Today we’re joined by Bill Fletcher Jr. Over 2 years ago, this longtime USA-based labor and social justice activist was on TFTT to talk about the threats of what was then a theoretical disaster: a second Trump administration. I’m sorry to say that our predictions came true, and I don’t think I have to tell any of you how disastrous the 2nd Trump admin has been, even by the low standards of the first iteration. This is why I wanted to have Bill on again, partly to reflect on these past 2 years of Trump 2, its impact on both the US and the world, but also, along the way, what we have learned on how to prepare ourselves against the ongoing dangers of authoritarianism and fascism. Bill also put his organiser’s hat on to tell us how to better organise our side in order to take on our opponents.Book Recs:Russia’s New Imperialism: Capital and Ideology by Ilya Budraitskis and Ilya MatveevNeither Settler nor Native: The Making and Unmaking of Permanent Minorities by Mahmood MamdaniThe Years Of Rice And Salt by Kim Stanley RobinsonFilm Recs:Exterminate All the BrutesBlade Runner (both)Series: Strategist KanbeiBill’s novels:The Man Who Fell From the SkyThe Man Who Changed ColorsAdmin:You can still register for my November class, the 5th and last class on modern Lebanese history and politics before I take a long break from it all. If you’ve ever wanted to learn more about Lebanon and why it matters so much to today’s geopolitical nightmare, I think you’ll benefit from taking this class. I also wanna make the case for joining the Patreon of TFTT at Patreon.com/thefirethesetimesNot only do you get early access to everything I do as well as other perks such as the monthly hangouts and exclusive video interviews, but you only need to commit to the first year. It’s cheaper to subscribe on a yearly basis anyway, but I understand that not everyone can commit for longer than that. If that’s you, please know that you can continue being on the Patreon for free after that initial year. Just message me closer to the date and I’ll send you a free invite. That initial support is, I’m hoping, enough for me to make this project financially sustainable, and I’m grateful for the 200 or so listeners who currently support TFTT on Patreon. Just a note: If you have an iPhone, I recommend subscribing from a browser instead of your Patreon application as it’s less expensive for you to do so since Apple decided it can rip people off through the Patreon app.Newsletter: Subscribe to HauntologiesSocial Media: I'm on Bluesky and Instagram.Contact: To collaborate, reach out on ayoub@thefirethesetimes.com / Signal @ Ayoub.02Credit: Elia Ayoub (host, sound editor, episode design), the rosa artist (TFTT theme design, 2026-), Rap and Revenge⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (Music), ⁠⁠⁠Wenyi Geng⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (TFTT theme design, 2022-2026),⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠Hisham Rifai⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (FTP theme design),⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠Molly Crabapple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (FTP team profile pics) and ⁠⁠⁠Antidote Zine⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (Transcriptions).