Fri, 20 Mar 2026 02:05:09 -0400 https://ostertag.buzzsprout.com en-us © 2026 What's Been Done and What's Been Won yes 01e94029-2678-59c2-aa01-92d95b9b6dbb Bob Ostertag episodic false Buzzsprout (https://www.buzzsprout.com) Bob Ostertag https://storage.buzzsprout.com/8hbmqlgue1pn0jthqx8794cjlpqc?.jpg Police Violence: A Long-Term Perspective A special edition devoted to recent police violence. Maureen Taylor brings to the table the experience of 30 years in social work in Detroit.

]]> A special edition devoted to recent police violence. Maureen Taylor brings to the table the experience of 30 years in social work in Detroit.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-8397322 Sat, 24 Apr 2021 17:00:00 -0700 2308 2 3 full false Truth Commission in Washington DC Maureen Taylor and Bob Ostertag welcome special guests Rick and Michele Tingling-Clemmons from Washington DC.

]]> Maureen Taylor and Bob Ostertag welcome special guests Rick and Michele Tingling-Clemmons from Washington DC.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-8329398 Tue, 13 Apr 2021 13:00:00 -0700 1937 full false Introducing Season Two Maureen Taylor and Bob Ostertag catch up on events since the close of Season 1, and discuss the special guests coming in Season 2.

]]> Maureen Taylor and Bob Ostertag catch up on events since the close of Season 1, and discuss the special guests coming in Season 2.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-8235484 Mon, 29 Mar 2021 15:00:00 -0700 1960 2 1 full false Maureen's Lawsuit Against the Billionaire President Catches Fire Groups from around the country add their names and voices to Maureen's lawsuit against the billionaire president.  Meanwhile, yet more victories are won in the fight to make utilities affordable for the poor.

]]> Groups from around the country add their names and voices to Maureen's lawsuit against the billionaire president.  Meanwhile, yet more victories are won in the fight to make utilities affordable for the poor.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-7001803 Thu, 24 Dec 2020 11:00:00 -0800 1938 full false Not Water Assistance, Water AFFORDABILITY Maureen reports on the decision by both the Detroit city government and the Michigan state government to have NO WATER SHUTOFFS for the duration of the pandemic. A major victory for low income people, She then explains the difference between "assistance" and "affordability" – affordability meaning that low income people are are billed for the basic necessities of life on the basis of income, and the coming attempt to take the affordability model national. 

]]> Maureen reports on the decision by both the Detroit city government and the Michigan state government to have NO WATER SHUTOFFS for the duration of the pandemic. A major victory for low income people, She then explains the difference between "assistance" and "affordability" – affordability meaning that low income people are are billed for the basic necessities of life on the basis of income, and the coming attempt to take the affordability model national. 

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-6825373 Sun, 13 Dec 2020 11:00:00 -0800 1938 1 9 full false Maureen Taylor Sues Donald Trump Maureen Taylor and two more black women in Detroit sue Donal Trump for violating the Voting Rights Act, through his repeated insistence that the only votes that should not be counted in Michigan are the votes from the overwhelmingly black precincts.

]]> Maureen Taylor and two more black women in Detroit sue Donal Trump for violating the Voting Rights Act, through his repeated insistence that the only votes that should not be counted in Michigan are the votes from the overwhelmingly black precincts.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-6700717 Fri, 04 Dec 2020 17:00:00 -0800 1666 1 8 full false Meet Myrna Melgar In this special edition which focuses for the first time on Bob Ostertag's home city of San Francisco, we meet Myrna Melgar, the first Latina EVER elected to San Francisco's Board of Supervisors without first being appointed to the seat. Myrna's family fled  El Salvador where her family had been torn apart by civil war, the same war on which Bob spent much of the 1980s working as an activist and journalist.

]]> In this special edition which focuses for the first time on Bob Ostertag's home city of San Francisco, we meet Myrna Melgar, the first Latina EVER elected to San Francisco's Board of Supervisors without first being appointed to the seat. Myrna's family fled  El Salvador where her family had been torn apart by civil war, the same war on which Bob spent much of the 1980s working as an activist and journalist.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-6334267 Wed, 11 Nov 2020 17:00:00 -0800 1880 1 7 full false Final preparations and thoughts before voting Maureen and Bob are joined by EB Jordan, speaking from her car as she drives around Detroit after dark trying to find an open store that has PPE that she can buy and offer to those waiting in line to vote on Election Day.  And this is after she spent the last few days organizing felons one at a time: explaining that they have the right to vote, and then helping them do so. If you need some insightful, fierce, optimistic final thoughts on the election from someone out in the street fully engaged in the struggle, look no farther.

