KunstlerCast - Suburban Sprawl: A Tragic Comedy
James Howard Kunstler, author of The Geography of Nowhere, The Long Emergency, and World Made By Hand, takes on the converging catastrophes of the 21st century. Features a new guest each month. (Note: Episodes 1 - 214 featured conversations between Duncan Crary and JHK during the years 2008 through 2012 and focused on the topics of suburban sprawl, disposable architecture and the end of the cheap oil era.)

James Howard Kunstler discusses and reads from his novella, A Christmas Orphan -- the story of a young boy from the big city who runs away on Christmas Eve to small-town Vermont. JHK explains how this story deals with many of the issues he writes about in his nonfiction commentary on our living arrangements of the late 20th and 21st centuries. A Christmas Orphan is available for purchase at http://Northshire.com. Music used by permission of IODA Promonet.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_138.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:26am EDT

JHK shares his thoughts on a recent visit to the San Francisco Bay Area and the greater Los Angeles region in the final chapter in his Witch of Hebron book tour.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_137.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 7:10pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler reports on his recent trip to Perth, Australia. He joins host Duncan Crary by telephone during a long layover at the LAX aiport on the return trip. Kunstler found Perth to be a very pleasant city with good urbanism and public transit. And in spite of an enthusiasm for suruban development, the center city is very dense. However, he believes Australians may be caught off guard by the coming geopolitical changes of the Long Emergency.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_136.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:14pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler continues his discussion of Melbourne, Australia based on his recent visit to that country to speak at the VIC Urban conference. In this podcast, JHK touches upon the Australia housing bubble and the fate of suburiba there; the Australian economy, and geopolitical issues facing the Australia continent.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_135.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 12:09pm EDT

Jim shares his observations of Melbourne, Australia based on his recent visit to that city to speak to the VIC Urban organization. Though he was impressed by the downtown, JHK says the areas outside Melbourne look a lot like the suburban areas of Southern California. One of his stops was Aurora, a so-called "green suburb" that failed to impress. Finally, JHK shares his adventures in the countryside beyond the Australian suburbs.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_134.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 7:06pm EDT

JHK shares his thoughts on the recent U.S. midterm elections, the Tea Party, Jon Stewart's Rally for Sanity, and the problems of progressivisim.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_133.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 11:33pm EDT

JHK shares his observations of Boulder, Colorado and Minneapolis, Minnesota--two cities that do not live up to their reputation for entirely different reasons.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_132.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 5:27pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler discusses Portland, Oregon, an American city that did a lot of things right. Topics include: the urban growth boundary, architecture, transit and political attitudes.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_131.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 7:05pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler shares his observations of Seattle based on his recent trip to that city. He believes that the Queen Anne Hill neighborhood gives one an idea of what the best of American urbanism can be, inspite of some clunky housing types. Though downtown is active and fairly pleasant, JHK has ominous feelings about the future of its many glass apartment towers. Kunstler also describes the Capitol Hill neighborhood, University District, Pike Place Market and Pioneer Square. He talks about riding the bus and the lessons we can learn from the lame monorail. Seattle is also home to the ubiquitous coffee chain Starbucks, which has many downsides to it, but which has also introduced some culture to certain places that had previously lacked any sort of "third place."

Direct download: KunstlerCast_130.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 3:13pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler examines the last ditch effort of some states to try to generate revenue through casinos. Kunstler believes gambling is a marginal activity that states should not be pushing into the mainstream. Also featured in this episode is a short clip from JHK's one hour interview on KBOO public radio in Portland, Ore.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_129.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 5:03pm EDT

JHK checks in with Duncan via phone during the West Coast leg of his book tour for The Witch of Hebron. He shares his recent observations from visiting New Orleans; Portsmouth and Exeter, N.H.; and Bellingham, WA.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_128.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 7:58pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler explains the Tragedy of the Commons, as first described by Garrett Hardin in 1968, as how this philosophical theory relates to the public realm, suburbia, private property, commerce, environmentalism and concepts of freedom. This episode also includes a short radio story produced by MichiganNow.org featuring a walking tour by JHK in Bay City, Michigan. Special thanks to http://www.michigannow.org/

Direct download: KunstlerCast_127.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 4:35pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler joins Duncan by phone from his hotel room in New Orleans. Their conversation moves from Dearborn, Michigan to the failings of the airline industry, to Burlington, Vt., to the potential of Thorium, the so-called "green" nuclear energy source, to the Boomer generation's parting gift to future generations.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_126.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 8:57pm EDT

Duncan asks JHK what he would say to the American people of 1946 if he had the means to travel back in time. What would Kunstler tell them about the suburban dream as promised to them? Would they listen?

