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The Iron Fist and the Velvet GloveNews, political events, culture, ethics and the transformations taking place in our society. Author: The Iron Fist and the Velvet Glove
A small independent Australian podcast about news, politics, sex and religion. An easy and entertaining way to keep up to date with the weekly news. Language: en Genres: News, News Commentary, Politics Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Episode 500 - We Made It
Monday, 27 April, 2026
Topics:Episode 500: 11 Years of Iron Fist and Velvet Glove ReflectionsTrevor (“Iron Fist”), Scott (“Velvet Glove”), and Joe (“the tech guy”) mark episode 500 after 11 years, reflect on how their views have changed, and thank Patreon supporters who have covered production costs. They discuss growing skepticism about governments and media, arguing mainstream outlets filter narratives and that Gaza especially has exposed media failures, pushing them toward Twitter and independent blogs. They describe increased polarization, tribal thinking, and how COVID accelerated denial of expertise and conspiracy thinking in Australia. They revisit recurring themes from past episodes—religion in politics, Liberal Party branch-stacking by religious fundamentalists, free trade agreements, submarines/AUKUS, and stalled economic reforms like negative gearing and capital gains—contrasting these with “soft issue” wins such as marriage equality, voluntary assisted dying, and abortion law reform. Trevor plans a break for months, possibly shifting to writing and using Discord/community forums.00:00 Episode 500 Kickoff00:58 Hosts Introductions01:52 Patreon Thanks Rollcall06:23 Break Plans Ahead07:06 Iran US Reality Flip12:16 Views Changed Over Years14:42 Changing Minds And Tribes16:45 Media Trust And Propaganda20:12 Religion Politics Flashbacks25:11 Trade Deals And Submarines29:18 Tax Reform Stuck Again31:04 COVID And Conspiracy Spiral33:46 COVID and Expert Trust35:20 Radicalization and Simple Answers36:01 Learning to Debate Ideas37:32 Gaza as Societal Proof40:36 War Crimes and Tribal Loyalty43:00 Assange and Media Failures44:54 Wins and Soft Issues47:13 Lobbying Captures Politics51:17 Old Topics and Culture Wars01:00:13 Captured Media and Finding Sources01:03:50 Taking a Break and Next StepsTo financially support the Podcast you can make:a per-episode donation via Patreon or one-off donation via credit card; orone-off or regular donations via Paypal orif you are into Cryptocurrency you can send Satoshis. We Livestream every Monday night at 7:30 pm Brisbane time. Follow us on Facebook or YouTube. Watch us live and join the discussion in the chat room.We have a website. www.ironfistvelvetglove.com.auYou can email us. The address is trevor@ironfistvelvetglove.com.au
