"Don Morrison's 3 Minutes of Madness"

PODCAST · arts

"Don Morrison's 3 Minutes of Madness"

Funny, often uplifting and mercifully short. Don Morrison is an author ("The Death of French Culture," "How Obama Lost America,") professor (Tsinghua University in Beijing, Sciences Po in Paris), and former editor at Time Magazine. His articles have appeared in the New York Times, the Financial Times, Smithsonian, Le Monde, Le Point, Liberation, Caixin and other leading publications. He is a commentator for NPR's Robin Hood Radio and a columnist for the Berkshire Eagle.

  1. 283

    Dancing with Dinosaurs

    A killer asteroid named Trump has hit the planet, just as a real one is bearing down on us. 

  2. 282

    Elon is Everywhere

    He's got your Social Security number, medical history and bank info. He's also dismantling the government. Worried yet?

  3. 281

    Why We Hate Politics

    Contempt for the people we elect is a constant theme in American culture and discourse. Will Trump be different?

  4. 280

    Why This Day is Different

    Aside from presidential inaugurations, what's special about Jan. 20? Plenty.

  5. 279

    Nice Guys Finish First

    Why the popular view of successful politicians as tough, scheming Machiavellians is dead wrong.

  6. 278

    Bird Flu Blues

    Remember Covid? Well, something worse may soon be upon us. 

  7. 277

    Let's Talk Turkey

    Thanksgiving might not be the same, but maybe our traditional bird deserves a pardon.

  8. 276

    Crisis in the Manosphere

    If the recent election showed us anything, it's that young men need help. 

  9. 275

    Bite the Ballot

    Why does America do such a terrible job of holding elections? 

  10. 274

    My Imaginary Friend

    A Facebook regular captured my imagination. Then I found out who he really was. 

  11. 273

    Facts are Stupid Things

    Can a nation whose citizens hold two vastly different versions of reality endure? Ask Ronald Reagan. 

  12. 272

    The Ball-Turret Gunner

    How a poem led me a fragment of my father's past -- and to the horrors of war

  13. 271

    The Good President

    Is it possible to be both an effective politician and a decent human being? 

  14. 270

    Checkers, Come Home

    Melania Trump is taking heat for possible campaign finance lapses. Maybe she needs a dog. 

  15. 269

    Eating Cats

    Immigrants in Ohio aren't really dining on felines, but Republicans are warning of a cat-astrophe.. 

  16. 268

    A Republic of Violence

    Partisan mayhem and intimidation seem to be on the rise. Can American democracy survive?

  17. 267

    Here be Dragons

    They don't exist, but some people take them seriously. Maybe they're onto something. 

  18. 266

    The Twilight of Race

    Why a concept that has long divides us seems destined for oblivion. 

  19. 265

    I Wake up Screaming

    An important profession is disappearing, Can the world survive? 

  20. 264

    The Big Meow

    A vice-presidential candidate had some unkind words for unmarried women with cats. Bad move. 

  21. 263

    Are Women Better Leaders?

    Men run most of the world, but evidence is mounting women do it better. 

  22. 262

    The Manchurian Candidate

    Seems like ancient history now, but the assassination attempt against Donald Trump still looks a little fishy. 

  23. 261

    A Pitcher of Warm Spit

    The U.S. vice-presidency has long been a thankless job. Suddenly, it's hot. 

  24. 260

    Didn't See This Coming

    Political surprises in Europe, Supreme Court shockers in the U.S. and a debate performance that just won't go away.

  25. 259

    I Hope This Finds You Well

    An overdue screed on a major threat to civilized society. 

  26. 258

    Is Paris Ready?

    The XXXIII Olympiad is only weeks away. Paris is still a construction site. 

  27. 257

    Commencement Blues

    Graduation speeches are usually high-minded and bland. Not this year. 

  28. 256

    Consider the Lobster

    As a major restaurant chain goes bankrupt, some questions about its namesake. 

  29. 255

    The New Art of Naming

    How to survive in the age of him, her, they, them and other linguistic minefields. 

  30. 254

    Wasn't That a Time

    College campuses across the U.S. are engulfed in anti-war protests. But that's nothing compared to 1968.

  31. 253

    The Winds of War

    As Ben Franklin would advise, we shouldn't make fun of an old guy who stinks up the courtroom.

  32. 252

    The End of the World

    Somebody sent me a silly internet article. Now I'm scared. 

  33. 251

    What Would Trump Do?

    The candidate has been surprisingly specific about how he would govern. We should pay attention. 

  34. 250

    A Period of Uncertainty

    America is at war. Over punctuation. 

  35. 249

    The Cruelest Season

    Ah, spring! Nature's ultimate con job. And we're not helping. 

  36. 248

    The Volunteer

    Where is Joseph of Arimathea when we need him? He's here, but you may not have noticed. 

  37. 247

    Our Man in Havana

    Cuba is dying, and we're mostly to blame. 

  38. 246

    Two Women, One Dream

    How a chance encounter by a couple of women from very different worlds changed the face of music. 

  39. 245

    Go Fund Trump

    I started a GoFundMe campaign to pay our ex-president's legal bills. It didn't go the way I expected. 

  40. 244

    Taylor Swift for President

    Politics used to be a serious undertaking. Now, it's a TV miniseries. May the best show get renewed.

  41. 243

    A Rhapsody for America

    100 years on, a jazz-infused musical mess still has its charms..

  42. 242

    Royal Pains

    Monarchy has its critics but also its charms. Is there a lesson for America here? 

  43. 241

    Keep Our Highways Humorous

    More states are introducing witty road-safety signs. The feds want to stop them.

  44. 240

    The New Puritans

    How book banning became our new national pastime. Only it isn't so new. 

  45. 239

    Using the H-Word

    As scientists agitate to retitle a beetle, its unsavory namesake pops up in the U.S. presidential campaign. 

  46. 238

    You've Never Had It So Good

    In 1959, a national election hinged on whether the economy was really as good as it seemed. Sound familiar? 

  47. 237

    Christ in the Elevator

    Christmas is days away, but its music has been annoying us for weeks. Maybe that's a good thing.

  48. 236

    A Scrooge for Our Time

    Marley was dead. But could his successor as House Speaker learn the true meaning of Christmas?

  49. 235

    Gracie is Missing

    Losing touch with loved ones is bad enough. Not knowing whether they're alive or dead can be torture. 

  50. 234

    Recycle This!

    It's great that you separate the reusables from your trash, but you may be doing it all wrong. 

Type above to search every episode's transcript for a word or phrase. Matches are scoped to this podcast.

Searching…

No matches for "" in this podcast's transcripts.

Showing of matches

No topics indexed yet for this podcast.

Loading reviews...

ABOUT THIS SHOW

Funny, often uplifting and mercifully short. Don Morrison is an author ("The Death of French Culture," "How Obama Lost America,") professor (Tsinghua University in Beijing, Sciences Po in Paris), and former editor at Time Magazine. His articles have appeared in the New York Times, the Financial Times, Smithsonian, Le Monde, Le Point, Liberation, Caixin and other leading publications. He is a commentator for NPR's Robin Hood Radio and a columnist for the Berkshire Eagle.

HOSTED BY

Donald Morrison

CATEGORIES

URL copied to clipboard!