Weekly Roundup: They Want to Rule, Not Govern: Live-Streamed Executions, “Enemy Combatants,” and the Midterm Panic (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

They want to rule, not govern. 

This week on the Weekly Roundup, Brad Onishi and Dan Miller break down Trump’s “bomb LA” comments, the “enemy combatant” rhetoric aimed at Somalis in Minnesota, Hegseth’s plan to live-stream a firing squad execution, and Tucker Carlson and Curtis Yarvin’s Hitler comments. Then they close with some reasons for hope: Ossoff in the Georgia debate and a Satanic invocation in Ottumwa, Iowa.

With the midterms less than a month away, Brad and Dan argue the GOP is ramping up fear-mongering, race-baiting, and empty promises because it has little else left to offer.

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro: Iran, LA, Somalis, and the live-streamed execution
03:38 The thesis: ramping up the tactics before the midterms
06:43 Somalis as “the new Haitians”
10:46 JD Vance can’t define socialism
15:26 Ruling vs. governing
17:37 Hegseth’s live-streamed firing squad
27:34 “Pro-life” and “family values”? Bloodlust and the research on televised executions
33:16 Tucker Carlson on why the UK fought WWII
42:38 Curtis Yarvin, JD Vance, and the “engineering” view of society
50:58 Transit funding tied to birth and marriage rates
55:15 Reasons for hope: Ottumwa, Iowa, and Ossoff vs. Collins
1:01:14 Upcoming events and wrap-up

Interview: 

• Audio podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/weekly-roundup-hegseths-execution-livestream-bomb-la/id1441649707?i=1000794597256

• Video: https://axismundinetwork.substack.com/p/they-want-to-rule-not-govern-live

Brief: The Ceuta Crisis Great Replacement Conspiracy (Conspirituality podcast)

Last week, around 72,000 migrants flooded from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. What really happened? Was a local girl abducted, never to be seen again? Did the Moroccan border guards step aside (or even collaborate) in an organized operation?

Right-wing politicians and pundits were quick to crank up the moral panic machine. This is what open borders look like! They’re heading for our country next. Donald Trump said it was nothing compared to what would happen in the US if Democrats win the mid-terms.

Then came the conspiracy theories. Was Morocco retaliating against Spain for a recent deal with their enemy, Algeria? Were America and Israel behind it as punishment for Spain’s socialist prime minister being staunchly pro-Palestine and refusing to support the war in Iran?

For a few magical days, right- and left-wing conspiracy theorists spread overlapping versions of the Great Replacement Theory.

Julian dives into the diplomatic complexities, ideological contradictions, and historical twists to make sense of relations between Spain, Algeria, Morocco, Western Sahara, and Israel to ask: are there any good guys or is it colonizers all the way down?
Interview:

https://www.conspirituality.net/episodes/brief-ceuta-crisis-great-replacement-theory

Carlo Acutis, the First Millennial Saint (Hemant Mehta and Jessica Bluemke, The Friendly Atheist podast #600)

— The Catholic Church has a millennial saint, Carlo Acutis. Is that because of miracles or marketing? (1:40)

— The initial report from Trump’s “Anti-Christian Bias” task force reveals… nothing. (18:30)

— Quebec’s proposed public prayer ban is a blunt attack on religious freedom. (48:45)

— Christian parents let their baby die while awaiting a miracle. They’ll be in jail for a month. (1:21:15)

— Lawrence Krauss’ “The War on Science” is a gift to science’s real enemies. (1:33:15)

Interview: 

https://friendlyatheistpodcast.com/2025/09/11/carlo-acutis-the-first-millennial-saint/

Heather McGhee on Trump’s Wars on DEI and Immigration (Al Franken podcast)

The Trump administration is waging war on DEI. But what does that mean? We ask one of our favorite guests, Heather McGhee, to break down how and why DEI has become such a focus for Trump and his allies. Heather wrote the groundbreaking book The Sum of Us and is an expert in economic and social policy. She explains that diversity is the backbone of America and that it’s unquestionably better for everyone when we embrace more diverse voices.

We also discuss the appalling ICE raids in Los Angeles and around the country and the economic and moral impact of the war on immigrants. Heather sees many parallels between this and the disgusting actions of segregationists, who chose to fill in and close public pools rather than let everybody have access to them.

Read more about Heather: https://heathermcghee.com/

Interview: 

https://www.alfranken.com/listen/heathermcghee250615

“Are you mad at God?” (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast) (It's in the Code, episode #138)

“Are you mad at God?” 

This is a question that will almost certainly be posed to anyone undergoing faith deconstruction. 

It might come from someone who means well and who cares about the person deconstructing. Or it might come from a partisan advocate of high-control religion. 

What is happening when someone poses this question? Even if it comes from a place of care, how does it express the dynamics of high-control religion? 

And why, if it’s a question, does it so often feel like an attack, like a dismissal? 

Check out this week’s episode to hear Dan’s reflections on these and other issues related to this question.

Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/its-in-the-code-ep-138-are-you-mad-at-god/

Crankmail (March 2025) (Freethought Today, March 2025)

Here's a sample of the mail that good devout Christians send to the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Beware toxic language. Printed as received.

https://www.freethoughttoday.com/free/crankmail-march-2025/

The Evangelical Anti-Vaccine Movement 50 Years in the Making (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

Brad speaks with scholar Mark Fugitt whose recent work explores the various sources and factors in evangelical opposition to the COVID vaccine. He provides the historical context for this movement, showing that it is half a century in formation. 

He explains to Brad how everything from creationism, to Christian wellness, to anti-abortion sentiment, and the apocalypse play into fear-mongering around the COVID vaccine.

Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/swaj-rewind-the-evangelical-anti-vaccine-movement-50-years-in-the-making/

”Crimes Against Humanity”? A Defense of Dr. Anthony Fauci (Seth Andrews; The Thinking Atheist podcast)

In the minds of many, immunologist and public health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci has become an enemy of the people. Who is this man, and what is driving public hatred toward him?

Interview: 

https://www.podbean.com/ew/dir-5bivh-1f11705a

Opinion | A Tennessee teacher planned a Mother’s Day class. Then came the MAGA rage. - The Washington Post

Then Moms for Liberty — which is restricting classroom discussion and getting books purged from school libraries across the country — wheeled into action.

Members of its chapter in the red-leaning area around the school in Hamilton County attacked the idea on social media and in local newspapers as Leninist indoctrination, anti-Christian and a threat to Western civilization. One woman called on locals to pray for children to guard them against the demonic threat posed by those children's books...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/05/09/moms-for-liberty-book-bans-maga-culture-war/

Texas GOP's Top Anti-Groomer Crusader Resigns Over Sexual Misconduct With Teenage Aide

Republican State Rep. Bryan Slaton of Texas resigned his seat Monday in order to avoid a public expulsion hearing after an investigation determined one of the party's loudest voices promoting the baseless threat of "groomers" in the LGBTQ+ community had an inappropriate sexual relationship with a 19-year-old member of his staff that included furnishing her with alcohol...

https://www.commondreams.org/news/texas-gop-bryan-slaton-resigns

Right-Wing Policy Is the Cause of the Crisis at the Border

Why do citizens of countries like El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Haiti, and many others, feel like they have to leave their home countries? U.S. policies have disrupted the affairs of these countries for years in numerous ways. For example…

https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/right-wing-policy-cause-of-border-crisis