In this episode, I talk with Matt and Max Smith, co-authors of The Preparation: How To Become Competent, Confident, and Dangerous.

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In NYC, two people stopped me on the street and commented on my conversation with philosopher and linguist Benedict Beckeld. One man told me, and I quote, “It changed my life.”

Obviously, then, due to the overwhelmingly positive responses and because Benedict challenged some of my core beliefs, it was a no-brainer to have another conversation with him.

Our conversation in NYC was forthright, nuanced, I’m sure controversial to many, and I found it genuinely engaging. We talked about the decline of the West, Islam, and much more. 

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Rod and I have far more in common than not, and I am honored to call him a friend. He’s thoughtful, interesting, supportive, kind, humble, sincere, and fun to hang out with. Metaphysical and political differences should never, ever get in the way of friendship.

And yet those differences and divisions are what we’ve endured culturally and socially for the last 15 years, at least. We’ve mediated our friendships through metaphysical and political lenses, and we’ve all suffered. We’ve become lesser because we’ve misprioritized what matters: Virtue, kindness, decency.

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Sean Nottoli is a Danube Institute researcher, self-identified conservative, and a political renaissance man. We discussed China and the US, energy, Iran and Israel, and more.

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Like most honest people, Morgan Marietta, formerly Dean of Economics, Politics & History at the University of Austin (UATX), is repulsed by the dishonesty that’s consumed our academic institutions.

I’m sure you’ve heard most of the reasons why academies need open inquiry and honest conversation before, but I particularly liked Morgan’s comment, “There’s a conformist answer and those answers are boring, monochrome, and humorless.” He’s right. When there’s a set of prescribed opinions and responses to issues in general, and moral issues in particular, you’re no longer educating students. You’re indoctrinating them.

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Danny Kaplan is a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Mathematics and Statistics at The University of Austin. Danny has forgotten more about math and statistics than I will ever know, and I found it wondrous and delightful to explore my ignorance with him. Indeed, advanced math or even basic math is almost never something I think about, and I’ve been unclear whether not knowing it hindered me in any way. I now have a clearer answer to that question. 

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It’s critically important that what you want to be true does not influence your beliefs about what is actually true. I found this happening to myself in this sobering conversation. I don’t want to believe much of what philosopher Benedict Beckeld says about a majority of Muslims or his claim that we should abandon the term “Islamism.”

We discuss the West, Islam, Jews, and more in this fascinating conversation.

Benedict's website: https://www.benedictbeckeld.com/

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In the aftermath of October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a savage assault on Jews and ignited a global bonfire of hatred, we’ve witnessed a surge in attacks against Jews. Synagogues have been defaced, Jewish students harassed on campus, Jews assaulted and even lit on fire, and online bile spewed endlessly. These are manifestations of an enduring plague.

Prolific author and public intellectual Adam LeBor joins me for a sober conversation about the rise of Jew hatred. 

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Dr. Calum Nicholson has become a close friend. We first met in Hungary in 2021. Since then, we’ve had countless spirited dinners together while hashing out the world’s problems over bottles of wine. He’s sincere, thoughtful, and not afraid to question assumptions.

With neoliberalism being all the rage, a key question in this conversation was: Is the neoliberal order collapsing? Similar to a recent conversation I had with Philip Pilkington ,understanding the end of the prevailing world order and what comes next is, if I may say so, a tad ahead of the curve. As the existing global order becomes increasingly disrupted, we’ll see more discussions like this (but perhaps with less informed conversants). 

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This is one of the best and most important conversations I’ve ever had. Dr. Ralph Schoellhammer is an Austrian political scientist, Head of Center for Applied History at MCC Budapest, scholar, and a terrific person. He’s forthright in his speech, incredibly well read and knowledgeable, thoughtful, open to criticism, and intellectually nimble.

This episode features discussions on economics, touching on world news and the idea of an economic bloc being formed. It compares the US military comparison against others, debating economic power versus military might, and more.

Find my two previous conversations with Ralph here and here.

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