26 Comments
User's avatar
Kurt's avatar

Bring back Walter, please.

Gilgamech's avatar

No. He had become cringe.

Substack Reader's avatar

Additionally, Walt QUIT!

I have no idea what Matt or Michael will say about the war. With little doubt, Walt would have been a Trump apologist, excusing every single "feel it in my bones" and "no one thought they'd do that." 5-D chess all the way down, etc.

I enjoyed the Walt era of the show, but it was getting stale. I wish Walt the best and if he lands somewhere interesting, I'll check it out. But I gotta move on. I'm listening to Greenwald and Tucker as I wait for Matt and Michael.

Maybe it would help if people thought of Walt as Sharona and Michael as Natalie.

MG's avatar

Greenwald and Tucker have both jumped the shark - 24/7 Jew-haters.

Matt L.'s avatar

Tucker does not hate Jews. Sigh…

RAO's avatar

How would you describe his beliefs about Jews and Israel? I don't follow him, but I'm curious.

Joy Shivas's avatar

Not liking this new format. I miss reading Matt's writings. Not so endeared with the new staff model.

rtko's avatar

More Michael Tracy?

Hell no. I’m out of here.

Gilgamech's avatar

I find him tolerable in small doses. Every week? We will see how that goes.

jbibiza's avatar

Not a "hater", just disappointed. All of Matt's books have helped me to see many things more clearly. The podcasts with Walter were a joy, as were the literary discussions. The new Racket team is a step down in gravitas, and the new podcast with Tracy is neither enlightening nor fun.

Bonnie Blodgett's avatar

What do you mean by "haters?" Your subscribers may disagree with you from time to time, but no one hates you. Some of us are just a tad disappointed that you chose Michael Tracey as Walter's replacement.

I understand the appeal of "the contrarian." And it is fun (I guess) that Tracey's sexy new "brand" is based on defiling the Epstein files.

Wow, cool!

Tracey has indeed taken the contrarian view to new heights of counter-intuition with this theory (debuted to the grinning delight/relief of his right-wing billionaire hosts on the All-In investment-advice podcast) that all the 12-year-olds molested by Jeffrey Epstein were either 1) making it up, 2) mentally ill or 3) extracting blackmail money from a bunch of nice guys who just wanted to ply them with teddy bears and ice cream cones.

A bit of all three, Tracey implies.

Given that the girls were chosen mostly on the basis of their looks and cluelessness, this theory doesn't wash.

Plus, to regard their experiences as somehow exceptional (and thus incredible) flies in the face of historical precedent. Why would these girls be any different from the millions upon millions of other girls (and boys) who've suffered similar treatment at the hands of (mostly) men over the millennia?

Was the systematic rape of boys by Catholic priests in Boston (and elsewhere), and its subsequent coverup, also a fairy tale?

Or are little boys just tougher and smarter (and thus more trustworthy) than little girls?

Yeah, I know. Women. Drama queens, every one of them.

MG's avatar

"Was the systematic rape of boys by Catholic priests in Boston (and elsewhere) and its subsequent coverup, also a fairy tale? -- Now do teachers.

Outside your silo Bonnie, no one thinks about Epstein 24/7.

ModernNetMonk777's avatar

This will be interesting.

Dahveed's avatar

I'll give it another shot, but Michael Tracey is tough to listen to. He interrupts more than Walter did, but I was usually quick to give Kirn a chance because he's entertaining and funny. Tracey, not so much. I guess we'll see...hope the door is open for another co-host or perhaps rotating hosts until the right fit comes along.

KMA's avatar

Matt,

You wrote: "50 Years of Secrets: Why You Should Care About the FBI's 'Prohibited Access' Files." Well, I care and I think this is one of the biggest stories of my lifetime.

But even you ignored it and instead spent the last podcast talking about Epstein and other detritus.

Talk about the FBI's secret files. That's news. Every American needs to know this.

You are underselling yourself and your terrific reporting by breezing down the highway and not hammering this more.

Abcde's avatar

Walter liked the abuse imo

Abcde's avatar

Walter will be back, he's just taking a break

Robert Michael Caudle's avatar

Hey now, sometimes you just want to curl up with a delicious coffee and listen to your favorite sloporific algohumping podcasts.

CarolB's avatar
2hEdited

Looking forward to the next episode. Living means change.

Moe Strausberg's avatar

In Johnson's Dictionary of the English language, the dictionary Scalia used to pervert the constitution a tariff is a cartel of commerce. A cartel is a Protection Racket. As flies to wanton boys are we to the godfathers.

https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=tariff

https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=cartel

William K.'s avatar

Different and similar traits of a hater and a critic…..

Bob Ferlauto's avatar

I may be out of the loop but why the hiatus and what about Walter Kirn?

Moe Strausberg's avatar

It is hard to do satire in a country where Bathetic Farce is de riguer. I love Walter. Leonard Cohen led the country band at Kamala's High School and he wrote this diddy-wah-diddy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNhS7z36_7Q&list=RDGNhS7z36_7Q&start_radio=1

I lived in Woodlawn when Obama lost to Danny Davis and Davis is not running in 2026.

We sentence him to 30 years of boredom.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAf_yfR_hek&list=RDuAf_yfR_hek&start_radio=1

Gilgamech's avatar

There was a divorce so the old show is over. This is the new show.