]]> Maureen and Bob are joined by EB Jordan, speaking from her car as she drives around Detroit after dark trying to find an open store that has PPE that she can buy and offer to those waiting in line to vote on Election Day.  And this is after she spent the last few days organizing felons one at a time: explaining that they have the right to vote, and then helping them do so. If you need some insightful, fierce, optimistic final thoughts on the election from someone out in the street fully engaged in the struggle, look no farther.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-6157477 Sat, 31 Oct 2020 08:00:00 -0700 1942 full false Lions and Tigers and, Oh My, This Creature Called Poverty Maureen tells the stories of some Detroit families facing water and utility shutoffs. Maureen describes how hard it is for poor people not to blame themselves for problems so much bigger than them, and why it is so hard for us to come to terms with the basics of what is happening in our country. Finally, Maureen takes on a a night time list to the Detroit zoo, and to the morgue. 

]]> Maureen tells the stories of some Detroit families facing water and utility shutoffs. Maureen describes how hard it is for poor people not to blame themselves for problems so much bigger than them, and why it is so hard for us to come to terms with the basics of what is happening in our country. Finally, Maureen takes on a a night time list to the Detroit zoo, and to the morgue. 

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-6048472 Sun, 25 Oct 2020 00:00:00 -0700 1740 full false Kidnapping, Murder, the Sheriff, the President, and Who Has the Right to Turn Off the Lights Maureen and Bob discuss the plot to kidnap and murder the governor of Michigan, who was the decisive actor in guaranteeing access to water for poor people in Detroit. The kidnappers were cheered on by the President and seemingly had the collaboration of a current sheriff. They the turn to new plans to disconnect gas and electricity for poor people in the midst of the pandemic.

]]> Maureen and Bob discuss the plot to kidnap and murder the governor of Michigan, who was the decisive actor in guaranteeing access to water for poor people in Detroit. The kidnappers were cheered on by the President and seemingly had the collaboration of a current sheriff. They the turn to new plans to disconnect gas and electricity for poor people in the midst of the pandemic.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-5931154 Fri, 16 Oct 2020 16:00:00 -0700 1996 full false Social Media: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly Bob and Maureen discuss the political complexities of social media with guest Jon Leidecker of the notorious sound collage group Negativland. Along the way they touch on the automation of automobile production, the Dodge Revolutionary Union Movement of the 1960s and 70s, and Maureen's experience as a crash test driver for General Motors. 

]]> Bob and Maureen discuss the political complexities of social media with guest Jon Leidecker of the notorious sound collage group Negativland. Along the way they touch on the automation of automobile production, the Dodge Revolutionary Union Movement of the 1960s and 70s, and Maureen's experience as a crash test driver for General Motors. 

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-5815198 Fri, 09 Oct 2020 00:00:00 -0700 2315 1 3 full false An Incredible Victory Amidst a Pandemic and Recession Maureen tells the story of a nightmarish battle for access to fresh water for Detroit's poor that lasted more than a decade, and how the recent intervention of Governor Gretchen Whitmer turned the tables. Along the way Maureen recounts the rise of car manufacturing in Detroit, the creation of this country's first black middle class, how automation and globalization destroyed all that, and what it is actually like to try to raise a family with kids in a house that has no water.

]]> Maureen tells the story of a nightmarish battle for access to fresh water for Detroit's poor that lasted more than a decade, and how the recent intervention of Governor Gretchen Whitmer turned the tables. Along the way Maureen recounts the rise of car manufacturing in Detroit, the creation of this country's first black middle class, how automation and globalization destroyed all that, and what it is actually like to try to raise a family with kids in a house that has no water.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-5728669 Sat, 03 Oct 2020 23:00:00 -0700 2353 1 2 full false Meet Maureen Taylor from Detroit Michigan Bob introduces Maureen Taylor, chair of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization. They recount their meeting in the woods in upstate New York, and how Maureen designated Bob her Ambassador, charged with informing people around the world about poor peoples' struggles in Detroit. Maureen recounts stories of the Covid pandemic from Detroit.

]]> Bob introduces Maureen Taylor, chair of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization. They recount their meeting in the woods in upstate New York, and how Maureen designated Bob her Ambassador, charged with informing people around the world about poor peoples' struggles in Detroit. Maureen recounts stories of the Covid pandemic from Detroit.

]]> Bob Ostertag Buzzsprout-5633920 Sun, 27 Sep 2020 22:00:00 -0700 1181 1 1 full false