We take for granted that America is the world’s preeminent superpower, with hegemony abroad and prosperity at home. But how did we get here? And what does it mean for the US to use its superpower status to be a world leader?
In his new book, “Burdens of Freedom: Cultural Difference and American Power,” and in this 2016 Bradley Lecture, Professor Lawrence Mead argues that the basis of American wealth and power is an individualist culture. Threats to such a culture, Mead contends, are the primary challenges facing America as it tries to navigate its role as a leader on the world stage.
This lecture was originally delivered at AEI in February 2016.
To view a full list of the Bradley Lectures, see the Bradley Lectures page on the AEI website.


How did we get here? The roots of American primacy

Great lectures from the past applied to pressing issues of the present, hosted by Jackson Wolford at the American Enterprise Institute.

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Things change, norms shift, and even the language we use alters with time.  But despite being commonplace, change isn't always easy. This month we'll listen to David Skinner -- editor of Humanities magazine and formerly of The Weekly Standard -- deliver a 2012 lecture on how a crisis among the literary classes was sparked by a change...in a dictionary.  Change also comes to the Bradley Lectures Podcast itself. We're a month off our normal schedule, in part because of changes we hope to bring to our episodes and guests in the near future. To stay up to date on these plans, follow us on twitter @BradleyLectures or subscribe to our newsletter here. 

The Story of Ain't: America and Its Language

For decades, our appreciation for natural beauty has been tempered by an awareness of its impermanence. Our environment, its species, and the very climate in which we live all exist under conditions of duress. In this month’s lecture, we will hear from Pulitzer prize winner E.O. Wilson, one of the most influential biologists of the last 70 years and pioneer of the field of sociobiology. His lecture, delivered in 2001, addresses the dangers facing our environment, strategies for slowing its decline, and the importance of preserving our natural capital.  

Preserving Our Natural Capital

The European Union has lost a major member. Several EU countries are facing COVID crises. The German-backed European vaccine rollout has been widely derided as a disaster.  Trust in the European Union and German leadership are in question.  What will be the answer? This month, we hear a 2014 lecture from Professor Brendan Simms of Cambridge University on the importance of German stability for Europe, what may happen if this stability is challenged, and the possibility of a Europe organized in a more American model. ------ If you would like to keep in touch with the Bradley Lectures Podcast, or recommend topics from the archive you'd like to hear lectures on in the future, please follow us on twitter @BradleyLectures or email us at BradleyLecturesPod@AEI.org. 

European questions, American answers

A new administration. A renewed American bombing campaign in Syria. An apparently reconsidered relationship with Saudi Arabia.  After four years of comparative international quietude, is the United States reasserting its position as a forceful manager of world affairs?  And if so, should it?  This month we will hear a 1997 lecture from journalist and foreign affairs scholar Fareed Zakaria on the limits of realpolitik, and the challenges of realism.  ------ If you would like to keep in touch with the Bradley Lectures Podcast, or recommend topics from the archive you'd like to hear lectures on in the future, please follow us on twitter @BradleyLectures or email us at BradleyLecturesPod@AEI.org.

The Limits of Realpolitik

From the 2016 election through the present pandemic, the world has seemed anything but predictable over the last four years. In a world of Congressional chaos and a seething stock market, we might not be blamed for asking: "Can we really predict anything at all?" This month, we will hear a 2015 lecture from Prof. Philip Tetlock, co-founder of the Good Judgment Project, on the potential of Super-Forecasters, and the possibility of sifting through the noise to find the signposts toward the future. 

How did we get here? The roots of American primacy

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