Direct download: KunstlerCast_125.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 6:17pm EDT

The KunstlerCast will return next week. Duncan was flown to LA at the last minute to appear on a daytime TV show. He also wandered into the midst of a real LA riot. He's fine and will return next week with JHK and lots of good fodder for the podcast. Thanks for your patience.

Direct download: kunstlercast-update.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 5:06pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler muses on The American Vacation and why the act of vacationing in American has become so stressful and unpleasant. He also shares his observations on Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, three states he visited during his own recent vacation. Kunstler doesn't believe that motor-based tourism will be around for much longer...and that's probably a good thing.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_124.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 6:23pm EDT

Journalist/Author Peter Golden interviews James Howard Kunstler about The Witch of Hebron, the second novel in Kunstler's World Made By Hand series. Without giving away any major plot points, Golden explores the major themes in this Autumn story set in a world after the lights have flickered out and the oil has dried up. Topics include: the rule of law, the importance of ritual holidays, and the role of religion in a tight-knit community. In this novel, Kunstler has revealed more about the circumstances that have placed his characters in a world without modernity. Golden aks if Kunstler believes that people are happier in this imagined future than they are in today's high tech world. Music: "Be Thou My Vision," performed by Ed Lowman & John Kirk, recorded specially for the World Made By Hand series.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_123.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 9:21pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler reads Chapter 13 from his post-oil novel The Witch of Hebron (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2010). Music: "Duck River," performed by Matt Brown. Used by permission. Available for purchase through 5-String Productions. http://www.5-string.com

Direct download: JHK_WOH_Reading_Ch13.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:48pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler reads the first chapter of his post-oil novel The Witch of Hebron (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2010). Music: "McCully's Waltz," performed by Ed Lowman & John Kirk, recorded specially for the World Made By Hand series.

Direct download: JHK_WOH_Reading_Ch1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:32pm EDT

Author James Howard Kunstler reads Chapter Thirty-Eight from his post-oil novel, The Witch of Hebron (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2010). Music: "Sweet Rosey Cheeks," performed by Ed Lowman & John Kirk, recorded specially for the World Made By Hand series.

Direct download: JHK_Witch_Of_Hebron_Reading_Ch38.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:16pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler takes a look at the systematic failures of our finanical future and the efforts by the U.S. government to sustain the unsustainable.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_122.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 3:37pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler muses on the suburban family living arrangement--past, present, future. Points of discussion include: adult kids living at home, caring for seniors, living in closer proximity to family members.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_121.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 4:18pm EDT

A listener asks what other ways average folks can combat sprawl without becoming a professional urban planner. JHK shares the story of his personal choice in 1970s to leave the big city and consciously live in a small American town with a livable urban fabric.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_120.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 4:27pm EDT

JHK explores a mostly abandoned low-income housing project in Duncan's neighborhood. Two of the three 9-story brick "vertical slums" are boarded up and abandoned. They come complete with their own "rape-o-matic" tunnel for pedestrians to travel under the bridge ramp that separates them. Kunstler says these "towers in a park" are based on the ideas of Le Corbusier, the Swiss-French architect/planner whose "Radiant City" plans envisioned turning the right bank of Paris into a series of high rise towers connected by highways. Corbu's plans were not implemented in Paris, but his ideas didn't die. In fact they morphed into what are commonly known as "the projects," low-income high rise towers all around the U.S. and indeed the world. Taking inspiration by the housing projects in Troy, Kunstler explains the history of this style of low-income housing and its detrimental side effects. Sponsor: PostCarbon.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_119.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 1:18pm EDT

JHK explores a mostly abandoned low-income housing project in Duncan's neighborhood. Two of the three 9-story brick "vertical slums" are boarded up and abandoned. They come complete with their own "rape-o-matic" tunnel for pedestrians to travel under the bridge ramp that separates them. Kunstler says these "towers in a park" are based on the ideas of Le Corbusier, the Swiss-French architect/planner whose "Radiant City" plans envisioned turning the right bank of Paris into a series of high rise towers connected by highways. Corbu's plans were not implemented in Paris, but his ideas didn't die. In fact they morphed into what are commonly known as "the projects," low-income high rise towers all around the U.S. and indeed the world. Taking inspiration by the housing projects in Troy, Kunstler explains the history of this style of low-income housing and its detrimental side effects. Sponsor: PostCarbon.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_119-Enhanced.m4a
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 1:04pm EDT

