Eamon Loingsigh's Blog, page 5

Excited for DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast

DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast (DJP) is excited to share that episode AIE9 – Run For Your Life has obliterated all previous records for downloads. I have also received a number of media and interview requests, though I’m a little shy (introvert-nerd) about such things. Instead, I offer direct links to the episode (click on photos below) and some information about the show for its growing listeners.

If you’re a Spotify listener

On the surface, DJP is a character-driven fiction podcast with lots of music, deadpan humor. Some compare it to Mad Max, Blade Runner, Neuromancer, Handmaid’s Tale and The Walking Dead. It’s Science Fiction-Horror and a bit of a Psychological Thriller (it can get a little trippy and violent).

If you’re interested in the nerdy, deeper-level aspects of DJP (most people aren’t), well, here we go:

DJP is speculative fiction that utilizes cross-cultural and comparative political anthropology between the Late Republic period of Rome and near-future American politics. It’s also an awesome sci-fi horror pod. if you like scifi-survival horror fiction (Blade Runner/Mad Max). Content Warning: it’s v scary & about a US military coup in the year 2040.

The decline and fall of the Roman democratic Republic (not the Empire), is cross-culturally compared, via Socio-cultural and Political Anthropology, to near-future American politics in the speculative fiction podcast DEMOCRACY JONES.

Basically, here’s what happened. On Jan. 6, 2021, I was as shocked as everyone else to see political violence in America. But there are many historical precedents. Namely, the Late Republic period in Rome (133-27BCE). Particularly, the time period between the Social War and Sulla’s death (91-78 BCE).

The political violence witness on Jan. 6 was a wake up call. In Rome during the Late Republic time frame, political arguments became as polemic as our current politics. But when the Conservative Senate refused to give in to the progressive/populist political demands of the increasingly powerful Liberal Tribunes, it got ugly. So ugly that the Senate essentially had gang-like followers murder the leaders of the Tribunes (see Gracchi Brothers) in the streets. This caused the Liberal Tribunes to step up their rhetorical and physical threats through the General, Gaius Marius, whose populist power increased the tension since he had the military on his side. Then the Conservative Sulla, who also had the military on his side, then came to power, Rome was essentially split in two.

You can see here that AIE9 is trending up much more than any other episode.

On Jan. 6, the similarities to Late Republic Rome struck me as dangerous and threatening. There is no horror movie, novel or television series scarier than a real-life coup, so I decided to write a realistic horror. In a whirlwind of inspiration, I completed a 60-page pilot script six days later.

Around that time, Marc Eliot Stein, a good friend, talked me into starting a podcast after I had, over the years, five novels and a book of poetry published. I thought I’d give it a try since I could incorporate my music as well as some of the voiceover tricks I learned reading my books and poetry in front of large crowds.

The turkey vulture is the official mascot for DJP, lol

On an even deeper level, DJP is a critique of Rhetoric. Structural Anthropology teaches us that there are deep, cross-cultural similarities among all human species. It welcomes us to see ourselves as similar to other cultures, rather than different. We can learn about ourselves and predict the future through historical research and forecasted probabilities. Rhetoric during Roman times was a weapon politicians used to convince followers that the opposing side was evil. When both sides use Rhetoric, the result is increasingly volatile anger and violence from an argument to name-calling to fist fighting to gang fights and eventually, such as in Rome, entire armies fighting against each other in civil war.

I don’t want that for America’s future. DJP is a warning that Rhetoric is more dangerous than any thermo-nuclear weapon.

Episode AIE9 – Run for Your Life. It’s actually a great place to start. Afterward, I suggest going to the beginning and listen to “Teaser,” then “Opening Crawl” then AIE1, AIE2 etc. in order by the release dates, since this is a serial podcast.

Episode Description: De’ontay runs for his life as he is being hunt down in the Everglades by Zeke, a tracker. In the horror, Abra’s emotions become displaced and she blames her father for everything, then runs away only to find herself in the warzone of Chatham Projects Town. Captain Dick and the BATAs celebrate victory in downtown Ellington when something mystical and unexpected changes everything.

Podcast Episode of the Year 2022

DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast is excited to share that AIE9 – Run For Your Life, has obliterated all previous record for episode downloads. As of writing this, it has 39,871 downloads in almost 48 hours. Most of them are on Apple Podcasts, but there are many from Google Podcasts and Stitcher as well. Here on my website, the same thing is happening, thousands of clicks. I’m not sure why it’s all happening, but I do appreciate it.

Listen below to AIE9 – Run for Your Life. It’s actually a great place to start. Afterward, I suggest going to the beginning and listen to “Teaser,” then “Opening Crawl” then AIE1, AIE2 etc. in order by the release dates, since this is a serial podcast.

