Episodes
-
The rise & fall of voting rights with Kevin Morris
The end of the Voting Rights Act & unmaking of American democracy
-
UK Media's anti-trans frenzy with Ændra Rininsland
How Britain's insular, twitterbrained press pushed us to the far right
-
It's fascism, what now? with Thomas Zimmer
The 'fascism debate' is won, what follows from that and what do we do now?
-
What we owe refugees with Bradley Hillier-Smith
With the world becoming more repressive, what would an ethical policy even look like?
-
The perils of polling-led campaigns with Anat Shenker-Osorio
& other US politics inside baseball
-
The end of free enterpirse rhetoric? with Larry Glickman
From the right's ultimate ethical appeal, to hardly mentioned.
-
Does dem messaging even matter? with Noah Berlatsky
Thinking about how electorates think politically
-
Can Democrats match Republican aggression? with Noah Berlatsky
Why the parties are so different, & why that's changing
-
MAGA & Masculinity with Amanda Marcotte
The American right's obsession with gender
-
Critics of Starmer’s appeasement were right—we should say so!
Audio essay: reactionary centrists didn't listen, won't learn, & can't lead
-
listening to Black women with Atima Omara
Discussing the demographic that has been at the forefront of activism—and of warning of what is to come.
-
The Roman Republic with Bret Devereaux
The strange historical reality behind the inspiration for so many political systems, & what we can learn from it.
-
Were fascism's cassandras victims of "epistemic injustice"? with Aidan McGlynn
Not being listened to was annoying, was it also unjust?
-
Birthright citizenship with Anna O. Law
This history of, and modern threats to, this core American freedom
-
Was it fascism all along? with Silvaria Lysandra Zemaitis
A recent article of mine generated significant engagement from all sides, including an extended critique from Silvaria, who argued I was wrong to try and separate conservatism and fascism. We sat down to discuss the debate.
-
The birth rate debate
The right is obsessed with declining birth rates, what, if anything, should be the liberal response?
-
For the last time, no; "moderating" on trans rights wouldn't help democrats
My response to the latest round of NYTs articles
-
Can Labour come back? with Dan Sohege
Breaking down Labour's lurch to the right, and what comes next?
-
You cannot compromise with bigotry - Nicholas Mitchell
What is bigotry, how should we think about it, and why a strategy of appeasement will never work.
-
Another day, another validation of anti-fascist ‘alarmists’
My thoughts on the Manchester by-election
-
How liberals can win on immigration with Greg Sargent
Greg & I have both recently argued that, as horrific as this moment is, it offer liberals an opportunity to push a different vision on immigration & reset the politics of the issue. We discuss what we're up against, the challenges facing us, what us winning might look like, and how we get there.
-
Writing the Bible 3- The Great Hymn to the Aten
It's 1350 BC and the most powerful man on earth has lost his mind, closing the temples, moving the capital into the desert, and raving, terrifyingly, that there is only one god
-
New Year AMA
Does the UK have Wine Moms? & other listener questions
-
Tenure with Deepa Das Acevedo
What is academic tenure, what are the main arguments for or against it? Why has it gotten harder to get, and to what extent should public scholarship be a criteria for it? Deepa Das Acevedo discusses her book The War on Tenure.
-
Fascism & fiction with Elia Ayoub
Why are fascists so interested in fictional universes like Star Trek or Lord of the Rings? And is there a link between the rise of the far right and the decline in creativity in mainstream entertainment?
-
Fascism & socialism with Matt McManus
What is Fascism, what was its relationship to socialism historically, and what is it today?
-
Abolishing ICE is not enough. They must be held accountable.
What comes after the murder in Minneapolis.
-
The global immigration debate with Pontus Odmalm
Across the world mainline political parties have faced a challenge from the far-right. Across the world, they've struggled to offer a counter narrative on immigration. Why?
-
Fascism's Cassandras
I recently published an article in The New Republic interviewing the American's who saw our democratic collapse coming -Cassandras, as I called them. I wanted to understand why some people got it, and others didn't. I'm joined by one of them, Irina (also my wife) who interviews me on the process…
more -
Building Opposition Media with Adam Gurri
Liberal Current's Editor in Chief Adam Gurri joins the podcast - How the centrist political media has enabled fascism, and what needs to be done differently. Support the Political Philosophy Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/c/PoliticalPhilosophyPodcast Support Liberal Currents:...
