Tim Talks Politics

The Ethics of Drones and Autonomous Systems with Kerry Chavez

US Air Force Academy professor Dr. Kerry Chávez is back on the show to pick up where we left off in our last conversation: the ethical considerations, quandaries and pitfalls surrounding drones, AI, and other emerging tech in their military applications. While a lot of attention has been focused on armed drone use in war zones, there’s a whole realm of military application that drones and emerging autonomous vehicles that may be less visible to the public eye and cadres of armchair generals on X: medivac, ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance), C2 (command and control), and other many other “back end” elements of military logistics.  While these non-kinetic applications for emerging technology may appear at first blush to be ethically and morally neutral. However, when considering things like the field performance (and limitations) of these vehicles, the potential for bias in data being fed into them, and the still nascent norms, legal, and regulatory components governing their use by states (nonstate actors are a whole other consideration) Kerry suggests that there’s more of the ethical and moral here than meets the eye.  Subscribe to Tim Talks Politics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://timtalkspolitics.substack.com/pod] for the full show notes (30% off for podcast listeners)!

Kazakhstan, Central Asia, and the Abraham Accords with Joseph Epstein

We’re back for 2026 and another season of the Tim Talks Politics Podcast.  2025’s end of year project, The Kirk Effects, was wonderful and worthwhile, but it did draw my attention away from the international sphere before taking that holiday break. Now, as we enter 2026, the world is in flux in a way few thought possible just last month. Before we dive into conversations on Venezuela, Iran, Greenland, etc. (don’t worry, they’re in the pipeline), I want to start the year off with a conversation on Central Asia and Kazakhstan’s ascension to the Abraham Accords. To discuss this critical region and the potentially huge impacts of the Abraham Accords on that region, Joseph Epstein returns to the podcast to give us a dime tour of the region and to flesh out the possibilities surrounding Kazakhstan joining the Accords.  Subscribe to Tim Talks Politics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://timtalkspolitics.substack.com/pod] for the full show notes (30% off for podcast listeners)!

Christmas Interlude

A short message wishing you all a "Merry Christmas" as I take a slightly earlier intended Christmas break. Subscribe to Tim Talks Politics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://timtalkspolitics.substack.com/pod] for the full show notes (30% off for podcast listeners)!

Culture, Narrative, and Charlie Kirk with Zena Dell Lowe

They say politics is downstream from culture, but what is culture downstream from? My guest today would say culture is downstream from worldview - one’s governing assumptions of morality and ultimate reality. And that’s why she’s on the podcast today. My guest is writer, actress, and comedian Zena Dell Lowe. Our conversation covers a wide array of topics related to culture and the ideas, people and moments that shape it. This is a longer conversation that tackles the idea of a “Kirk effect” from a very different angle by considering Kirk’s broader cultural impact beyond faith and politics.  Subscribe to Tim Talks Politics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://timtalkspolitics.substack.com/pod] for the full show notes (30% off for podcast listeners)!

Activist or Apologist? Understanding Charlie Kirk's work with John Wilsey

In this episode of The Kirk Effect, Dr. Wilsey and I explore the broader historical and cultural context of Kirk’s work. Dr. Wilsey explains that in many respects, Kirk’s evident Christian faith and rhetoric is not an anomaly in American public life. In fact, it’s something of a throw back to a not so distant past when the intersection of faith and politics in America produced a rich cultural exchange that has generally benefited American culture. Subscribe to Tim Talks Politics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://timtalkspolitics.substack.com/pod] for the full show notes (30% off for podcast listeners)!