JT will be answering questions below. There are no strict time limits set for this so JT will come and go as and when his time allows, if he doesn't get to your questions be patient! This post will be edited when things end here. See bottom of post

JT will be posting from the account @Secondthought_JT .

Be sure to check out The Deprogram if you haven't already! Available wherever you listen to podcasts.

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JT is taking his leave now! Big thanks for doing this JT and for answering so much! :meow-hug: :lenin-heart:

Thread will be locked to preserve. Remember to check out The Deprogram!

  • Jadzia_Dax [she/her]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Hi JT, welcome to Hexbear! What is your opinion on trans rights?

    :trans-hammer-sickle: :hexbear-trans::anarchy-trans:

  • GutTheEmpire [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    I'm an Indian from a reservation in Oklahoma who wants to start a Marxist YT channel, and had two main questions for our supple voiced podcaster.

    1. How would an Indigenous person even begin to tackle the ignorance around decolonization, when the ed. system produces people that will go on Twitter and call me a savage or deliberately ask other whites what 'reserves' are, instead of someone who lives on one, just to be spiteful? Americans have voluntarily clinged to an 18th century belief used to justify their settler colonialism without the need for a "Red Scare" towards Indigenous people, maybe my question is how would you get subjects of an Empire to face its historical sins, in a way that humanizes the victims and recontextualizes the stories they've grown up with as facts?

    2. When you're writing a video script, besides having a weekly upload schedule, what keeps you from dropping it and doing something else when you hit a creative roadblock?

    • Secondthought_JT [he/him]
      ·
      2 years ago

      Hey, that's awesome! Decolonization is one of those topics that tends to elicit a knee-jerk response from the average American. It's frustrating and I'm not sure what the correct answer is there. I think a big part of the problem is that the listener feels personally attacked or guilty, like they did something wrong and don't want to be made out to be the villain. I think taking a patient approach with them (as frustrating as that may be) could help ease them into it. American propaganda is a hell of a drug, and it's going to take a lot of work to deprogram your viewers. You'll never win everyone over, but that's just part of having a political YouTube channel. As for your second question, I've been doing YouTube a long time now, so I've got a pretty solid workflow and rarely have to deviate these days. That being said, there have been times where I just wasn't vibing with the topic I chose for the week and I had to make the decision to put it on the back burner and attempt something else. There's nothing wrong with changing topics every once in a while. Always better to work on something you're interested in than forcing yourself to work on a topic just because you picked it.

  • wtypstanaccount04 [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Actually I did think of a question: What are your thoughts on this Parenti clip? :parenti: He has some interesting stuff to say about the state of China in the 90s here, and it's pretty negative.

  • corgiwithalaptop [any, love/loves]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Hi JT! Big fan of your work, thanks for coming by here!

    I don't have anything to really ask you, but I did want you to look at something.

    In a somewhat recent video you did, I think on healthcare, you made a joke about a corgi having terminal kidney issues. My partner and I rescue corgis, and the first one we ever got together was born with the exact condition you joked about. Her name was Daisy, and she was full of sass and character when she was having a good day.

    I just wanted you to know that joke made me think of her. Here she is. She was with us for 6 great months before passing in my arms.

    https://imgur.com/a/nQrUvtW

    • Secondthought_JT [he/him]
      ·
      2 years ago

      Oh my goodness what a sweet little critter. I can't imagine how difficult that was. You and your partner are doing a wonderful thing. I love dogs. My two heeler/pit mixes are rescues.

      • corgiwithalaptop [any, love/loves]
        ·
        2 years ago

        Thanks JT! We're on our second corgi right now. This one is named Bailey and she is my little snuggly wumpkins. She wants to say something, hold on, I'll let her type.

        welr45tp5rtel5rel\43rel43;

        That means "hello!"

  • leftofthat [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Hello!

    What is your favorite emoji on Hexbear.net? Please take your time and browse.

    :party-parenti:

  • JuryNullification [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    The people demand to know, will the PMC DSA Karens over at the Deprogram eat the bugs?

  • build_a_bear_group [he/him, comrade/them]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Just commenting to say that one of my friends from Wisconsin, that also lived in Chattanooga for three years, recently became a comrade. I assume this is due to The Deprogram's demographic microtargeting. So, thanks!

    • Secondthought_JT [he/him]
      ·
      2 years ago

      I've always had a kind of belligerent approach to intimidation, for better or for worse. So when the feds showed up my response was basically "Cool, I'll double down. Try something, asshole." This may end up getting me in hot water at some point, but I think it's important for people to see that we can't allow ourselves to be intimidated into silence and complacency. The US is a pseudo-fascist police state and we need to help others overcome the propaganda we've all been force-fed our entire lives. The nice thing is you don't have to be super public if you don't want to be. There are plenty of great content creators who prefer to remain anonymous - Hakim and Yugopnik are good examples. People know their pseudonyms, but nothing about them IRL. You can write, make videos, record a podcast, whatever your preferred medium, all without revealing who you really are. Now rest assured that the feds will know who you are, but that just comes with the territory. As a teacher you can do some real good simply by pushing back a little on the capitalist party line and revisionist history. Just offer the alternative perspective, you don't have to be super open about your beliefs, you can simply give your students the tools to think for themselves.

  • Sen_Jen [they/them]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Thanks for stopping by JT :soviet-heart:

    What is the most bizarre take you've heard recently? Like not offensive or stupid, but just so baffling that you wonder which reality this person lives in

    • Secondthought_JT [he/him]
      ·
      2 years ago

      Good question, I get so many weird comments. I got a one the other day that said "capitalism doesn't exist, can't exist, and will never exist. Capitalism is created as a strawman by communists to deflect from their equally impossible communism." Like...what?

  • dead [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Who is your favorite Chapo Trap House podcast member?

  • jackmarxist [any]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Hey JT, what's your opinion on the current state of Socialism in China?

    • Secondthought_JT [he/him]
      ·
      2 years ago

      Optimistic. They seem to be trending in the right direction. I saw recently that a lot of jobs are now requiring a degree in Marxist studies, which is fantastic.