Episode Description: De’ontay runs for his life as he is being hunt down in the Everglades by Zeke, a tracker. In the horror, Abra’s emotions become displaced and she blames her father for everything, then runs away only to find herself in the warzone of Chatham Projects Town. Captain Dick and the BATAs celebrate victory in downtown Ellington when something mystical and unexpected changes everything.

You can see here that AIE9 is trending up much more than any other episode.

Review of DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast

Kendall Reviews has taken up DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast as a favorite and gave it a very positive review. Unfortunately I am unable to share it, so I copy/pasted it below. Please visit their link HERE to view the whole thing.

Blending the historical fall of Late Republic Rome, American politics, science fiction, horror, and satire is the mind-bending fiction series Democracy Jones. Set in the year 2040, a violent coup rips the United States apart, leaving millions either killed or uprooted. Survivors, including a pregnant Haisley Jones, fight together to revive democracy.

If you enjoy biting social commentary and the sharp wit of satire, Democracy Jones needs to be on your playlist. Along with an uncanny resemblance to current global political attitudes and an examination of deep division between right- and left-wing parties, you’ll find creepy turkey vultures, scenes reminiscent of Mad Max, and a neural chip programmed to sound exactly like Maya Angelou.

Written and narrated by the very talented Eamon Loingsigh, this serialized story is not only thought-provoking but also highly entertaining. I recommend beginning with the “Teaser” episode, then “Opening Crawl” (noted as the trailer on Spotify), and then proceed to the numbered episodes. Alternatively, you could start with the episode titled “It’s Not Too Late” where Eamon talks about the inspiration behind the story and his real-life hopes to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.

Currently the series is in Act 1 of 4, so it’s a great time to catch up on past episodes, plus with an average runtime of less than 20 minutes it’s easy to listen to each installment without interruption. You can find Democracy Jones on most podcast platforms or listen directly on the Art of Need website artofneed.com

JA Sullivan wrote this review. Come see her blog HERE.

It’s Not Too Late (Jan. 6 Bonus Episode)

DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast has released a bonus episode on the anniversary of Jan. 6. Have a listen to what inspired the creation of the Science Fiction-Horror podcast.

Go Here: https://democracyjones.libsyn.com/its-not-too-late

Learning from our Mistakes

If the founders of US Democracy turned to the Roman Republic as an example of how to create a Democratic society, why wouldn’t we turn to its fall to AVOID the collapse of Democracy? DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast does.

On 7/13/2040, General Alexander Schenk spearheads a coup against American Democracy. His character is based on Sulla, the Roman General. If you don’t know who Sulla is, look him up, or listen to Mike Duncan’s episode called Marius and Sulla .

By comparing the Late Republic period of Rome with near-future American Democracy, DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast seeks to disseminate awareness of the things that brought Democracy to its knees in Rome and what is happening today in the US.

Listen to DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast
on your favorite podcatcher by going
here: https://democracyjones.libsyn.com/

As most Anthropologists will tell you about the collapse of complex societies, it is never one thing that spells ruin. The Republic of Rome was no different. And although we have made great technological breakthroughs since then, we are still just as susceptible.

By telling this story, and having the audience witness the crossing of the threshold from Democracy to a coup through the eyes of citizens in a small American town, I hope that we can begin to come together, Conservatives and Liberals, so that we can figure this out BEFORE it is too late.

Eamon
https://democracyjones.libsyn.com/

Parnassianism

Parnassianism is an archetype of the middle/upper middle class, even elites, who had uneventful, sheltered childhoods and received a respectable education who nonetheless believe they are entitled to have something eventful, relevant or important to add to the literary canon. Every book industry generation has a very large Parnassian clique who dominate discussion concerning what is or is not relevant, yet are often remembered in hindsight as stifling or censoring the writers who come to embody their generation’s writing posthumously due to their conflict with the Parnassians. 

Parnassian Leconte de Lisle

The Parnassian poets, where the term Parnassianism derives, were a group of mid-to-late 19th Century bourgeois writers with connections to the French monarchy. They defined French poetry for a while by excluding the likes of Arthur Rimbaud, who famously agitated against their mundane, impassive values and came to epitomize the type of breakthrough poetry the Parnassians could never have imagined the public would embrace. Parnassians instead inspire great poetry via revolt against their established vision. The Parnassians were known for, “stories which the Madame could read whilst her maid was putting on her stockings, or which the Monsieur could devour when, hat on head and cane in hand, he waits till the Madame has buttoned the last button of her gloves.”*

Through the years Parnassians have been known for their careerist value system when it comes to writing and maintain a loose semblance of power over the writing community through hot takes on social media, editorial or professorships and their presence in the “industry’s” establishments of public relations, marketing, publishing, reviews etc. Much of their power is obtained or retained by their outing of supposed inappropriate writers or topics, and loyalty to the industry’s categorization of writing by genres. The smug, exclusionary tactics they use are often exercised by means of ignoring the pleas of ambitious writers, who they see as attempting to replace their status in the writing community. To cover up their obvious capitalist, corporate-friendly establishmentarian value system, Parnassians often identify as bohemian, liberal-free thinkers.

