We The 66

Ep. 13 This Harvard Physicist Is Hunting for Alien Civilizations

Harvard Professor Avi Loeb is one of the world's leading theoretical physicists and the founder of the Galileo Project, which seeks to find alien civilizations in the universe. Our conversation with Professor Loeb proved to be highly educational: He gave us a brief history of the universe, discussed the recipe for designing "baby universes," explained why we still can't understand the history of our own universe, shared his encounters with alien objects, reveals why he thinks many of his colleagues are arrogant, and opens up about what he really thinks of UFOs. We found the conversation to be fascinating and super informative, and hope you do as well.
 
Comment what questions you'd like to hear more about because we intend to have him on again. Please make sure to subscribe and thank you for listening!

Ep. 12 Ex-NYT Journalist: A Prophet of Covid and Cannabis? Or the World's "Wrongest Man"?

To some, Alex Berenson was the "pandemic's wrongest man." To others, he was a prophet, whose Covid and vaccine predictions -- although deeply unpopular and ultimately the reason for his ban from Twitter -- came true. A graduate of Yale University, Alex Berenson got a job as a journalist at The New York Times around 2000. During his award-winning 10-year tenure at the paper, he covered the pharma industry, Bernie Madoff, Hurricane Katrina, and the Iraq War. He ultimately left the newspaper to become a novelist, which proved a more lucrative and comfortable career. Then, in 2019, he published a book on the link between cannabis and psychosis called "Tell Your Children." From Joe Rogan, on whose podcast Berenson has appeared multiple times, to establishment scientists, critics accused him of cherry-picking data and being alarmist. Today, however, his cannabis research is less controversial. In 2020, in the early days of the pandemic, Berenson became a critic of the federal government's response to Covid. He called BS on lockdowns, mask mandates, contact tracing, and more. Then, when the vaccine came out, he raised questions about the clinical trials, saying they were run poorly and predicting that the vaccine may have significant side effects. In late summer 2021, he sent a tweet saying the vaccines would be "at best a therapeutic," and Twitter banned him. He sued Twitter and won the appeal, and has since sued the federal government for colluding with Twitter to ban him. He sat down with RocaNews co-founders Max Frost and Max Towey to discuss his lawsuit, censorship, his pandemic views, his cannabis views, and much more. Make sure to subscribe and please send your questions/thoughts/feedback to wethe66@rocanews.com.

Ep. 11 Brooklyn Mom with Open Marriage Thinks You’re Wrong About Polyamory

About 10 years ago, Molly Winter decided she wanted to start seeing new men. She was an English teacher in Brooklyn at the time and felt that boyfriends would help spice up her life. That may sound entirely normal, but what made it unique is that Molly Winter was also a married mom. She and her husband then proceeded to open up their marriage. They first went on dating apps, and after 10 years of dating different people remain happily married. Or so she says. We interviewed Molly about her adventures into polyamory and her new New York Times bestseller "More." If you have any thoughts, questions, or feedback, please email us at wethe66@rocanews.com. Thank you for listening, and it would help us out if you hit subscribe!

Ep.10 Which Colleges Are the Best and Worst at Free Speech? Greg Lukianoff Gives Report Card on Campus Free Speech

Greg Lukianoff is perhaps the leading expert on free speech on college campuses -- and now even off college campuses. He is the president of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) and co-author of the #1 New York Times best-seller "The Coddling of the American Mind." In this conversation, we asked Greg about the history of free speech on college campuses, how the First Amendment applies to private colleges, how college students became so fragile, and also a number of topical questions: Were the rights of pro-Palestine student protesters violated? Is the Antisemitism Bill that the House just passed legal? Why is Harvard so bad with free speech? Are the pro-Palestine encampments civil disobedience or free speech? We hope you enjoy the conversation and check out Greg's new book "The Canceling of the American Mind." If you have any suggestions or questions, please send us an email at wethe66@rocanews.com.

