Abe Lincoln's Top Hat

This week Ben, Travis, and Fernando sit down with Criminal Justice Reform Activist, Author, & Youtube star, Larry Lawton to talk about his experience behind bars and shed some light on the changes that need to be made within the Prison system.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

In this week's follow-up Top Hat, Ben, Travis, and Fernando discuss US Weapons left in Taliban hands, the recent online drama surrounding Roger Stone's accidental ban from the Gettr App, Gavin Newsome and California's Stimulus Checks, a man on "Mail Bender" found with 300 recall ballots, Covid Death Toll Corrections, and the upcoming face reveal of the Officer involved in shooting during January's Capitol Riot's.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

This week Ben, Travis, and Fernando discuss Andrew Cuomo's resignation from Office as he loses his Emmys and casts his dog to the wayside, the sad state of Riker's Island Prison, Trump receiving boos for backing the Vax, Mask Mandate Debates, Colorado opening it's arms to Afghan refugees, and MORE!Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Travis, and Fernando dive into the rest of this week's headlines including the so-called "attack" on MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, Facebook bomb threats leading to an arrest on Capitol Hill, Automated Speeding Tickets in Chicago, and the controversial news that OnlyFans will be restricting Sexual Content from it's platform.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Travis, and Fernando break down the recent devastating events in Afghanistan and are joined by Iranian journalist Saman Arbabi to discuss the Taliban takeover, U.S. withdrawal, and the future for refugees fleeing the country in search of freedom.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

In this very special interview, Ben, Travis, and Fernando sit down with acclaimed documentarian and film maker Ken Burns to discuss his new project Muhammad Ali and the important story that inspired the four part series premiering on PBS September 19th.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Travis, and Fernando are back to break down this week's headlines including Microsoft's opposition of a 10 Billion Dollar deal between Amazon and the NSA, the fall of Andrew Cuomo as the governor declares his resignation, Gavin Newsome's Recall election, Infrastructure Bill passing, Crypto Taxing, and more!Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

In this very special episode, Ben, Travis, and Fernando discuss How to Run for Office, what it takes to get involved, and the personal stories of our own host's campaigns captured in Travis's documentaries American Mayor (https://vimeo.com/ondemand/americanmayor) and Hail Yourself America (https://hailyourselfamerica.com/), both available now.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Travis, and Fernando enter the "Bone Zone" once again as they're joined by returning guest, internet sensation Ken Bone to discuss life, post-meme fame, Ken's honest view of the current state of affairs in our country, and navigating American politics as an "everyman".Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Travis, and Fernando break down this week's headlines and are joined by Streamer, Internet Personality, and Model, Meg Turney to discuss the evolution of female representation in the gaming industry, maintaining balanced parasocial interaction as a creator, the possible psychological benefits of gaming as well as how they can be used for manipulation and MORE.Check out Meg's Twitch & Instagram!https://www.twitch.tv/megturneyhttps://www.instagram.com/megturney/?hl=enKevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Fernando, and Travis are all back together for this week's episode to discuss the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, new hope for federal marijuana reform in the states, Lindsey Graham goes to war for Chicken Sandwiches, and Trump goes head to head with comedy.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Travis, and Fernando dive into an array of the recent Political happenings as Sun Valley hosts a shady, 2 day Billionaire Summer Camp, Trump files a lawsuit against Facebook, A.I. “Drone Swarms” in Israel pose new threats to security, former Stormy Daniels attorney Michael Avenatti heads to prison for attempting to extort Nike, Trump’s Twitter knockoff app “Gettr” launches and immediately gets hacked, the fall of Rudy Giuliani continues, and lastly, Travis reads some of the amazing messages being sent to Representative Seitz after last week’s episode. Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

With so much going on in the world this week, Ben, Travis, and Fernando are back, this time to discuss Maine passing the strongest ban on Facial Recognition seen to date, Aerial drone programs being deemed unconstitutional, Amazon finding themselves under fire again for mistreatment of workers, the ongoing investigation into the cause of the pandemic, Federal Marijuana restrictions & the Olympics, the Surfside tower collapse, and MORE as Travis enlists the help of the Top Hat community once again...Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Fernando, and Travis are joined by ACLU Attorney Ellie Rushford to discuss Reproductive Rights in the US, the struggle to find proper healthcare for the less privileged, reports of forced medical procedures on immigrants, and breaking the overall stigma around Abortion in modern times.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

This week Ben, Fernando, and Travis are joined by returning guest, Undercover Investigator and Animal Rights Advocate Pete Paxton to discuss his new book "Rescue Dogs" and some of the terrible things currently happening in regards to animal abuse, particularly in Grey Hound Racing, Puppy Mills, and how the meat industry's irresponsibility is creating new risks of spreading disease. Also, our hosts discuss the recent authorization of the National Guard to use lethal force, as well as a breakdown of the Derek Chauvin sentencing.Link to sign a petition to ban greyhound racing, and see the video of evidence: https://www.grey2kusa.org/index.phpLink to see the case about Animal Disease Traceability and the beef/dairy connection: https://www.seedundercoverinvestigations.com/Link to learn about puppy mills and pet stores: https://www.caps-web.org/Pete Paxton's book, Rescue Dogs, is available on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble. Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

Ben, Fernando, and Travis are back for a little bonus Top Hat to discuss yet another ironically surnamed politician who has found themselves in the headlines for poor yet unsurprising behavior, Trump's comments on sending COVID infected tourists to Guantanamo Bay (as performed by Travis Irvine), Texas prisons clearing room for illegal immigrants, and a breakdown of the long overdue NCAA ruling.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Fernando, and Travis breakdown the week's political headlines including Top Hat listeners answering the literal call to action against Larry Householder, the possibility/consequences of the virus being the result of a lab accident, Juneteenth/Critical Race Theory in America, as well as an in depth discussion with TV Reporter and Journalist, Salim Essaid about the ongoing struggle of life in Palestine.About our guest:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/salim_essaid/ Twitter:  https://twitter.com/salimessaidLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/salimessaid/Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Fernando, and Travis return to discuss this week's Political News and ask the question: What's going on with Trump's pants?! Also we're joined by Anti Incarceration Advocate Donte West of the Last Prisoner Project to discuss his experience with the Criminal Justice System, Marijuana law reform, and the the Last Prisoner Project's mission to help free those incarcerated for Marijuana related arrests.To Find out more please visit: https://www.lastprisonerproject.org/Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

This week Ben, Travis, and Fernando discuss the recent overturning on the ban of AR-15s in California and the complexities of what it would take to truly maintain Gun Control in today's country, as well their thoughts on the new controversial facial recognition software being introduced at US Southern Borders.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Ben, Travis, and Fernando discuss the recent events in the Senate as Republicans block the independent commission to investigate the Jan 6th events at The Capital. Fernando drops some hot-takes on why the commission isn't necessary, Ben battles the Buffalo shrimp blues, and Travis recounts his days as a young intern for Chuck Schumer.Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0