*R.E. Prothero on Parnassian poet Theodore de Banville The Nineteenth Century (1891):
External Link: https://litkicks.com/revoltonmountparnassus/

DEMOCRACY JONES: 7/13

DEMOCRACY JONES: 7/13 is a science fiction-horror novel.

Available now, go here

Decades of intense political partisanship exploded on Friday the 13th of July, 2040. That day a breakthrough technology was unleashed; a software for neural chips that could utilize millions of simulations to map plans for
a military coup.

When the smoke cleared and the vultures got their fill, it was found that tyranny had been born in the ashes of American democracy. Historians would
remember that infamous day as
7/13.

artofneed@gmail.com

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DEMOCRACY JONES PodioBook

Opening CrawlbyEamon Loingsigh

Ten years before July 13, 2040, when American Democracy was overthrown in a military coup, the seeds were sown when a Biological Physicist and Mitochondrial Engineer unearthed a new technology named “Rhetoric.”

The date would live in infamy as “7/13” 

Search EpisodesClear Search Opening Crawl November 1, 2021 Eamon Loingsigh Teaser November 2, 2021 Eamon Loingsigh A1E1 – Haisley December 6, 2021 Eamon Loingsigh A1E2 – Captain Dick December 17, 2021 Eamon Loingsigh A1E3 – Abra January 1, 2022 Eamon Loingsigh It's Not Too Late January 6, 2022 Eamon Loingsigh Previously On January 17, 2022 Eamon Loingsigh A1E4 – Haisley February 1, 2022 Eamon Loingsigh A1E5 – Abra February 19, 2022 Eamon Loingsigh A1E6 – Captain Dick March 4, 2022 Eamon Loingsigh Load MoreSearch Results placeholderPrevious EpisodeShow Episodes ListNext Episode

“Mind bending dystopian fiction with sharp-witted satire,” DEMOCRACY JONES PodioBook is Science Fiction-Horror in its rawest form.

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A2E2 – Shadows & Scapegoats

De’ontay finds himself pushed aside by Fyvush as the refugee camp out in the Everglades begins to fall apart, struggling to secure resources while being haunted by their Shadow.

Latest Episode

Season 2 has begun!

In the year 2040, a cult-like military general rises out of the Republican Party and spearheads a violent coup against a repressive Democratic administration. In the suburbs, General Schenk’s loyal followers brutalize Black and Hispanic neighborhoods while looting the liberal elite. Millions are killed or uprooted.

Survivors run to the mountains, national parks and major cities, leaving everything behind. Haisley Jones, a pregnant former Marine who was chosen as General Schenk’s binary opposite, must begin the fight to revive democracy.

DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast

SFF/Horror DEMOCRACY JONES
or
Adventures in Late Phase American Democracy

Listen to the Teaser for DEMOCRACY JONES. . . HERE

There are three things you need to know before beginning DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast.

1) It is a satire of Rhetoric

2) It is speculative fiction that compares near-future American politics to the Late Republic period of ancient Rome, and how the rise of rhetoric in a culture is directly related to political binary opposites escalating to violence  

3) It is a warning

Logline: A Technological Breakthrough in Neural Chips Leads to the Horrifying Coup of American Democracy.

IT’S NOT TOO LATE

General Alexander Schenk

In the year 2040, a cult-like military general rises out of the Republican Party and spearheads a violent coup against a repressive Democratic administration. In the suburbs, General Schenk’s loyal followers brutalize Black and Hispanic neighborhoods while looting the liberal elite. Millions are killed or uprooted. Survivors run to the mountains, national parks and major cities, leaving everything behind. And it is there where Haisley Jones, a pregnant former Marine, must begin the fight to revive democracy, per the commands from the perfectly simulated voice of Maya Angelou via the vocoder system in her neural chip.

~Act I of Democracy Jones: 7:13 podcast will be released 1/6/2022

Democracy Jones – Book Series

Horror/SF Book Series Democracy Jones or Adventures in Late Phase Western Democracy.

First book, Democracy Jones: 7/13 to be published 2022.

In the voice of its author, listen to an audio description: https://audiomack.com/eamonloingsigh/song/13692498