Podcast
Varn Vlog
Hosted by C. Derick Varn · EN
Abandon all hope ye who subscribe here. Varn Vlog is the pod of C. Derick Varn. We combine the conversation on philosophy, political economy, art, history, culture, anthropology, and geopolitics from a left-wing and culturally informed perspective. We approach the world from a historical lens with an eye for hard truths and structural analysis.
34episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The Prospects of DSA: Party Building, Power, and the Marxist Unity Group
1w ago01:24:50Tap to summarizeApproximately two years into the second Trump administration, the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is at a critical crossroads. In this semi-annual check-in, we sit down with members of the Marxist Unity Group (MUG)—Cliff Connolly, Gene Allen, and Amy Wilhelm—to discuss the evolving landscape of American socialist politics.In this deep dive, our panel explores the significant shift following the passing of Resolution Seven, which officially declared the DSA's intent to transition into an independent, mass-based political party. We tackle the "New York contradictions," the limits of holding executive office without legislative support, and the struggle to maintain a revolutionary program in a "multi-tendency" organization.In This Episode, We Discuss:The Blueprint for a Party: Why the DSA is moving away from being a "political advocacy non-profit" toward a formal party structure.Executive vs. Legislative Power: Analyzing the challenges faced by elected officials like Zohran Mamdani in New York and the dangers of "shortcuts" to power.The Utility of Protests: Why street movements like "No Kings" are vital for recruitment even if they don't immediately "move the needle" on foreign policy.Building a Worker State: The development of a revolutionary program aimed at ending capitalism in the United States.Member Protagonism: How doubling down on internal democracy and STV (Single Transferable Vote) is the key to retaining the DSA's 100k+ membership.Connect with the Marxist Unity Group:Website: marxistunity.comPublications: Check out Light and Air and the Bulletin for internal and external socialist theory.Read: Cliff Connolly’s latest piece in Democratic Left regarding the Security Commission’s de-escalation and safety trainings.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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Communist Unity in Oceania: The Future of Socialist Organizing in Australia
2w ago02:15:15Tap to summarizeYou can learn a lot about the health of the left by asking one simple question: what happens when people disagree? We sit down with three organizers from Communist Unity to talk about building a mass communist party in Australia with open factions, democratic debate, and real programmatic unity and why that approach is so rare in practice.We trace their organizational roots through Socialist Alliance-era regroupment attempts, youth reading groups, and the split-and-merge history that shapes Australian socialist politics. From there we get concrete about what a communist program is supposed to do, how you shorten it without gutting it, and why women’s liberation, trans liberation, and control over social reproduction belong at the center of revolutionary strategy. The conversation also tackles their intellectual influences, including CPGB-style programmatism, while rejecting the idea that your bookshelf should stand in for political analysis.Then the plot twist: the Spartacists in Australia approached Communist Unity to merge, entered as a minority, and accepted unity on the basis of a shared program with the right to argue for changes. That opens into a wider map of the Australian left, the limits of “activism,” faction bans, and why hidden internal fights burn people out faster than open disagreements. We also zoom out to Australian political economy and the Voice referendum fallout, “national cohesion” rhetoric, One Nation’s protest appeal, and how mandatory voting and preference ballots reshape popular front politics compared to the US.If you care about communist organizing, socialist strategy, anti-sectarian unity, and how movements actually build power, this one will give you a lot to argue with. Subscribe, share the show with a comrade, and leave a review with the biggest strategic question you want us to tackle next.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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The Quest for Narrative From World Travels to Technology with Miles Spencer
3w ago00:48:15Tap to summarizeIs our digital legacy the final frontier of storytelling?In this episode, we sit down with Miles Spencer, a serial entrepreneur, world traveler, and the founder of Reflecta AI. Spencer, who co-created the long-running PBS series Money Hunt, has dedicated his career to the power of narrative. Now, he is using artificial intelligence to bridge the gap between physical archives—like shoe boxes of old photos and letters—and a dynamic, conversational digital legacy that allows families to preserve the voices and stories of their loved ones.Beyond technology, Spencer shares insights from his global travels, including following the footsteps of T.E. Lawrence through the Middle East and mentoring entrepreneurs in Cuba. We explore the strategic importance of "gateway cities" like Havana and Damascus, the surprising similarities between cultures we often view as different, and how human decency often overrides geopolitical tensions.In this episode, we discuss:The DNA of Storytelling: How being the 23rd of 24 children in a family of Pennsylvania storytellers shaped Spencer’s worldview.Reflecta AI: Creating "AI for humanity" through spontaneous and dynamic digital legacies.The Jurassic Park of Islands: Observations from mentoring technologists in Cuba during a brief window of diplomatic opening.A "Halftime" View of Syria: Experiences in Damascus between conflicts and the strategic realities of location versus resources.The Homogeneity Trap: Why the relative similarity of North American culture can make the diversity of the rest of the world feel more remote than it actually is.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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The Castaneda Con with Ru Marshall
