Tag: Politics

On Being Authentic Online

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 2 Comments

You might have noticed a subtle change in my work over the past few months. I’m covering more controversial topics and guests. This is less rooted in some over-arching ideal, and more so fatigue. After years of being an online content creator, I’m straining under the pressure of being one person online and another person in real life. The stress is subtle but persistent, and I’ve decided that, in order to be sustainable as a creator, I need more cohesion between my on and offline personas.

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Sacred Tension: Conform Or Be Cast Out with Logan Albright

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ Leave a comment

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I speak with pagan, author, and libertarian anarchist Logan Albright about his book Conform Or Be Cast Out. We discuss the literal demonization of outsiders, how to interact with political and ideological outsiders, and much more. Find his work at loganalbright.com

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Sacred Tension: Conspiracy Insurrection with Lucien Greaves

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In this episode I’m joined once again by Lucien Greaves, co-founder and spokesperson for The Satanic Temple. We discuss the insurrection at the capitol, the role conspiracy theories play in American politics, the quagmire of tech platforms and free speech, and what he thinks of breakfast foods.

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[UNLOCKED] House of Heretics: Cat Ejaculation

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This is an unlocked episode of my patrons-only podcast House of Heretics. To become a patron and get access to House of Heretics, sign up here: https://www.patreon.com/StephenBradfordLong

In this episode, Timothy and I discuss the insanity of twitter, the impeachment of Trump, how stoicism is helping me cope with current politics, the awomen “controversy,” and whether neutered cats can ejaculate.

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I’m a Satanist, Not a Leftist

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 3 Comments

The title of this article is, of course, something of a trick. If you know me or are even remotely familiar with my work, you know that I am robustly of the left. I am somewhere on the Social Democrat to Democratic Socialist spectrum, and I am pro sex work, pro degeneracy, and pro sex positivity. I believe every billionaire is a blight on the human race and a failure of our system. I believe Black Lives Matter, that trans women are women and that trans men are men. I believe we should have a broad social safety net, correct climate change, and empower minorities. If you gave me a list of leftist mantras and talking points, I would affirm most of them.

Instead, this title has to do with where I place my own identity, with how I name myself to myself. When I look at myself in a cognitive mirror, what do I see, first and foremost? What words do I use to filter the unfathomable complexity of self into a single narrative?

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Sacred Tension: Self Care, Politics, and Big Data with Penemue

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 1 Comment

In this stripped-down, unedited episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by my friend Priest Penemue for a long conversation about leftist politics, how we are practicing self care during the COVID-19 pandemic, and his insider perspective on digital privacy and big data.

You can listen to this episode on Podbean, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, your favorite podcast app, or on the player below.

You can watch the video version of the conversation on Penemue’s patreon Here.

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The Inner and Outer Kingdoms: On News and Anxiety

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 1 Comment

Yesterday morning, I woke up feeling sick to my stomach. I instantly knew what it was: I had ingested so much news, so much anxiety about the world, that I was making myself sick.

I felt trapped in my illness: I felt obligated to stay engaged with the news, to stay glued to the screen of my computer, to witness each horrifying executive order, each breakdown of democracy. Yesterday, I realized that I was killing myself, quite literally: my cortisol levels were in overdrive, flooding my blood stream. If I allowed that to continue, it would cripple every system in my body. I was allowing myself to get lost in anxiety, losing the anchor of my soul.

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Living Mindfully in a Kingdom of Fear

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 7 Comments

Like many, I watched in horror as America elected a narcissistic bully as our next president. Like many, I was overwhelmed by despair, panic, and grief, and astonished by the intensity of my feelings. A serene voice in my head repeated, over and over, “There, there, things might not be that bad. We don’t know the future. Maybe he won’t be a complete unmitigated monster.” And yet I couldn’t curtail the horror, disgust, and panic that was rising within me. I couldn’t sleep, I drank too much, I was a morose basket case. I couldn’t get out of my head the circus of obscenities that we had all been exposed to: the abuses, the lies, the disregard for the beams of democracy, the Caligula-like grandiosity of Donald Trump. Now we are to live with such disgust – and whatever other follies may come – for the next four years.

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