JHK and Duncan celebrate the Fourth of July by touring Uncle Sam's neighborhood. They stroll down Second Street in Troy NY, admiring the 19th century architecture along the way. Destinations include: Russell Sage College, the county court house and one of only two privately owned and maintained residential green squares in New York state (the other is the famous Gramercy Park in Manhattan). They speak to some workers laying a stone street by hand, and explore the alley in an exclusive neighborhood. Sponsor: PostCarbon.org
Direct download: KunstlerCast_118-Audio-Only.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:43pm EDT

JHK and Duncan celebrate the Fourth of July by touring Uncle Sam's neighborhood. They stroll down Second Street in Troy NY, admiring the 19th century architecture along the way. Destinations include: Russell Sage College, the county court house and one of only two privately owned and maintained residential green squares in New York state (the other is the famous Gramercy Park in Manhattan). They speak to some workers laying a stone street by hand, and explore the alley in an exclusive neighborhood.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_118-Enhanced.m4a
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 7:21pm EDT


James Howard Kunstler reports on his recent visit to Berlin, Germany...the one place where people know how to pronounce his name correctly. Thirteen years ago, James Howard Kunstler traveled to Berlin, Germany to research a chapter for his third nonfiction book, The City in Mind. On his recent trip, he discovered that the place has healed remarkably over the past decade. Of course he had to go check in on the Führerbunker which is now the site of one of Berlin's few surface parking lots. JHK notes that history is a great prankster and therefore it's no surprise that while the U.S. won the war against Germany, it's cities looked bombed out. While Germany lost the war and its cities are beautiful, civilized places. Listeners  end the show with their reactions to the BP oil spill. Listeners end the show by sharing their reactions to the BP oil spill. Sponsor: Post Carbon Institute, http://postcarbon.org
Direct download: KunstlerCast_117.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:20pm EDT

JHK examines the tragic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the fog of incomplete information that surrounds it. Kunstler sees this incident as further proof that the peak oil story is real. Now that the low hanging fruit of our oil resources has been plucked, the paradigms of our car-dependent society are forcing us to drill under difficult conditions that are hard to control. The return of $4 gallons of gasoline is not far around the next corner and the trauma from this event is already provoking strange emotional outbursts and pockets of denial from the public who do not want to get off the path of Happy Motoring. JHK also believes that the escalating and increasing failures of liberal democracy in the U.S. are getting to the point where American people don't trust the government to be competent anymore. Ecological disasters are amplifying economic disasters, which are feeding a political disaster. In the end, this event may accelerate the process of America rethinking how its living and whether in fact maybe what we're doing is insane, especially this campaign to sustain the unsustainable which is underway. Sponsor: http://PostCarbon.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_116.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 3:41pm EDT

JHK examines the tragic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the fog of incomplete information that surrounds it. Kunstler sees this incident as further proof that the peak oil story is real. Now that the low hanging fruit of our oil resources has been plucked, the paradigms of our car-dependent society are forcing us to drill under difficult conditions that are hard to control. The return of $4 gallons of gasoline is not far around the next corner and the trauma from this event is already provoking strange emotional outbursts and pockets of denial from the public who do not want to get off the path of Happy Motoring. JHK also believes that the escalating and increasing failures of liberal democracy in the U.S. are getting to the point where American people don't trust the government to be competent anymore. Ecological disasters are amplifying economic disasters, which are feeding a political disaster. In the end, this event may accelerate the process of America rethinking how its living and whether in fact maybe what we're doing is insane, especially this campaign to sustain the unsustainable which is underway. Sponsor: http://PostCarbon.org

Category:podcasts -- posted at: 11:30am EDT

James Howard Kunstler shares his observations from a recent visit to Atlanta, Ga.
Direct download: KunstlerCast_115.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:52pm EDT

KunstlerCast #114: Agrarian Urbanism

James Howard Kunstler recently returned from the 18th Annual Congress for the New Urbanism. Agrarian urbanism was a hot topic among many New Urbanists at the Congress and in this episode Kunstler takes the time to explore the topic of food production in cities. Rising energy prices and poor growing weather may lead to global food shortages, but JHK believes that the idea of feeding the U.S. population with rooftop gardens and skyscraper terrariums is absurd. Gardening and even raising certain animals in the city was a normal part of urban life before World War II and we may see a return of some of those practices. But Kunstler believes that it is important to cut through some of the fantasies to figure out what's really possible. We must also be careful not to confuse the urban with the rural.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_114.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 12:47pm EDT

