Critical Babe Theory

On this episode of Critical Baby Theory, host Francesca Root-Dodson sits down with childhood friend Anna Durrett, a New York City-based communications consultant, to unpack how billionaire wealth has quietly redefined what it means to be a "moderate" Democrat—particularly in the hothouse of San Francisco tech politics.Also discussed: tracing San Francisco's arc from pandemic-era "progressive nihilism" to a billionaire-funded surveillance state, the sinking Millennium Tower as a symbol of zoning compromise gone wrong, the death of the middle-class creative life, why leaning on philanthropy instead of taxation might be the most dangerous political bet of all, growing up in San Francisco, terminal diagnoses, drug addiction in the Tenderloin, and why Francesca thinks billionaires should be a lot more frightened of history than they currently are.Discussed:“How San Francisco Became a Failed City” by Nellie Bowles in The Atlantic “The Billionaire Who Wired San Francisco” by Lauren Smiley in New York Magazine“The Strange Emptiness of the Crowded Governor’s Race in California” by Nathan Heller in The New YorkerThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The first half of my conversation with Adam de Picot—founder of the international youth advocacy and policy making group MESA—about the brave new world we’re entering, and how the 1.2 billion young people on the planet can shape it.Also discussed: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, proud globalism, the eating practices of the Maasai Mara, soft alphas, being a part-time apiarist, the Cockroach Revolution, “we have never elected so many autocratic leaders by democratic means,” peace & security vs free & democratic elections, lest we not forget the U.S. doesn’t follow international law, the moral responsibilities of postcolonial powers, exclusive economic zones and how they’re the real prize, the tragedy of USAID cuts, globalization is economists’ wet dream, the 4B movement in South Korea, condoms for Hamas, what happens if the dollar is no longer the global reserve currency, Francesca explains the art of the knuckleball, (of course) climate change, and the hard hitting question: why should Americans care about the world?The MESA Institute for Global Impact4B MovementThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

Justin Charles—former member of the national board of the Democratic Socialists of America—comes on the show to discuss the recent congressional victory in New York City and what it means for the future of the left.Also discussed: white people crying after the 2016 Trump win, why socialism is still a scary word, Sarah Palin is the only woman who could ever have become President, Obama governed in “limp dick prose,” what a society looks like when we prioritize shareholder value over all else, Cuba is not the mastermind of left-wing terrorism, Mamdani is the guy in real life that he is on TV, street meat shame, “be harsh with systems be gentle with people,” date-inflation, single mom economies, the Dems are committed to bad pantsuits, Francesca becomes educated about Martha’s Vineyard, the White Devil Theory, the market=mammon, and the question underneath it all: do we really need the rich?The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

To finish our Hetero Month programming, we go back to the beginning of the war of the sexes: the prehistorical suppression female-centered religions and the casting of Mary Magdalene as a prostitute by the early church. Bri O’Reilly—Irish cradle Catholic—comes on the show to discuss how the sex wars are as old as history itself, and how we can approach true egalitarianism in our faith and in our relationships.Also discussed: the first conspiracy theory, fistfights at Catholic school, the time Francesca accidentally got witnessed to Christ, Hillary Clinton feminism, Paul as off-brand commentary, a matrifocal society (equals communism), “it’s been 5000 years of men on top,” Pope Gregory created the myth that Mary Magdalene was a whore in 591 AD, Francesca draws the line with Epstein conspiracy theories, the Rosicrucians, the real nature of the relationship between Christ and Mary Magdalene, exposing the free birthing fallacy, the garden of Eden re-examined, and finding the God of your own heart.Fact check on Wayfair child trafficking conspiracy and how it was promulgated—the conspiracy was not true, and diverted resources from real trafficking efforts.Books referenced:The Gospel of Mary by Jean-Yves LeloupWhen God Was a Woman by Merlin StoneThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

