My guest today is Dr. Butch Ware – historian, professor, and Green Party candidate for Governor of California. In this episode, Dr. Ware argues that the Democrat-Republican duopoly serves the same corporate donors, wages the same wars, and has delivered the same failed outcomes for working people – and that California's 2026 governor's race is a chance for something better. We get into why the lesser-of-two-evils argument keeps well-intentioned voters trapped, what a world built around universal healthcare, housing, and human rights could look like, and how the ongoing collapse of the US empire might be the political opportunity progressives have been waiting for.

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Note: Dr. Ware is currently appealing a legal decision (made after we recorded) that would remove his name from the California ballot. His social media channels will have updates on the status of his appeal 👇

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TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@butch.ware

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00:00 Intro: The extinction burst of American empire

00:58 Introducing Dr. Butch Ware

01:34 The viability of third party politics in California

08:00 The “lesser of two evils” trap

14:53 The corporate power behind both major parties

21:17 The extinction burst of the American empire & what comes next

24:52 What comes after empire? A vision for a care economy

35:39 Why a care economy is better for everyone

39:28 The stock market is not the economy

44:22 War, capitalism and resource extraction

49:37 Investing in wellbeing instead of empire

55:15 The UK Green Party breakthrough

1:01:05 Policy Vision: Healthcare, Housing, and Human Rights

1:10:41 Why Dr. Ware & the Greens can win

1:15:08 Conclusion

Host/Creator: Michael Mezzatesta

Guest: Dr. Butch Ware

Editor: Nuria Salgado

Designer: Amea Wadsworth

Thanks for watching episode 011. Lots more on the way.