The show itself was nothing special. I understand the concept but the interruption with ad breaks killed the flow. Three (3 minute) ad breaks within the first 20 minutes broke the vibe. You’d think it was sponsored by McD. I listened to another show and only had one ad break within the first 15 minutes.

Thank you for your discussion of San Jose State Volleyball Team and trans hate and Trans Moral Panic. It was fascinating to me that the Team Captain who outed her trans teammate was from Alabama. Because in the 50’s and 60’s they were among the southern Colleges who refused to play against northern Colleges that had Black players on their teams. So Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and Idaho refusing to play against SJSU because they have a trans player is just like the discrimination in the past. Disgusting.

Thomas is too positively correct about issues he covers. His evidence is flimsy. His arguments are she’d with lefty politics. He believes he was correct about Bret Weinstein but he was not. That is why he said he thought he could speak with conviction about these other issues. But Bret is a wonderful person and an expert biologist. Thomas is an expert at being enraged about pretend offenses. If you like to here a guy whine about nonsense, this is the podcast for you.

Ever thought news stories sensationalizing, for example, “the woke are coming for your pizza ovens cause of carbon emissions” didn’t sound right? This podcast demonstrates that your instincts are right and grifters gonna grift.

People proud to be woke. What a shame.

There is 4 minutes left in the most recent episode regarding Woke Kindergarten—not once have the hosts mentioned Akiea Gross and her declarations of being anti-Israel, anti-America. She clearly articulates how she feels on social media and it’s not inclusive. Did the hosts not see her posts? I believe everyone is entitled to their opinion but omitting certain details to further highlight how wrong the other political side is wrong. February 4 on x/twitter she says “I believe Israel has no right to exist. I believe the United States has no right to exist. I believe every settler colony who has committed genocide…against indigenous people, has no right to exist.” Or another gem: “White supremacy destroys for the sake of destruction. Abolition destroys for the sake of creation. We are not the same…But y’all are the demons. Y’all are the villains. We’ve been trying to end y’all. Get free of y’all.” Maybe part 2 will address it? Super disappointed.

This show promises to debunk Woke controversies, but so far every episode is “the non-Woke didn’t actually get anything factually wrong, they’re just dumb to not like this Woke thing.” Episode 33 is a great example of this. Not one factual claim was contradicted; it was just a married couple acting like obnoxious kids laughing at and mocking other people for disagreeing with them while advancing zero arguments. Total waste of time.

Ok so context: I’m Black but I was raised by religious fundamentalists who worshipped Reagan and Rush, Oreilly, etc. So for me, some of the episodes are a little difficult to listen to (because of the literal 100s of hours I’ve spent having these arguments shoved down my throat not the sound, sound quality is excellent!) and I don’t always have the bandwidth to listen to every episode all the way through. But I am SO GRATEFUL someone is pulling the receipts on the right wing rage machine, and I recommend the show to everyone who isn’t a political reactionary!

Easily my favorite new pod. It's an intelligent and hilarious answer to a particular flavor of American right-wing rage porn. Thomas and Lydia Smith dig deep into "woke controversies" that have been paraded by fearmongers as evidence that "wokeness" from "the left" is running amok and must be stopped. The Smiths examine newspapers, court documents, government records, social media, and have even begun to FOIA their own information to deliver as complete a picture as possible. Turns out that where there's woke, there's liars.

I agree with Thomas on 99.5% of stuff. Didn’t disagree with him really once in the first episode, but can’t listen beyond it. He starts off a series about people being anti-equality by re-victimizing a person and acknowledging people are still going after her today, without any awareness he’s feeding into that. Oh, & screw Dawkins, Amazing Atheist, & Opening Arguments’ Torrez.

The term “woke” originally meant awareness of systemic racism. And… somehow that became a bad thing? If you’re pro-ignorance and anti-awareness — e.g., anti-woke — then I guess you won’t like this podcast. And, hey, I get that sometimes ignorance is bliss. We’re all veterans of a forked-up world, and it may seem easier to ignore it all. But that head-in-the-sand approach only makes the world more forked-up. Thomas and (often) his wife take the opposite tack. They delve into the issues with a fine tooth comb. You will get deep dives within deep dives. Honestly, there have been moments when I wondered, why does all this detail this matter? The show can take its time getting there. But I’ve stuck with it, and I’m glad I did. Basically, this is a show about power and influence—and how it gets used and abused in America. The anti-woke movement wants to continue their abuse — their racism, misogyny, queerphobia, etc. — by pretending that progressive outrage is over-dramatic. This podcast exposes the evil behind the mask, the bigotry behind the façade of anti-woke “reasonableness.”

