Episodes
Monday May 10, 2021
Monday May 10, 2021
A story of achievement and accomplishment, gripping in every detail, which highlights how far we have fallen from greatness. (The written version of this review can be found here.)
Friday May 07, 2021
Napoleon: A Life (Andrew Roberts)
Friday May 07, 2021
Friday May 07, 2021
The original Man of Destiny, a possible template for our own future Man of Destiny. (The written version of this review was first published September 7, 2018. Written versions are available here.)
Friday Apr 23, 2021
We (Yevgeny Zamyatin)
Friday Apr 23, 2021
Friday Apr 23, 2021
Yevgeny Zamyatin's We, from 1921, is the original dystopia that spawned all other twentieth-century dystopias portrayed in literature. Despite being the oldest dystopia, it is in some ways the most relevant one for today, more so than the more famous 1984 and Brave New World. Yet its most crucial lesson is almost always ignored. (The written version of this review can be found here.)
Tuesday Apr 20, 2021
Tuesday Apr 20, 2021
The prolific Peter Turchin offers another attempt to quantify and mathematize history. It's not bad, and it's fairly interesting, but it's not nearly as successful as his more famous Ages of Discord. (The written version of this review can be found here.)
Friday Apr 16, 2021
How Democracy Ends (David Runciman)
Friday Apr 16, 2021
Friday Apr 16, 2021
From 2018, one of several then-current books about the impending end of democracy; although this one is less through a Trumpian lens, and thus has not dated as badly as others. With bonus references to Skynet as a possible destructor! (The written version of this review was first published August 29, 2018. Written versions are available here.)
Monday Apr 12, 2021
Monday Apr 12, 2021
Thoughts on the practical effects and social impact of small-scale agriculture, along with thoughts on large-scale agriculture and fat people. (The written version of this review can be found here.)
Monday Apr 05, 2021
Coup d’État: A Practical Handbook (Edward N. Luttwak)
Monday Apr 05, 2021
Monday Apr 05, 2021
From 2018, through the lens of a classic work of applied politics, thoughts on coups (which have not happened, nor did I predict them), and on social media's role in enforcing global rule of the Left (which I did predict, and which has most definitely happened). (The written version of this review was first published August 27, 2018. Written versions are available here.)
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
I See Satan Fall Like Lightning (René Girard)
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
René Girard's exposition of the mechanisms of societal violence. Deeply insightful, and with potent lessons for the present moment. (The written version of this review can be found here.)
Saturday Mar 27, 2021
Saturday Mar 27, 2021
Phillip Bobbitt's interpretation of Machiavelli's world view and attempted synthesis of his works, along with the unlikely use of Machiavelli to claim virtue for the the modern neoliberal, consumerist state. (The written version of this review was first published August 23, 2018. Written versions are available here.)
Tuesday Mar 23, 2021
On the January 2021 Electoral Justice Protest
Tuesday Mar 23, 2021
Tuesday Mar 23, 2021
On one of the seminal events of modern history, the January 6, 2021 Electoral Justice Protest—and of the friend/enemy distinction, and of what flows from it. (The written version of this analysis can be found here.)