3w ago01:16:08Tap to summarizeIs it anthropology or a high-stakes hoax?In this episode of the Varn Vlog, we dive deep into the enigmatic life of Carlos Castaneda with author and visual artist Ru Marshall. Marshall’s expansive new biography, American Trickster (OR Books), unearths the startling reality behind the man who convinced the world he was apprenticed to a Yaqui sorcerer named Don Juan.We explore how Castaneda transitioned from a UCLA PhD candidate to a global counterculture icon, selling tens of millions of books while living a life of elaborate reinvention—including claiming to be Brazilian despite being Peruvian. Marshall details the darker side of Castaneda's "Nagual" legacy: his transformation into a cult leader, his manipulation of academic elites like Harold Garfinkel, and the tragic disappearances of the women in his inner circle following his death.In this episode, we discuss:The Academic Scam: How Castaneda used "ethnomethodology" to seduce brilliant sociologists and anthropologists at UCLA.The Arana Family Secret: The "Mark of the Arana" and the dark Peruvian history Castaneda spent his life running from.Tensegrity and Cultism: The transition from bestselling author to a high-control leader who promised his followers they would never die.The Death Valley Mystery: The discovery of Nuri Alexander’s remains and the final "flight into infinity" that turned fatal for his followers.Ru Marshall is an acclaimed writer and visual artist whose work explores the intersections of faith, identity, and cultural mythology. Their debut novel, Separate Reality, was a Lambda Literary Award finalist for Debut Fiction. Marshall's insightful non-fiction and essays have been featured in prominent outlets including Salon, n+1, Evergreen Review, and Kenyon Review. Their most recent work, American Trickster: A Biography of Carlos Castaneda, is the culmination of nearly two decades of research into one of the 20th century’s most complex and controversial literary figures.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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The Left-Wing Deadbeat with Nurse John
May 401:17:03Tap to summarizeA lot of people can quote the right theory, wear the right shirt, and post the right meme. Then the moment arrives when you have to sit down with a coworker, ask what they need, and move them toward collective action and suddenly they vanish. We take on that tension by reading and reacting to the provocation “The Left-Wing Deadbeat,” using our own union organizing experience to separate what’s real from what’s just frustration dressed up as advice.We talk about why some organizing stories feel instantly familiar yet still leave out the most important details: timelines, workplace conditions, power mapping, and what the organizer actually did to develop leaders. From disruptive committee members to under-socialized online habits, we keep coming back to a basic organizing truth: you don’t win by judging politics, you win by building relationships, teaching skills, and giving people a path to act. That includes modeling one-on-one conversations, debriefing conflicts, and treating coworkers like human beings instead of line items.Along the way we get into labor movement debates that shape strategy on the ground: rank and file unionism versus staff-driven approaches, labor aristocracy and “PMC” shorthand, what proletarianization looks like in tech and academia, and why certain alliances like cozying up to police unions can blow back strategically. We also look at militancy, when it helps, when it becomes a burnout machine, and why political education matters even in bread-and-butter fights.If you care about workplace organizing, union strategy, and building durable worker power, subscribe, share this with a coworker, and leave a review. What kind of “deadbeat” behavior have you seen, and what actually helped turn it around?Link: https://organizing.work/2020/05/the-leftwing-deadbeat/Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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The K-Shaped Decade with Matt Borka
Apr 2701:38:11Tap to summarize“Why does life feel poorer when the economy looks rich?” That question drives our talk with Hungarian-born creator and entrepreneur Matt Borka, who has lived and worked across the West, Eastern Europe, and Asia and who tracks real-world conditions through labor data, incentives, and what he sees inside marketing and online business. We start with the growing sense of Western decline and quickly land on a hard-to-ignore pattern: a K-shaped economy where the top captures upside while everyone else absorbs risk, stress, and stagnation.We unpack what wage stagnation looks like up close, why inflation in necessities breaks the old promise of “low prices,” and how AI is changing work in ways that are both impressive and brutal. Matt shares concrete examples of AI automation replacing entry-level and support roles first, even when productivity gains are uneven across the economy. That connects to Peter Turchin’s idea of elite overproduction: too many qualified, ambitious people competing for too few stable professional paths, now intensified by rapid technological change.From there we dig into platform monopolies and platform lock-in. When TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and Meta act as the primary routes to customers, small business owners face rising ad costs, declining product experience, and almost no accountability. We also zoom out to institutional decay, collapsing social trust, brain drain and expat trends, and geopolitical instability that makes long-term planning feel impossible, including why gold markets and hedging behavior signal deeper uncertainty.If you care about the labor market, AI job displacement, inequality, platform power, and what comes after the “rules-based order” stops feeling real, you’ll get a clear map of the pressures shaping the 2020s. Subscribe, share this with a friend who keeps saying “something feels off,” and leave a review with your take: what trend worries you most right now? You can find him @matt_borka on YouTube and https://www.mattborka.com/Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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From Dawn To Decadence, Part 6: Aufheben's Decay