In the third installment of Hetero Month, filmmaker Shervin Nassi and I have a frank conversation about dating—and we find that men and women are having the same problems in relationships, and explore what we mean when we say true partnership.Shervin's film ONLY GOOD FEELINGS will be premiering this fall in NY & LA, for screenings and more information, please visit Onlygoodfeelingsfilm.comAlso discussed: the Kardashians demonstrate remarkable family unity, anti-coffee propaganda, Timothée Chalamet is too soft to be the Lisan al-Gaib, “nobody can take over your life unless you let them,” ie. adults are not victims, Shervin’s peptide stack, 1 Corinthians 13:11, the war of the sexes is going to keep us alone, is personality in the blood line?, the desire-industrial-complex, “life is easier and people are nicer to you when you look better,” the fantasy of dating in your ethnicity, dousing yourself in cinema, male looksmaxxing media diet, motherhood made Francesca more grounded, “bring coke energy into the marijuana realm,” and the eternal question: how can we lead to male flourishing?The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

In the second installment of Hetero Month, Dani Druz—actress, producer, and mental health advocate—comes on the show to discuss the new era men find themselves in, and how we as women can relate to them better. Also discussed: “there is a plague of low T men terrorizing women,” testify for peptides, Rosie the dog digestive drama, what we love about junkies, did Kelloggs put chemicals in the food to make men sleep around less?, a 101 on Shakti energy, men wanting the male gaze,  DL vs artistic, “vanity looks better on women,” countries cutting down on their dog consumption, holding masculine space, the fruit of your labor is what enriches your life, neo-feminism, “respect is to men what oxygen is to lungs,” it’s good to take breaks from dating, “why don’t you try on the idea that he has every right to be how he’s being?,” radical acceptance, and as Marianne Williamson says: “love brings up everything unlike itself.”The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The first half of my conversation with Brock Colyar, features writer at New York Mag, about their recent article “The Big Little Penis Panic”—and how size anxiety is dominating the American male psyche. Be warned: this episode is very NSFW.Also discussed: catching print, is skinny to women what dick size is to men?, growers vs showers, get good at the native sex you’re having, pleasure-maxxing, porn is ruining men’s self esteem, dick size in art reflects the political climate of the time, you can be so big it’s a liability, Clan of the Cave Bear as sex-ed, “almost every woman I talk to says they don’t care about size,” we need to take looksmaxxers more seriously, working on our personalities, “the call is coming from inside the American house,” the sexual rigidity of BDSM, feeder fantasies, Hitler’s size was tabloid fodder in his day, soyboybetacucks, traditional yearning for hard masculinity, the gays are the real size queens, and Francesca relates her peak erotic experience.“The Big Little Penis Panic” by Brock Colyar in New York MagThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The first half of my conversation with Carrigan Miller, writer and editor of KGB Lit, about the looming schism in the Catholic Church between traditionalists and reformers—and how SSPX, Peter Thiel and conservative American bishops are emblematic of the tensions in Rome post-Vatican II.Also discussed: “you have a soul, act like it,”only fools want schism, fifth base is letting the person you’re seeing watch you pray, “we’re looking for the seamless garment out there,” letting Christianity scandalize you, “Catholicism is like communism,” the Marian apparition at Fatima, dogmatists vs pastoralists, throwing white boy Arabic into the group chat, being a guy with an eyeliner-y look, Never Forget has been totally forgotten, the real target of the encyclical is realpolitik and Henry Kissinger, girls with rosaries at the club, grace is countercultural, and one of the little-known selling points of early Christianity was that it would free you from the shackles of astrology.Referenced:Pope Leo’s Encyclical Letter Magnifica HumanitasPeter Thiel’s essay for First ThingsJack Hanson’s Harper’s article: “Radical Reformation”The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The Democrats claim to be the “moral” party—that’s why they abandoned Platner. But is a party that facilitated the genocide in Gaza, allowed Ted Kennedy to serve in the Senate for 47 years after killing a girl, and is led by Nancy Pelosi—who clearly engages in insider trading—really the party that can demand their candidates be pure? An argument with political strategist and former Congressional staffer Matt Landini about what the Democrats mean when they say they’re the party of morality—and if they have what it takes to win.Also discussed: grievance politics works, “do we want hot candidates or do we want good guy candidates?”, bootstrap Dems, anti-Canadian immigration, crisis comms & posting through the pain, Francesca rereads Machiavelli, the gayest beach anywhere ever, real talk about SA, “one senate seat does not the republic make,” DSA works in NYC but not in the heartland, Dems being a big tent means they have a lot of constituents to please, “pedophilia is a bipartisan issue” and the greatest question of all: what is the calculus of moral culpability?Fact check: Troy Jackson did start his political career as a Republican. And here’s the best accounting of who funds AIPAC, many of whom have ties to the state of Israel: https://www.trackaipac.com/donorsThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