Ep. 9 "Pastor of the Hood"on Fighting Gun Violence in Philly and Going from Crime to Christ

Pastor Carl Day, known as the "Pastor of the Hood" was once the type of youth he's now trying to help. He grew up in a rough north Philly neighborhood without a dad and quickly fell into a life of crime. He had a kid at 18 and was charged with attempted murder and armed robbery a few years later. He spent the next three years in prison or on house arrest. It turns out those years were the best thing that ever happened to him. His conversion to Christianity -- already in the works before getting locked up -- flourished in prison and on house arrest. Today he runs a ministry called Culture Changing Christians. His goals are to help put at-risk youth on a path to a better life -- away from drugs, crime, and the streets. He took us through Kensington, the worst neighborhood in Philly, after the interview. Stay tuned for that, too!

Ep.8 Winston Marshall on Leaving Mumford & Sons, Debating Nancy Pelosi, and Fighting Cancel Culture

In 2021, Winston Marshall was the lead guitarist of Mumford & Sons, one of the most successful rock bands of the 21st century. He co-founded the band in 2007 and was instrumental (no pun intended) to its extraordinary success. Then, after Tweeting a positive review of conservative journalist Andy Ngo's new book on the radical left's violence in 2020, a mob came after him. They bombarded him, his family, and bandmates with threats. He eventually apologized but later reneged on the apology and left the band. In the years since, he has become an outspoken defender of free speech and the importance of open discourse. He has since founded the Dissident Dialogues, which will be hosting its inaugural event in Brooklyn this weekend. In this interview, the RocaNews co-founders Max Frost and Max Towey ask him about his experience of getting canceled, his relationship with the band today, his time debating Nancy Pelosi, and what he's doing in this next chapter of his life.

Ep. 7 Inside Gaza: Doctor Gives Insight into Palestinian Morale, Health, and Everyday Life

Dr. David Hasan, a professor of neurosurgery at Duke University, was among the first cohort of doctors to enter Gaza in the wake of October 7th. It was late December 2023, and he had no clue what to expect. Although his visit was emotionally shattering, he later returned to Gaza in March and plans to do so again in June. Hasan discusses the morale of the Palestinian people, state of the Gazan hospitals, humanitarian efforts in the works, and so much more. We asked him if he's seen the Hamas tunnels, how his re-adjustment to life in America has been, what people in Gaza do all day, and so much more. If you enjoy the episode please like and subscribe. Also, we apologize for the poor audio quality! Hope the subtitles (done by scratch, so pardon the typos) help! 🌊

Ep. 6 Inside Gaza: John Spencer's Eyewitness Account of Israel-Hamas Conflict

Today we bring you an interview with John Spencer, an expert in urban warfare who serves as the chair of urban warfare studies at the Military Institute at West Point and has visited Gaza twice since October 7th. John Spencer is a US military veteran himself. He served for 25 years in the Army including two combat deployments to Iraq as both an infantry platoon leader and company commander. We first came across John from his op-eds in the Wall Street Journal about the war in Gaza. John brings a unique perspective to the Israel-Hamas War. As a military expert, he’s seen Gaza in the company of the IDF, so we will follow this episode with a Thursday one on a doctor who's seen Gaza through the eyes of the Palestinians.

Ep.5 Steven Pinker on Wokeness, Progress, and How Harvard Has Changed

Steven Pinker is the guest on the latest episode of We The 66. He defended his thesis in "Enlightenment Now" and shared how progress isn't linear, which might explain the backsliding in various areas over the last decade. He also discussed wokeness, free speech, and how Harvard his changed. He continues to defend the Enlightenment and argues that our elite institutions have ushered in a culture of self-censorship. He also shared more about his friendship with Bill Gates and his visit to the World Economic Forum, among other things. 

Ep. 4 "I Was Dead for Seven Minutes"

A member of the Roca community, Michael Colgan, sent us a rather surprising message: He said he died for 7 minutes when he was a college student. At first, we didn't know if this was a joke, but we were curious. We reached out to him and brought him into the studio for an interview. He tell us his story, which was both terrifying and inspiring. It all happened during his senior year at Ohio State. Huge thanks to Michael for sharing his story. We end up the episode, by the way, with some fun trivia. Make sure to subscribe and thank you all for your support.