Nerd Farmer Podcast

Navigating the Moral Minefield of AI — Randy Girdner, Artist & Filmmaker — #218

In this episode, we are joined by Randy Girdner, an educator, filmmaker, and the comic artist creator of the web comic Maurice the Beaver. 
This is a conversation about AI and my trepidation about its mainstreaming. I don’t have many answers but I have a ton of concerns. At the same time Randy and I are both regularly using AI programs despite our shared reservations about the technology, its creators, and the place it may come to occupy in our society.
Cast of Characters
Randy Girdner – Website
Going Further
Randy on Bluesky
Randy on Threads
Graceland West on Reddit
UAE Student Film Festival
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Everything in Real Estate Just Changed — Jasmyn Jefferson, Designated Broker and Co-Owner of Windermere Abode Lakewood — #217

In this episode, we dove into recent shifts in real estate with Jasmyn Jefferson, Designated Broker and co-Owner of Windermere Abode Lakewood. Jasmyn gave us her take on the Tacoma Housing market and the low-down on the recent NAR settlement. She talked about its impact on commission structures and what’s to come in the industry as a whole. 
Jasmyn is a realtor but she sees the field through a different lens than most folks in the biz and I think that comes across in this conversation.
Cast of Characters
Jasmyn Jefferson 
Going Further
The Case of the Missing $64,000 Homes – Takes & Typos
The NAR Settlement Explained – Yahoo! Finance
Jasmyn’s prior appearance on the show: The Housing Market and the Ethics of Real Estate, Part 1 — Jasmyn Jefferson
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Muslims Around the World Are Fasting: A Ramadan Reflection – Jasmine El Shear – #216

This month observant Muslims around the world are fasting in observance of Ramadan.
Jasmine El Shear is an Egyptian-American school counselor in the Gulf, advising Emirati students in navigating an American school system. She joined us for a wide-ranging conversation about the holy month of Ramadan, life for Muslim students in US schools, and her recent Umrah trip to Mecca. 
Cast of Characters
Jasmine Elshear
Going Further
What Everyone (Especially Teachers) Should Know About Ramadan – #160 
Experiencing Ramadan in the Gulf – Takes & Typos
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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify
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Revolutions Take Generations – Nathan Perl-Rosenthal, University of Southern California – #215

Nathan Perl-Rosenthal is an historian of the eighteenth and early nineteenth-century Atlantic world. He focuses on the political and cultural history of Europe and the Americas in the age of revolution, with a emphasis on the transnational influences that shaped modern national politics.
He’s the author of the recent article Revolutions Take Generations in the Atlantic and the book The Age of Revolutions. He joined us to talk about the lessons we can learn from the series of revolutions that took place in the 18th century and the lessons we can learn from them today.
Cast of Characters
Nathan Perl-Rosenthal – USC
Going Further
Revolutions Take Generations  – The Atlantic
The Age of Revolutions
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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify
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“Should Biden Step Aside?” and Constitutional Issues Around the 2024 Election – Michael Artime, PLU – #214

We invited Professor Michael Artime from Pacific Lutheran University back on the show to discuss the upcoming election. In this conversation we covered several topics:
Ezra Klein’s suggestion that Biden step-aside as the Democratic nominee
The 14th Amendment challenges to DJT for along insurrection grounds
The state of our ever more fragile norms 
The mainstreaming of Dominionist Christian-Nationalism, with the rise of Speaker Mike Johnson
Cast of Characters
Michael Artime – PLU
Going Further
Ezra Klein – Democrats Have a Better Option than Biden
Artime on Episode #77 – What a second Trump term might look like?
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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify
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How Journalists Cover Moral Panics and Contrived Scandals – Matt Driscoll, The News Tribune – #213