KunstlerCast #113: Pit Bulls in the China Shop

Using the example of a recent gimmick to allow dogs into the stores in downtown Saratoga Springs, James Howard Kunstler examines the topic of decorum in the public realm. JHK believes that Americans struggle with boundary issues and evaluating appropriate behavior, which may explain the increased presence of pet dogs in inappropriate venues. Vicious dogs, which have become the latest "urban" accessory, add an even more troubling dynamic to the streetscape. The situation gets worse when dog owners leave their pet's droppings in the sidewalk. Kunstler notes that dogs have always played a role in city life, but now we rarely employ dogs in the traditional roles that they were bred for. And listlessness leads to bad behavior in all mammals, dogs and humans included. Sponsor: http://paulrapp.com.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_113.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:13pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler examines the politics of place. Are the suburbs more conservative than cities? Why are people who try to conserve the historic fabric of their towns branded as radical liberals, while the agents of destruction in those towns call themselves "conservative?" What is the historical relationship between political ideas and the places where they originate from? JHK addresses these questions in today's episode. Sponsor: http://audiblepodcast.com/kunstler

Direct download: KunstlerCast_112.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:35pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler explains the origins of brutalism, the modernist architectural style that resulted in the horrible, poured concrete bunker-like buildings found all across the world. JHK explains why these concrete buildings age more rapidly, and less gracefully, than Roman concrete buildings. He also tells the story of how Hitler inspired (indirectly) these despotic structures. Specific examples of brutalist buildings discussed in this episode are: Boston City Hall, Troy City Hall, the Paul Rudolph building at Yale University and The Third Church of Christ, Scientist, in Washington, D.C.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_111.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 3:17pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler explains what it means to build to the human scale and how our modern built environment fails to do this.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_110.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 11:37am EDT

<p> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> James Howard Kunstler shares some stories from his days writing for Rolling Stone magazine in the 1970s.  He reflects on the role that technology played in creating the mind-blowing music that defined a generation.  He also wonders about the future of popular music as we head into the Long Emergency. </p>

 

Direct download: KunstlerCast_109.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

James Howard Kunstler believes that the virtual is not an adequate replacement for the authentic. In spite of how appealing and ingenious we may find virtual life, it is not as good as real life. Kunstler calls the Internet "the world's most amazing distraction from reality that has ever been invented" and he notes that it appeared just at a time when we are in desperate need to attend to the major troubles facing our society. Online spaces now serve as our "third place," but that often occurs at the expense of our tangible public realm. Kunstler says the sense of place in the U.S. was severely damaged well before the Internet came along, but he wonders if there is a link between our impoverished public realm and our increasing desire to inhabit the Internet landscape. Other areas of discussion include: the Internet as "green," the enterprise of "infotainment" and the effects of digital communication on human interaction. Sponsor: www.CNU18.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_108.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 12:40pm EDT

This conversation was recorded one day before James Howard Kunstler was scheduled to debate Randal O'Toole at Brown University in Providence, RI. O'Toole is a well-known advocate for the suburban living arrangement. Host Duncan Crary chats with JHK about the pro-suburbia arguments in preparation for the debate. JHK refutes some of the major arguments used by sprawl defenders, including the notions that sprawl is good because people choose it and that sprawl represents liberty. JHK also notes that while the infrastructure required to deliver suburbia is extremely subsidized with government money, many sprawl defenders argue against public transportation because it is subsidized. Sponsor: www.CNU18.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_107.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 4:07pm EDT

As NASA prepares to retire its space shuttle program, James Howard Kunstler takes a few moments to muse on the past, present and future of space exploration. Personally, JHK is glad that our government is cutting funding for space exploration. He's not sure what the 20th Century fiesta of technology accomplished anyway. On the topic of space colonization, Kunstler says he fears that humans will make the rest of the universe as bad as Hackensack, New Jersey. He also touches upon the issues of resource exploitation, offloading surplus population, and the wishful thinking that lies behind the space exploration narrative. Sponsor: www.CNU18.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_106.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:22pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler continues his virtual "walking" tour/commentary of Baltimore, Maryland. In this tour, he inspects the light rail system, the water taxi and market place in historic Fell's Point neighborhood, and a new urbanist-influenced condo-harbor district. He concludes the tour at the Legg Mason building, a particularly bad skyscraper where JHK delivered a breakfast talk recently to a group of community stakeholders. Kunstler considers buildings like this to be a future liability as energy supplies grow scarce. Sponsor: www.cnu18.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_105.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 3:19pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler sometimes thinks of Baltimore, Maryland as the poster child for how cities are going to contract in this country and around the world as we enter into a new energy era. In many ways, Kunstler says Baltimore is a very damaged city, but there are some parts of it that are quite interesting fun and heartening. During this episode, JHK gives a virtual tour of B'more using Google Street view. Before zooming in, however, he takes a moment to appreciate the geography of the Cheasapeak Bay system and to discuss the history and possible future of shipping in that region. Sponsor: http://www.cnu18.org