Murtaza Hussain, senior reporter at Drop Site News, comes on the show to talk about the war in Iran. But (of course) we end up talking about Israel—and how they’re scrambling to keep war in the Middle East going at any cost.Nota bene: this was taped on July 3rd. Since then the ceasefire between the US and Iran—in so much as there was one—has collapsed.Also discussed: when the goal is the creation of chaos, ethnic religion, draining down the bank of moral capital, the strength of a diasporic people is that they’re not all concentrated in one place, moving from offshore balancing to Israeli hegemony, don’t forget the evangelical component, underestimating the continuity of Persian civilization, the state of Israel as pastiche, “you’re into the Abrahamic or you’re not,” TM-ing ideas, how Mamdani doesn’t ever have a cunt-y moment, how the institutional memory of the Catholic Church puts everything in perspective, suppressing the student protests is suppressing future elites at their most impressionable moment, “Israel is trying to race to the end of history,” using Gaza as a verb, and the real question: is Iran coming out on top here?The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

Former pro wrestler and natural bodybuilder Max Barsky comes on the show to talk about wrestling, labor organizing, and patriotism. Plus we have an honest conversation about getting cancelled—and how it doesn’t have to make you swing to the right.Also discussed: bodybuilding categories, “cancellation doesn’t exist,” the moral obligation to run for office, the #speakingout movement, labor organizing in the indie professional wrestling circuit, an explanation of “customs,”strictly-for-entertainment visas, textbook gaslighting, idealist zionism, the best independent wrestling storyline, when you lie to your journal, how the unitary theory of the executive could lead to the Green New Deal, “no man has ever said ‘I’m overstimulated,’” sportswashing in Israel, the Salem witch burners were the real Americans, and Francesca asks: is it a crime to be a bad boyfriend?The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The first half of my conversation with writer and organizer Caroline Debnam about the recent hit pieces on Graham Platner in the NY Times—their questionable sources, AIPAC-awarded journalists, and the real issue: legacy media is terrified of a viable populist candidate.Also discussed: the liberal discourse on the insurgent left, standing for the real America, letting go of “believe women,” DC technocrats are obsessed with voters being effected by bad ideas, Cuba can never win, the bs class position dialogue on Platner, “it’s morning in North Korea,” the psychic damage of San Francisco, people in their 20’s are a nightmare to date—that doesn’t mean they’re abusive, Euro-mutts, “if Platner were running as a Blue Dog, no one would be asking these questions," Francesca reminds us that Ezra Klein is a polyamorist, and the question of the day: is the problem with Democratic politics that coastal elites are just unpleasant conversationalists?Referenced:“Several Women Who Dated Graham Platner Recall ‘Unsettling’ Behavior” - Katie Glueck & Lisa Lerer “Graham Platner and the Rise of White Male Identity Politics” - Joan WalshEzra Klien & Chris Hayes discuss Graham Platner The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The first half of my conversation with Rev. Dr. Andrew Blume—the rector of Saint Ignatius of Antioch in New York City—about what it’s like to be part of a church community grounded in traditional worship while also having an inclusive, open-door policy—and how angry that makes the tradcath trolls online.Also discussed: Francesca forsakes frivolity for more serious concerns, defining Anglo-Catholicism, a Jewish parent’s worst nightmare (their only child becoming a Christian priest), “don’t let anyone tell you that prayer in school doesn’t matter,” Anglican intellectual warmth, “you grow in life as you grow in ministry,” Vatican II, aesthetics as an inroad to faith, nothing is more scary to city kids than the suburbs, the English reformation as the first Brexit, sympathy for Henry VIII, out Roman-Catholic-ing the Roman Catholics, Father Blume: “I wanted to gather a community around the Eucharist so we could all make meaning of our lives,” and Francesca’s eternal question: should women be priests?https://www.saintignatiusnyc.org/index.htmlInstagram: @saintignatiusnycThe first half of every episode of CBT is free, wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The first half of my conversation with guest Zoe Dubno—author of the novel Happiness & Love—on her recent article for NY Mag about whether we’ve gone too far in celebrating plastic surgery & extreme beauty routines.Also discussed: there's nothing new under the sun, corporate slop gyms, parents who force their ED on their kids, being allergic to cheap things vs being a snob, the obvious benefit to being more attractive as a woman, plastic surgery creating a paucity of beauty, the benefits of literally touching grass, Francesca reads the bible (again), the prison of self-obsession, being so hot it’s a problem, there are no attractive people on the UWS, searching for the illusion of purity, the depth of Francesca’s vanity, and the immortal question: is it good to get exactly what you want?Referenced:“I Spray Myself with Magnesium and Read Under a Chicken Light” - by Zoe Dubno, New York Magazine"The Year All My Friends Got Botox" - by Emmeline Clein, New York MagazineThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