Apr 2001:33:46Tap to summarizeIn Part 6 of our series "From Dawn to Decadence," we examine the intellectual trajectory and eventual "decay" of the Aufheben collective. This episode explores the group's early contributions to Marxist theory, their critique of the state, and the internal contradictions that led to their decline.We dive deep into the specific criticisms leveled by the Aufhebung Collective against previous thinkers, including their critiques of Rosa Luxemburg's "objectivism" and the perceived "automaticity" of capitalist collapse. We also discuss how their work interacts with broader Marxist debates on over-accumulation, under-consumption, and the role of the state in managing the "common ruin" of society.Key Topics Discussed:The Roots of Aufheben: How the collective emerged within the landscape of radical Marxist theory.Critique of Luxemburgism: Why Aufheben rejected theories of automatic economic collapse in favor of a more nuanced understanding of class struggle.The Decay of Theory: Analyzing the shifts in the collective’s perspective that signaled a move away from their original radical foundations.Theoretical Implications: How these debates on the "highest stage" of capitalism and the "rentier state" remain relevant in today's shifting global landscape.Link: https://files.libcom.org/files/Aufheben-%20Decadence.pdfSend us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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German Romanticism and Idealism Beyond Nostalgia And Reaction
Apr 1301:38:37Tap to summarizeRomanticism gets treated like a synonym for nostalgia, and German Idealism gets shrunk to a few brand-name thinkers. We push back on both habits by talking with Christopher Satoor, a York University doctoral candidate and founder of the Young Idealist series, about what really happens when philosophy, poetry, art, and science collide in Jena.Schelling sits at the center of that collision. We dig into why his Naturphilosophie is neither “woo” nor a quaint premodern science lesson, but a serious attempt to rebuild our concept of nature after Cartesian mechanism. That means thinking in terms of living processes, hidden forces, and organic organization, and then asking what it does to our view of mind, creativity, and embodiment when “nature is visible spirit and spirit is invisible nature.” Along the way, we unpack the rift with Fichte, the shadow cast by Hegel, and how later caricatures and missing translations shaped Schelling’s reputation in English-language philosophy.We also take the political and ethical questions seriously: what the Freedom Essay contributes to debates about evil, freedom, and the limits of purely dialectical stories of progress, and why Schelling’s later “positive philosophy” focuses on existence, facticity, and the question of why there is something rather than nothing. Finally, we connect the stakes to the present, where climate change and environmental catastrophe demand a less mechanized picture of the world and a more holistic way of thinking across disciplines.If you enjoy deep dives into German Romanticism, German Idealism, Schelling, Kant, Fichte, Hegel, philosophy of nature, and freedom, subscribe, share this with a friend who argues about materialism, and leave a review with the biggest idea you’re still wrestling with.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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Diving Into the Wreckage: The French Left Remains Unbowed
Apr 1001:18:59Tap to summarizeJoin hosts as they dive deep into the complexities of modern French politics with guest Henry Wallace. This episode explores the concept of the "new municipalism" and the strategic efforts of the La France Insoumise (France Unbowed) movement to reclaim local governance. From the legacy of the Yellow Vests protests to the innovative use of digital organizing tools, the discussion provides a comprehensive look at how grassroots activism is challenging neoliberal structures in France.Key Topics Covered:The New Municipalism: Understanding the shift toward empowering local communes and city councils as hubs for democratic participation.France Unbowed (LFI) Strategy: An inside look at how the movement integrates intellectual production with popular education and local action.Lessons from the Yellow Vests: Analyzing the impact of past social movements on current political strategies and the demand for a "referendum of citizen initiative".Digital Organizing: How LFI utilizes custom-built applications to facilitate local action groups and bypass traditional bureaucratic hurdles.The Future of French Politics: Predicting the implications of local electoral successes on the upcoming presidential and legislative races.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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Mapping The United Front Debate with Brandon Lightly
Apr 601:35:32Tap to summarizeWhat happens when “march separately, strike together” meets real history? We dive into the tangled story of the United Front—where it came from, how it changed, and why its results ranged from lifeline to dead end. Starting with Marx and the First International and running through the Second International’s fights over ministerialism, we track Trotsky’s 1921 thesis, the KPD’s open letter strategy, and the Comintern’s hard pivot from Third Period sectarianism to Popular Front coalitions. The stakes become real in the case studies. Austria’s disciplined but defensive Red Vienna built its own workers’ defense corps and still fell in 1934. Germany’s left split on the eve of catastrophe, as “social fascist” rhetoric blocked a united response to Hitler. France and Spain saw Popular Fronts assemble fast and fracture faster, with internal purges and competing chains of command that drained class power. In the United States, Third Period organizing from below helped seed CIO militancy, then the Popular Front swelled reach under Roosevelt—only to leave unions exposed to loyalty oaths, purges, and Taft–Hartley. Popularity rose; leverage did not.China breaks the pattern by changing the rules. The first KMT–CCP alliance ended in massacre; the second, forged under Japanese invasion, preserved independent command, territory, and institutions. That structure let the CCP build the mass line across peasant base areas and survive to win. Labels aside, the mechanics mattered most: concrete demands that grow capacity, strict organizational independence, and timing that seizes initiative before reaction hardens. We pull these threads together to ask the live questions: When does unity build power? When does it liquidate it? And what would a front look like today that protects independence while winning real gains?If this helped sharpen your thinking, follow the show, share it with a comrade, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway or disagreement—we’ll feature the best ones next time.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian
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