Direct download: KunstlerCast_104.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 6:10pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler is sometimes propelled into "mad dog mode" when speaking about the modern American landscape. But tempers fly on all sides of these urban policy debates. And there are many times when the only sane response is to be angry about what we've done to the North American landscape over the past 50 years. In this conversation, JHK explores the heightened emotions that erupt over the issue of parking in small cities and towns. Community leaders across the country still believe that motoring and car storage will be the determining factor in everything. But JHK thinks that one day soon everyone will just wake up with a different idea, because it will be self-evident that densely conceived and executed redevelopment will be necessary. Sponsor: PostPeakLiving.com

Direct download: KunstlerCast_103.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 5:39pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler believes that one way or another, we're going to end up living in a very different daily environment than the one we're used to. In this episode, he discusses the future of building materials. JHK doesn't believe that we'll continue to use the same "jive plastic" production home building materials and techniques in the future. He's been thinking a lot about how we're going to re-orient the building trades to use less exotic materials and fewer fabricated, mass-produced items. He describes the diminishing returns of fake cladding materials and snap-together home kits. He ponders the re-use of salvaged suburban building materials. Finally, he takes a moment to consider the use of abandoned shipping containers for human habitation.

Note: This program contains explicit language.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_102.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 3:48pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler answers a listener call about the relationship between climate change and peak oil.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_101.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 4:36pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler is pleasantly surprised by Rochester, N.Y., a small industrial city in the Great Lakes region. The first portion of this program features two of JHK's former classmates who share stories about Jim's college days. The bulk of the show includes a driving tour of Rochester NY with JHK.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_100.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 11:59pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler answers questions from cast members and the audience who attended the staged reading of "Big Slide," an original three-act by JHK.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_99.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 8:56pm EDT

On today's podcast, we present the conclusion of "Big Slide," an original three-act play by James Howard Kunstler. Set in the autumn of an unspecified near-future year, at an Adirondack "great camp," this is the story of three generations of the Freeman family who have taken refuge from New York and Boston during a severe national political maelstrom. Though we are never fully apprised of the exact nature of this event, it appears that a coup d'etat has occurred in the White House and local militias have risen up all over the nation in response. The estate at Big Slide is isolated from these events, but the electricity has stopped working and, apparently, the law enforcement has, too.

Purchase the Big Slide ebook at: http://kunstler.com/BigSlide

Direct download: KunstlerCast_98.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:35pm EDT

On today's podcast, we present the first act of "Big Slide," an original three-act play by James Howard Kunstler. Set in the autumn of an unspecified near-future year, at an Adirondack "great camp," this is the story of three generations of the Freeman family who have taken refuge from New York and Boston during a severe national political maelstrom. Though we are never fully apprised of the exact nature of this event, it appears that a coup d'etat has occurred in the White House and local militias have risen up all over the nation in response. The estate at Big Slide is isolated from these events, but the electricity has stopped working and, apparently, the law enforcement has, too.

Purchase the Big Slide ebook at: http://kunstler.com/BigSlide

Direct download: KunstlerCast_97.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 3:58pm EDT

James Howard Kunstler and Duncan Crary hit the open road to bring you these audio postcards from the NYS Thruway on their way to Rochester. To pass the time, they discuss the American experience of the road trip, the future of the small forlorn cities they pass along the way, the enterprise of downhill skiing, and how life in upstate New York has colored Kunstler's worldview as an author and commentator.

Sponsor: Cultivatis, a full service land planning and consulting firm that integrates agriculture and resource conservation into every project. Core services include: agricultural urbanism; sustainable food system consulting, Urban farm and garden design, community engagement and workshop facilitation. http://www.cultivatis.com

Direct download: KunstlerCast_96.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:31pm EDT

JHK and Duncan have returned from their road trip to Rochester and they have tons of stories to tell. In this mini preview episode, you'll here some excerpts from their travels on the highway, around the city and in the theater during a staged reading of JHK's play "Big Slide." The KunstlerCast will return in full next week.

Note: This podcast contains some cursewords.

Direct download: KunstlerCast_Preview_2010.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 12:02am EDT