of this week’s episode, Allan and Mason addressed the growing concerns Americans—particularly people of color and women—face when interacting with police.

In Ferguson, Mo., a police officer was spotted wearing a wristband stating “I AM DARREN WILSON.”  Wilson, for those who don’t know, is the Ferguson police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager.  This wrist band communicates to the public, “I am an officer who shoots unarmed black people.” Not very inspiring.

In other police-related news, three law enforcement officers were arrested for sexually assaulting women they pulled over at traffic stops.  This prompted a captain of the Oklahoma state troopers to advise all women that if they don’t to be sexually assaulted, they should obey traffic laws.  By some logical magic, a traffic stop is reason enough for a law enforcement officer to sexually assault someone. Faith in police? Another nice thing we are losing.

Texas is topical yet again this week, as homeowners across Manheim Township, Texas will soon find all of their trees, plants, and shrubberies cut down to accommodate for an underground gas pipeline set to run directly through the town.  For a state that prides itself on respect for personal property, this is the exact opposite.

Finally the Gaffe of the Week goes to Sarah Palin.  At a Values Voters summit in New Hampshire, Palin mistakenly stated the address of the White House as 1400 Pennsylvania Ave.  The address is actually 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.  This, from the woman who was almost a heart attack away from the presidency in 2008.

Tune in to hear more thoughtful analysis of the latest nice things we can’t have, and catch us live this semester on KOXY at 8pm every Tuesday!

About the show:

There is a whole world out there filled with potential for great and wondrous things and somewhere, somehow, someone is going to mess it up for the rest of us.  The Nice Things Show is a weekly political talk show on KOXY presented by the Occidental Weekly dedicated to why we can’t have these nice things.  We’ll keep you updated on what we’re all missing out on.

Podcasters:

Allan Van Vliet is a senior Politics major from Portland, Oregon, and the Station Co-Manager for KOXY Radio. He has experience hosting music-centered weekly radio programs such as Dead Wax and Hodge-Podge, and he is excited now to make his first foray into talk radio. He also has great political experience, interning in the U.S. Senate office of Senator Jeff Merkley, volunteering for multiple nonprofit organizations, and working on several political campaigns.

Mason Atkins is politics major in his senior year.  He is new to radio but he brings experience in politics and news from Think Progress in Washington, D.C., The Weekly Show on CatAlist, and a campaign internship with Elizabeth Warren’s Senate Campaign in 2012.

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