My conversation with porn historian Noelle Perdue on the censorious attempt to regulate pornography today—and our heated debate about what a moral society owes its citizens.Also discussed: “pornography is neutral but our sexual culture is not,” box dye heritage, wanting to see things you can never unsee, “The Entertainment” in Infinite Jest, choking in porn is now illegal in the UK (!), vibes-based legislation, our sexual culture, the overlap between anti-trans and anti-porn rhetoric, Francesca just wants everyone to have good sex, the “porn industry” doesn’t exist as such, stalking the halls of the Bellagio, the feature of SESTA/FOSTA is to harm sex workers—it’s not a bug, the fallacy of the Nordic Model, and how “keeping people isolated is profitable business.”The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

A wide-ranging conversation with writer and filmmaker Sean Wilsey about literature, the left, and his film IXXI that’s premiering at Tribeca this week. We discuss how hard it is to hold on to your values, orthodoxy as a means to protect yourself, and how radicals have lost the ability to cooperate.Also discussed: translations that are funnier than the original, “it’s really easy to throw people under whatever bus you want to keep moving,” Italy’s reputation as frivolous, The Nation doesn’t want anyone to have a good time, adorning prostitutes with flowers in Czechoslovakia, fun is a problem for political orthodoxies, profound moral alterations brought on by a work of literature, nostalgia for the worst times of one’s life, Republicans are a better hang these days, suffering without redemption is true perversion, everyone has a Southern accent at NASA, the jet-setting lifestyle of the last international magazine feature writer (Sean), we’re becoming a country of scammers and liars, and the unresolved question: did all Gen X ideas come from Woody Guthrie? Link to Sean’s film IXXI at Tribeca, almost sold out: https://tribecafilm.com/films/ix-xi-2026Articles referenced:The Nation - “Luigi Pirandello’s Broken Men” by Gus O’ConnorGQ - “The Next Giant Leap” by Sean WilseyThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

