MODERN CONTEXT with Yasmin Aliya Khan

We continue our story of the history of Ireland, exploring the Easter Rising, the Irish Free State, the Troubles, and finally, independence. But the story doesn't end with independence... is reunification possible by the end of the decade?  

Ireland is a place that's full of lore, culture, and history, and many Americans can trace their roots back to the island. However, the island is also known for enduring centuries of political turmoil, most (or all?) of which came from their neighbors, the English. After suffering through colonization efforts, cultural erasure, exploitation, and even (debatably, but not really) an attempted genocide, the Irish lost a portion of their island to the United Kingdom. Now, Northern Ireland has, for the first time, shown signs of possibly wanting to leave the UK and reunite with the Republic of Ireland.      

I've been reading Dune lately, and while the capitalistic undertones of the story are hardly subtle, it got me thinking about the ways stories and mythologies inform culture and society. In this episode, we'll explore the meaning of life and the way fiction can help us unravel the mysteries of our own existence.  

Many people believe the modern holiday of Valentine's Day originated in the ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia. That may or may not be true, but as religion, governments, and other power systems evolved across Europe and the Middle East, we also saw the roots of a few other modern phenomena emerge.  

Ecuador was once the most peaceful country in South America even though it was bordered by two of the world's largest cocaine producers. However, despite political and economic instability throughout the years, things took a violent turn in Ecuador once a Colombian ceasefire between the government and the cocaine-peddling guerrillas left a power vacuum in the region. Suddenly, warring cartels were fighting for control of valuable trade routes and ports in Ecuador, plunging the country into chaos. Will Ecuador's newly-elected, young, and inexperienced president be able to wrangle his country back from the hands of violent gang members?  

Happy New Year, everyone. To kick off 2024, I thought it'd be a good idea to look back at the first ten episodes of the Modern Context podcast and get some updates on the stories we covered. Before we can move forward, we have to understand where we came from. And so, onward into the future!  

Welcome to the Christmas season, to the nights of Hanukkah, and the days of Yule. It's officially the Winter Solstice and with that comes a litany of winter-related celebrations. Regardless of what you choose to celebrate or how you celebrate, there's one thing that underlies each holiday -- belief. In this episode, we explore the incessant and unceasing influences our beliefs wield over our lives, and the ways in which we see the world and the people in it.

Henry Kissinger is dead. A servant of these United States until his quiet, well-earned death, Kissinger leaves behind a legacy that is either reprehensible and unforgivable or respectable and ingenious -- depends on who you ask. In this episode, we'll look back on the illustrious and horrifying career of a man who's been credited with protecting democracy and ensuring American dominance around the world. Again, depends on who you ask.  

Black Friday is upon us once again. On this, an unapologetically consumerist holiday, if you want to call it that, we celebrate shopping. Commerce. Retail. Profit for the sake of... Christmas. But how did Black Friday come to be, why does it have such a chokehold on the suburbs, and how is its societal impacts and influences changing with the times?

It's hard to get through a holiday season these days without hearing about the problematic histories behind some of our most cherished American traditions. With Thanksgiving just around the corner and the word "genocide" already all over the news and social media, we can expect this holiday season to be especially fraught with complex and difficult-to-process emotions. But does a historical origin story necessarily take away from a modern interpretation of a holiday, or can traditions become separated from their roots to take on a different meaning entirely?

The Guatemalan people have endured centuries of colonial rule, decades of corrupt leadership, and a CIA-backed military coup. The former banana republic has had its lands and its people exploited, and it saw its indigenous Maya population decimated by cruelty and greed. But today, there's hope for a better future in Guatemala. The people have democratically elected Bernardo Alevaro as their next president. Alevaro is a left-leaning progressive who ran on an anti-corruption platform, and he's the son of Juan Jose Alevaro, Guatemala's former president who led the Democratic Revolution of the 1940s. However, corrupt forces within the government are already trying to delegitimize his landslide victory, his party, and his platform. Will Alevaro be allowed to lead the Guatemalan people?  

With the historic ousting of the now-former Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, who will replace him? Also, how did the Speakership find itself just two spots away from the presidency? As the world plunges into fresh chaos, the US government's legislative branch is lagging behind in terms of a response, wasting time that we no longer have on petty squabbles and personal vendettas. Can the House turn itself around?

Last week, Azerbaijan invaded the Nagorno-Karabakh territory after a three-year-long stalemate, expelling the majority Armenian population that lived there. Technically, the land already belongs to Azerbaijan. In fact, the region exists entirely within Azerbaijan's borders. However, Armenians have a historical claim to the area as their ancestors have lived there for centuries. As a listener of this podcast, you know that few things are as cut-and-dry as they appear, so let's find out why there's so much confusion in the first place and what the future could look like for the two nations.    

Title: Existentialism and Exasperation: Coping with Global Uncertainty I think about death a lot, not in a morbid way, but in a reverent way. How about you? In a world where everything feels scary and somewhat hopeless, when the planet is literally revolting against human action, it’s easy and understandable to fall into despair. But maybe the lens of climate change can help us to better understand our relationship with death, our legacy as humans on this planet, and how we can better engage with one another.

Did you catch the first Republican presidential debate last week? Full disclosure: I didn't watch it, but it got me thinking -- in a two-party system when the political spectrum has become so polarized, are debates still a necessary part of our election process? In this episode, we discuss the nature of language and communication, the ways we express ourselves as a culture, and how the culture drives our nation's politics.

What happens when a valuable natural resource is discovered in a small, foreign nation? If history is to be believed, things don’t always work out so well for the small, foreign nation – but is there a chance that they could? Guyana sits on the Atlantic coast of South America, the only English-speaking nation on the continent, populated primarily with displaced diasporas from its time as a British colony. Despite being a neighbor to Venezuela and Brazil, Guyana enjoyed a relatively obscure existence (Jim Jones notwithstanding) – until now. Oil has been discovered in Guyana, and large multinational oil companies are chomping at the bit. In this episode, we’ll explore Guyana’s history with foreign intervention (specifically from the US), we’ll look forward to the impact this small, foreign nation may soon have on the planet, and we’ll explore what it could all mean for the Guyanese people.

Context is lacking, and frankly, it’s a problem. Modern Context is a podcast that delves into the stories behind the headlines–the important people involved, but also the everyday people being affected; the socio-political landscapes influencing them, but also the geo-political landscapes; the ideas being pushed, and the thoughts and feelings those ideas invoke. In each episode, we’ll explore one topic in as much detail as I think a single podcast episode can handle, uncovering the nuance hidden between the cold, hard facts, all in my attempt to put this world into context. I’ll do the hard part for you, but you’re encouraged to continue the journey beyond what I give you. Take what you learn here and keep going. Keep reading. Keep listening. Keep searching. I’m just getting you started.   Email us! hello@modconpod.com Drop in at modconpod.com