Critical Wade Theory

I talk about Gerrymandering and what Trump's Saudi ties mean about him and the nature of authoritarian power.

Mackinac Island. A jewel in the straits between Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas. Today, it’s known for horse-drawn carriages, Victorian charm, and fudge shops that sweeten every corner of its approximately 4.35 square miles. But behind the postcards and the nostalgia lies a chapter of history most visitors never hear about—the island’s pivotal role in the War of 1812.

Today, we’re going to talk about Rakka — the first episode in Neill Blomkamp’s Oats Studios project. If you know Blomkamp’s work from District 9, Elysium, or Chappie, you already know he’s a filmmaker obsessed with worldbuilding, body horror, and the politics of power. And with Oats Studios, he got the freedom to throw wild ideas straight to the audience, outside the Hollywood system.

...It’s a pragmatic approach, really.

Not a utopian vision. Not a blood-soaked revolution with hidden authoritarian ambitions. Just a system that works—for the many, not the few.

And most importantly, a system that doesn’t require anyone to be crushed in the process.

Over the past decade, America has witnessed the re-emergence of something many hoped had been buried with history books: the mainstreaming of white nationalist rhetoric. And at the center of this storm? Donald Trump.

...Because when patriotism and piety are woven together, they reach into the deepest, most primal parts of who we are — our need to belong, our hunger for meaning, our instinct to trust authority.

And if you can control those instincts… you can control almost everything.

Today, we’re talking about a band that captured the easygoing, sun-drenched vibe of the 1970s better than almost anyone else. Their sound was soft rock at its finest—gentle harmonies, polished acoustic guitars, and lyrics that felt like open highways and lazy afternoons.

This is the story of America.

Let’s rewind to 1984. Rick Rubin, a punk-loving NYU student, starts producing hip-hop tracks out of his dorm room.

Israel’s land grabbing, and the darkness of Smotrich and Ben-Gvir.

Emma Goldman once said: “Thinking men and women the world over are beginning to realize that patriotism is too narrow and limited a conception to meet the necessities of our time.”

That was over a century ago. And she was right — maybe even more right today than she could have imagined.

Today, we’re talking about I Came By — a tense British crime thriller from 2022 that mixes political edge, creeping dread, and the most unsettling Hugh Bonneville performance you’ll probably ever see.

Today, we’re traveling (figuratively) to the heart of Avalon, Mississippi — home to one of the most beloved and quietly revolutionary figures in American music: Mississippi John Hurt.

When we canonize certain books — when we elevate some stories above all others — we risk building a wall. Not just between “high” and “low” art, but between cultures, languages, perspectives. Between who gets to tell stories and who we’re willing to listen to.

Today we’re diving into Deerhunter — a band that calls Atlanta, Georgia home, but whose music belongs to no single place or time. Formed in 2001, they’ve carved out a space all their own in the indie rock universe, stitching together elements of punk, ambient, garage, shoegaze, and noise to create, as they once described it, “ambient punk.”

I have thoughts on this...

War stuff

Abbott’s threats are likely symbolic. The state constitution allows members to deprive a chamber of quorum. A 2021 Texas Supreme Court ruling affirmed legislative walkouts are not illegal—they may even be compelled back in-state, but removal from office or censorship has no clear precedent ...

Today, I'm taking a deep dive — not into a band, not into a genre— but into you. Specifically, your voice as a potential music journalist, or music reviewer.

How, in an age overflowing with scientific progress, are we still so vulnerable to misinformation?

Plus, I give a list of organizations promoting science.