Over the winter holiday, Matt Driscoll, columnist and opinion editor at The News Tribune,  reached out to talk about the firing of Claudine from her role of President of Harvard University. was brought down in a right-wing witch hunt following a much publicized plagiarism scandal. But underlying ’s firing was a coordinated campaign by conservative activists.
We brought him on the show to discuss these serial moral panics. In the conversation, he asked almost as many questions as I did. This is a discussion about how media covers politics in our digital age but also about what we as citizens owe ourselves and each other.
I’d love to hear your thoughts about this one, you can hit me at nerdfarmpod@gmail.com. 
Cast of Characters
Matt Driscoll – TNT Profile
Going Further
Driscoll on ’s firing – TNT
50% of Biden voters say Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians – Business Insider
Ezra Klein on the State of Journalism – The New York Times
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Social Diversification, Blogging is Back, and How to Combat Disinformation – Dave Clark – #212

Happy New Year and go Huskies!
This week’s episode is a discussion about navigating the internet in an era of misinformation. Our guest is Dave Clark, founder of Sounder at Heart. He also writes at Full Moon Storytelling.
We talked about navigating the social media landscape, given the decline of Twitter. We also discussed why blogging and RSS feeds are the answer for many of us and we closed with a conversation about how to avoid outrage and clickbait in the 2024 election cycle. 
Note: this episode begins with a brief discussion of the Seattle Sounders roster moves, if you don’t need that in your life skip to 5:48.
Cast of Characters
Dave Clark – Full Moon Storytelling
Going Further
Mentioned by Dave in the Interview: How to Run Your Own Social — Darius Kazemi, Creator and Moderator of Friend.Camp — #164
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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify
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A Tacoma-Centric Year in Review, Part II – Erik Hanberg, Citizen Tacoma and Evelyn Lopez, Crossing Division – #211

Happy New Year!
Recorded live in the Moonyard Studios in gorgeous North Tacoma, this episode is the second of our two part 2023 Year in Review. If you missed Part I, you can find it here.
We were joined again in the studio by Erik Hanberg, President of Channel 253 and host of Citizen Tacoma and Evelyn Lopez co-host of Crossing Division. 
In this episode we each gave end of the year awards for:
Tacoman of the Year
Story of the Year
Things we’re watching going into 2024
Cast of Characters
Erik Hanberg – Citizen Tacoma
Evelyn Lopez – Crossing Division
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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify
Please consider supporting the podcast by joining Channel 253 as a member

A Tacoma-Centric Year in Review, Part I – Erik Hanberg, Citizen Tacoma and Evelyn Lopez, Crossing Division – #210

Happy Holidays!
Recorded live in the Moonyard Studios in gorgeous North Tacoma, this episode is the first of our two part 2023 Year in Review. 
We were joined in the studio by Erik Hanberg, President of Channel 253 and host of Citizen Tacoma and Evelyn Lopez co-host of Crossing Division.
Here’s the contact info for Compassion Tacoma the organization Evelyn mentioned who are providing mutual aid to people experiencing homelessness in Tacoma.
In this episode we each gave end of the year awards for:
Story you wish got more coverage
Profile in Courage
Tacoman who needs to go outside and touch grass
Organization who diminished their reputation
Cast of Characters
Erik Hanberg – Citizen Tacoma
Evelyn Lopez – Crossing Division
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The Nerd Farmer Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify
Please consider supporting the podcast by joining Channel 253 as a member

Time for Closing Arguments in the Case of the Murder of Manuel Ellis – Peter Talbot, The News Tribune – #209

Peter Talbot from The News Tribune has been covering the trial of the Tacoma Police Officers who murdered Manuel Ellis on March 3, 2020. We spoke with Peter in October as the state was making its case against the officers. Now that the defense has ended its case and after a near miss mistrial motion, the trial is about to go to the jury.
We discussed the reasoning behind the motion to dismiss, the predictable “Invincible Super Negro” defense presented at trial, and what testimony and evidence may swing the verdict. 
The info in this conversation is up to date as of the recording time, Saturday, December 9 at 9am PDT.
Cast of Characters
Peter Talbot – The News Tribune
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