Common Sense with Dan Carlin
Loud, fast-talking and deceptively funny, this politically-independent "forward-thinking pragmatist" looks at the events shaping our world through a uniquely American lens. It's smarter than you think, and faster than you expect.
Episodes
Show 323 - Gas Up the Cold War
Vladimir Putin has instantaneously reignited the Cold War by savagely attacking Ukraine this week. In response to requests, Dan shares a few thoughts.
01/03/22•40m 19s
Show 322 - Betting on Long Shots
After 20 years in Afghanistan the U.S. exits the country thus ending the longest war in American history. Are there any lessons to be learned?
01/09/21•55m 24s
Show 321 - Garbage In, Garbage Out
In a show recorded before the recent House impeachment vote, Dan examines the damage caused by the iceberg we recently hit when Americans stormed the U.S. Capitol and tries to suggest how we might avoid hitting another one.
14/01/21•47m 28s
Show 320 - Steering Into the Iceberg
To paraphrase John Lennon, So you say you want a civil war? With the U.S. facing one of the most consequential elections in its history, Dan has some thoughts about us all, our choices and the times in which we live.
20/09/20•1h 13m
Show 319 - A Recipe for Caesar
Does a global pandemic help break the spell of our bitter partisan conflict, or does it just raise the stakes? In the first CS show in years Dan wrestles with the Zeitgeist.
01/04/20•1h 26m
Show 318 - For Whom the Bell Trolls
You never know when you might get a little common sense unexpectedly out of nowhere.This is one of those times.
26/05/18•46m 8s
Show 317 - Shades of Grey
Dan is finding is hard to operate in a Black and White, Good and Evil cultural environment where everyone is outraged all the time about everything and where Americans hate each other. Where's the Common Sense?
28/10/17•51m 6s
Show 316 - The Day of the Dove
Politically-related violence in the U.S. heats up as talk of "Civil War" goes mainstream. What would a "Civil War" in the U.S. even look like? Dan has some thoughts on this and ways to potentially avoid such a fate.
19/06/17•1h
Show 315 - War on a Whim?
There's a lot in this show subject-wise, but it's really supposed to be about War Powers in the USA and how events in Syria and North Korea play into the issue.
01/05/17•1h 1m
Show 314 - Unhealthy Numbers
As the GOP attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Dan ponders the dichotomy between what Americans spend on health care versus what they get in return.
16/03/17•1h 2m
Show 313 - Get Me A Glass of Water
Dan is in an introspective mental place in this show...but he may just drag you in there with him.
14/02/17•53m 24s
Show 312 - Re-Connections with James Burke
Dan has another visit with the always fascinating science historian and TV host James Burke. He also catches up a bit on early Trump cabinet picks and the Dakota pipeline protests.
07/12/16•1h 21m
Show 311 - Trumped
Post-2016 election analysis and discussion from a Martian political perspective.
11/11/16•1h 3m
Show 310 - Or Else
What happens if our nation's problems become too large to realistically imagine our politicians solving? What if voting doesn't help? Dan reminds us that he's not a moderate, and that you probably aren't either.
13/10/16•44m 49s
Show 309 - A Bodyguard of Lies
Secrecy, hacking, information leaks, whistle-blowers, foreign-operative propaganda pushers, disinformation, election tampering and the search for any truth in cyberspace occupy Dan's thoughts in this show.
09/09/16•56m 36s
Show 308 - Return of the Podcaster
After a brief hiatus to finish his other podcast, Dan has a huge backlog of material to cover. The presidential race, foreign affairs and racial and cultural questions take center stage.
14/08/16•1h 13m
Show 307 - Revenge of the Gangrenous Finger
This show has a "chickens coming home to roost" feel to it, but maybe in a positive way. It was supposed to be about the recent British vote to leave the EU, but evolved into something larger. Surprise, surprise.
27/06/16•49m 37s
Show 306 - Disengaging the Lizard Brain
Hate is a very strong word, but increasing numbers of Americans hate their countrymen. Is this a danger to the stability of the country? If it were deemed such, what can be done about it?
05/06/16•44m 9s
Show 305 - A Catalyst for the Inconceivable
Dan finds the idea of a Donald Trump presidency to be inconceivable. He also thinks a fundamental change in U.S. Foreign Policy is also inconceivable. Could one inconceivable outcome lead to another?
07/05/16•1h 11m
Show 304 - Speed Dating For Delegates
As the U.S. Presidential campaign veers into unprecedented territory Dan sees opportunity in the unusual circumstances. "Anger is an Energy" he says. And he says it AGAIN and AGAIN.
17/04/16•44m 24s
Show 303 - The Way You Play The Game Redux
It's not easy to get under Dan's normally flexible, see-things-from-multiple-angles skin, but Donald Trump's stated willingness to cross traditional American moral fault lines has done just that.
01/04/16•47m 51s
Show 302 - Of Courts, Cooks and Apples
Justice Scalia of the Supreme Court dies and CEO Tim Cook and Apple go toe-to-toe with the U.S. Government over privacy.
26/02/16•56m 9s
Show 301 - Martian Perspectives
In an election where political outsiders are exceeding all expectations, who better than a political outsider to break down the situation? Dan gives his Martian-style post-Iowa analysis and looks ahead to 2020.
06/02/16•52m 4s
Show 300 - Trecenti
Fantasies about electoral chaos, calls for political prudence and martian thoughts on an anti-federal government standoff in Oregon help stuff this episode chock full of what most of you love about this show.
08/01/16•1h 18m