I’ve listened to Thomas’ other podcasts for years and was super excited about this concept. On paper it’s a slam dunk - think “You're Wrong About” but focused on right-wing outrage stories. Great idea! Unfortunately, Thomas is too all over the place to make this work. Episodes are released sporadically, sometimes with weeks in between, probably because Thomas is busy with his two other podcasts. When episodes do come out, they often feel thin and under-researched, with a lot of time spent on repetitive rants and ads. In his other projects, his guests and co-hosts have kept him on track, but this time around there isn’t always someone to do that. Now it sounds like his wife is becoming the co-host, which is fine, but they spend a lot of time calling each other “hun” and letting each other go on tangents. It doesn’t feel as well structured or put together as his other shows. What finally made me leave this review was the most recent two episodes. The first introduces an interesting story - a professor is supposedly punished for using derogatory language in an exam question. But what’s the real story? Well, Thomas won’t tell you in the hour-long part one. Neither will he tell you in the hour-and-fifteen-minute long part two. No, to get to the actual conclusion of the premise he set up, you need to go to his PATREON and pay to find out! (I guess the six ad breaks per episode aren’t paying the bills.) I know podcasting is a lot of work, especially a show that requires research and preparation, but you need to demonstrate that you’re making a show worth my patronage, not just bait me with a good premise and then demand money for the payoff. I was a patreon contributor to Thomas’ other shows in the past, but I won’t be giving to this one and I can’t recommend it to others.

Another smash hit podcast from Thomas Smith! I’ve listened to Thomas for years and years. This is a great podcast—much needed information and perspective for the times we live in. Perfect delivery and research with heart and humor from Thomas.

I’ve listened to most of Thomas’s other podcasts, and the idea behind this one has potential but it’s to whiney and unfocused. Get to the point.

Love the theme of this podcast. Very meticulously researched content presented as a story told with humor and humanity. Thank you, Thomas!

Have you ever been to a party where one person cares about internet culture wars way more than everyone else, but can’t stop themselves from ranting about it for hours on end? This is that feeling in podcast form.

This podcast is still a new thing, but so far it’s really awesome.

I feel like I’m going to learn so much from this. I’m really looking forward to future episodes.

Great idea - poor execution. Long time listener of Thomas Smith from OA, SIO, and DoDs. What makes Thomas so good in those shows is he’s complimented by other hosts. In a solo show Thomas uses the time to just rant away about the topic instead of keeping the story going. It took over 20 minutes into the second episode to even get to the point. Thomas needs a cohost to keep him on track and balance out his emotional ranting with better constructed arguments. I’d normally give the show more time but Thomas has been podcasting forever, I expected more from him.

Great new show from Thomas Smith - I’ve been listening since the Thomas and the Bible days, so I go way back, and I never miss one of his shows!

Thomas mentions in the beginning, the void of rational “counter-counter-woke” discussion. I too have felt that void. The Bill Mahers & New York Times of the world have lost their credibility and their morality. They parrot and amplify the fear of change that so many people devolve to when confronted with others’ pain and desire for an improved world. Even though there’s only one episode out, I know this will be a fantastic show. Thomas is one of the best podcasters out there. Everything he does has a unique charm, comedy, and personality. Can’t wait to hear more!

My dad watches Fox News all the time. And my mom recently asked me what “woke” means. Thomas and his guests save you from the insanity. This couldn't have come at a better time! Quality like Thomas’ other projects! Did not see this coming but so happy to have it!

This pod shows that there’s nothing new to the culture wars and gives info about why what’s happening now with the “war on woke”, feels so familiar…we’ve been here before. Facts! History rhymes, repeats, and is recycled for the time it is in…keeping folks distracted from what’s going on, that’s REALLY the true story. Very well researched, backed-up by facts (how novel). This easy to follow/understand pod is a peek behind the curtain!

Pod

This is such a great premise for a show. As always, Thomas crushes every topic. The show as rational, well-informed, conversational, and funny. I really, genuinely love that Thomas does not feel the need to legitimize bad actors. In a little bit of irony, Thomas is super not “woke”. So often, when discussing these subjects, people on the left attempt to explain “both sides”. Thomas isn’t giving people arguing in bad faith any quarter. That is so necessary right now.

Another great podcast by Thomas. Looking forward to future episodes