The first half of my conversation with health and wellness journalist Leigh Weingus about GLP-1’s—and what it means for Americans to empty themselves of desire in pursuit of a fix-all miracle drug.Also discussed: optimization culture, Francesca’s time as a fat girl, how our food system is set up to be addictive, drug use in the UC system, thriving in moderation (Leigh is the human GLP-1), a hard pitch for intuitive eating, the drug-addictification of America, “being fat was good for my personality,” the finite nature of will power, how dieting itself creates obesity, marriage is a business transaction where putting out is part of the contract, GLP-1’s as another numbing tool, Ozempic face, everything is a treatment for pre-death these days, and the perennial question: would you take a drug if it made your everything in your life perfect?Articles referenced:"Life in Beige" - NY Mag"How Weight-Loss Drugs Can Upend a Marriage" - NY Times"The Ozempic Economy Is Here: Are We Entering A Workplace Doping Era?" - Forbes(Fact check on 40% of GLP-1 weight loss is from lean muscle mass — there seems to be conflicting research, but see here: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12322565/ )The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

Native New Yorker Alex Brook Lynn comes on the show to talk about the city in the 90’s—and what’s lost when only the rich can afford to live and work in NYC. We discuss the demise of rent controlled apartments, marking art when the stakes aren’t high, and how close to life Larry Clark’s Kids was (pretty close).Also discussed: middle class drug dealers, how the out-of-towners are the city’s own migratory bird population, “graft for the people,” we forget that Eric Adams was the Curtis Silwa candidate of 2020, when heroin addicts were good old-fashioned heroin addicts, the days when you could pee in Central Park, white kids using the n word, having a beeper, children buying hard drugs at bodegas, the moral stain of Riker’s Island, “the 90’s were cheap enough that you could be free,” and how a rent controlled apartment is it’s own kind of trust fund.The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xoArticles referenced: Jerry Saltz’s photos of 90’s New York:https://www.vulture.com/article/jerry-saltz-new-york-art-world-1990s-slideshow.htmlRealPage NYC Landlord price fixing:https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/24/technology/realpage-doj-settlement.html

My very fun and very discursive talk with Sam Adler-Bell, journalist and host of leftist podcast “Know Your Enemy.” We discuss his recent viral article “The Women Leaving the New Right” in New York Mag, liberalism’s lack of meaning, the (more) vile aspects of the New Right—and how the left drove women into their arms in the first place.Also discussed: “It’s China over here,” nebbish-maxxing, influencer-occupied government, social credit scores, serving two masters, the death drive of Israel, conflict between elites, Nick Fuentes keeping men small, Christopher Hitchens & cirrhosis, “you can die or become part of the petite bourgeoisie,” Francesca’s journey to the One True God, bone-deep hatred of women, inculcating virtue, and the greatest political sin: being annoying. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/young-women-leaving-maga-new-right.htmlThe first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

A surrealist interview with sign-based comedian and beloved internet denizen Alan Wagner (@truewagner) about the critically reviled Ari Aster film Eddington—and how it exposes the berserk heart of America. Also discussed: the (unofficial) Eddington Preservation Society, a direct plea to Donald J Trump, basketweaving, Eddington as lighthearted romp, unwitting consumption of art, the final word: algorithms are bad, when Antifa comes to town, how social media negatively effects the way people on the left communicate (duh), Austin Butler just wants to play weirdos, and the three givens: death, taxes, and True Wagner.The first half of every episode of CBT is free wherever you get your podcasts. If you'd like to become a subscriber and hear the second half, please go to www.patreon.com/criticalbabetheory. Thank you for your support xo

We answer all your burning questions about the NYC mayoral race. Why did Zohran eat a burrito on the subway? Would NYC be safer under Sharia law? And was Francesca once a Cuomosexual? And we endorse Zohran, duh.Come see Francesca's scandalous new play in NYC Nov 7-23! Use code CBT50 for 50% all GA tickets.NYC Find Your Poll Site and see your ballotDiscussed:The Goon SquadThe Feminist by Tony TulathimutteA Reporter Misstook ‘Bill DeBlasio’ for Bill de BlasioWhy Biden's White House Press Secretary is Leaving the Democratic PartyInsane White House 'Major Events' Page