-
Appeasement Isn’t Working
An audio essay: Putting the UK's new anti-refugee policies in context, why they are both bad on their own terms, but also a big warning sign for our democracy. Where we're at, and why there is hope.
-
Should we compromise with the right on immigration? - With Thomas Prosser
Tom & I debate if the current Labour Government is on the right track - are they right to give ground on cultural issues?
-
Bioethics & Race with Yolonda Wilson
What is bioethics? Why do Black and white Americans experience such differential healthcare outcomes? And what are the drawbacks to social justice concepts from academia becoming mainstream?
-
Fighting Britain's Bathroom Ban with Jolyon Maugham
I'm joined by the founder and director of The Good Law Project - the organisation fighting the UK's anti-trans bathroom ban in court. We cover rights and freedoms in the UK, the complex legal mess we find ourselves in, and how the rest of us should respond.
-
It will be worse in the UK
Measuring our anti-fascist preparedness vs the US, Video version: https://youtu.be/t8DEEUs-RFg?si=L8DDXCT5VTE82RTP
-
Do Cars Make us Free? with Henrietta Moore & Arthur Kay
Originally a symbol of mobility, of escape and adventure, we have now built much of our world around the car. Has doing so liberated us? Moore & Kay argue that it has not.
-
Left-Abstention & Message Discipline with Liam Bright
Does my argument that the left should not threaten abstention survive Liam's case that we can't impose message discipline on online communities? An open free-form chat.
-
White Psychodrama Revisited with Liam Bright
Liam Bright discusses his influential White Psychodrama paper & we give our takes on the various cultural products arising from white guilt. Is the era of 'high woke' over, and is there anything to be learn't from it?
-
Can Deliberation Save Democracy? with James S. Fishkin
James S. Fishkin, the Pioneer of deliberative polling joins the podcast. We discuss the nature of public opinion, how it can be changed, the positivities of consensus, 'activist disfunction' and can deliberation help cure our current democratic death spiral.
-
Should Liberalism Fight, or Retreat & Retrench? with Alec Crisman
I recently wrote that liberalism must reject neutrality and instead embrace a comprehensive vision of what is good for people, one that takes the fight to fascism. I defend that view against concerns from Alec Crisman and we debate our very different visions about what liberals can - or should -...
-
Writing The Bible 2: Hammurabi's Code
The series continues, exploring the world the Bible was born into. Another genre of writing these texts existed within was the Ancient Near Eastern law code. We look at the most famous, focusing on sex, marriage, adultery, homosexuality, and offending cows.
-
Precolonial Africana Philosophy with Peter Adamson and Chike Jeffers
From Ancient Egypt, to Ethiopia, to the Islamic tradition, Africa had a rich - & truly ancient - tradition of philosophy prior to European Colonization. Peter Adamson and Chike Jeffers join the podcast to discuss. Africana Philosophy from Ancient Egypt to the Nineteenth Century:...
-
Do Elections Define Democracy? with Natasha Piano
What is democracy and why is it failing? Natasha Piano joins the show to discuss her recent book, Democratic Elitism: The Founding Myth of American Political Science.
-
Writing the Bible: 1 The First Flood
The first episode of my new, new format, history series - the Bible in its historic and literary context. We start in 1850 BC in ancient Babylon, with the epics that would evolve into the Genesis flood story.
-
Writing the Bible - New Series Preview
A shot preview of a new series I'll be doing on the podcast
-
UK AMA
I take a range of questions on all things British politics.
-
THE NEVERENDING PRIMARY
Why Hillary vs Bernie still shapes our politics & how we can move past it.
-
THE FAR-RIGHT & CRIMINALITY with Josie Duffy Rice
Crime and criminality are central concepts in American political discourse - fears of crime, crime as code for race, or illegal immigration are all common issues. Now we have a movement running the country that is obsessed with crime, but also led by criminals, how do we make sense of that? Why…
more -
TECH-BRO DYSTOPIA with Dave Karpf
What the hell is up with Silicon Valley's lurch to the far-right? Dave Karpf joins to discuss
-
FIRING THE GENERALS with Samantha Hancox-Li
Why & how the Democratic Party needs to change. Samantha and I discuss our recent articles on what is going wrong for democrats, and what is going wrong for those who want to reform the party. The Crisis of Democratic Governance…
more