Red Scare – "Je Suis Charlie" TEASER (September 23, 2025)

Episode Overview

In this teaser for the latest Red Scare episode, hosts Anna Khachiyan and Dasha Nekrasova dive into the current culture wars, institutional bias in public discourse, and the aftermath of the George Floyd protests. They analyze the reactionary dynamics between the right and left, particularly in the context of online behavior, public shaming, and legal outcomes. The discussion is pointed, questioning, and suffused with their signature dry, sardonic tone.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Asymmetry of Power and Institutional Backing

• The hosts acknowledge that both the political right and left engage in insensitive behavior online (e.g., jokes, memes, hatred directed at opponents).

• Anna emphasizes, however, that the crucial difference lies in the institutional power and legal impunity granted to one side (implied to be the left in current media and legal discourse).

  "Both sides are like, guilty of making like insensitive jokes and trading insensitive memes and wishing death upon their opponents. But only one side has institutional backing and legal impunity. For now." — Anna (00:00)

• Dasha suggests this advantage is currently tenuous:

  "But people are saying, well, like, oh. They're also making this argument like, oh, well, the, the right is in power now, so the tables have turned. That's not true. This is an extremely delicate and fragile period where the right has to consolidate its newfound powers and defeat the left permanently or like slink off with its tail between its legs." (00:33)

2. Civil Libertarianism & Glenn Greenwald

• Anna invokes Glenn Greenwald, describing him as a "principled civil libertarian" and contrasts his ethical consistency with common online retributive justice.
• They mention "charliesmurderers.com" as an example of fueling public shaming and getting people fired for their posts, criticizing how easy and reactionary this behavior has become.

3. The Impact of BLM & the George Floyd Protests

• Anna speculates that the strong response to recent violent crimes (referencing "arena") is a reaction to the chaos and destruction following the George Floyd/BLM protests.

• Had the riots not occurred, she argues, recent tragedies would be received in a less politicized, more neutral way.

  "Even with arena, I think like, had we not been subjected to like all of our like, like cities being looted and destroyed in the wake of like blm, then there wouldn't be such an outcry about arena. It would be more like people would see it as like a tragedy that was random that, you know, happens." — Anna (01:09)

• Anna suggests the trial of Derek Chauvin was highly politicized, calling it a “kangaroo court.”

  "It's natural that people will feel this like, impulse over a completely like, politicized and falsified...episode that resulted in like the political trial, the kangaroo court of a man who is now permanently behind bars, probably cannot get pardoned." — Anna (01:39)

4. Personal Ethics Versus Online Hypocrisy

• Anna responds to accusations of hypocrisy—that she condemns leftists for gloating over deaths while also advocating for the release of Derek Chauvin.

  "When people try to do that thing to me where they're, they're like, oh, Anna, you're, you're being a moral and scolding people for like gloating over and celebrating the misery and death of others. But yet you will tweet about how you want to see Chauvin free. It's like, yeah, I would make that my life's mission because it's only right. Those things are not in contradiction with each other. They're completely, they're like completely morally consistent." — Anna (02:11)

5. The Exhaustion with Algorithmic Outrage

• Anna expresses her fatigue with the "algorithmic" delivery of reactive content on social media, referencing the polarized narratives around figures like George Floyd.

  "This is really like part of the reason that I deleted X is cause I was being fed so much algorithmic, like, yeah, George Floyd was a father. In response to Charlie Kirk, where I'm like, what are you — what planet are you even living on?" — Anna (02:41)

• She highlights the inability of online platforms to grapple with the complexity and vast differences between high-profile cases.

  "These people, even if you think George Floyd was murdered, they died under completely different circumstances, are completely different people completely. Like, it's just not like." — Anna (02:55)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Institutional Impunity:

  "But only one side has institutional backing and legal impunity. For now." — Anna (00:10)

• On Conservatism’s Fragility:

  "This is an extremely delicate and fragile period where the right has to consolidate its newfound powers and defeat the left permanently or like slink off with its tail between its legs." — Dasha (00:37)

• On Politicized Crime:

  "It's natural that people will feel this like, impulse over a completely like, politicized and falsified...episode that resulted in like the political trial, the kangaroo court..." — Anna (01:39)

• On Social Media and Narrative Exhaustion:

  "This is really like part of the reason that I deleted X is cause I was being fed so much algorithmic..." — Anna (02:41)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00 — Power, memes, and institutional bias
• 00:33 — Right vs. left, the fragility of political power
• 01:09 — Reactions to crime and the BLM aftermath
• 01:39 — Claims of a politicized trial (Derek Chauvin)
• 02:11 — Anna’s moral consistency on Chauvin
• 02:41 — Burnout with online polarization and algorithmic content

This teaser offers a provocative glimpse into Red Scare's ongoing discussions on power, justice, and cultural polarization. The hosts challenge prevailing narratives around institutional power, the fallout from recent social upheavals, and the exhausting churn of online discourse. Their unapologetic and polemical style underlines every claim—making for characteristically sharp Red Scare content.