Robert Wright's Nonzero

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0:34 The Unspeakeasy, the newest arm of the Meghan-industrial complex 7:53 Meghan’s prestigious place in Parrot Room history 11:20 Has wokeness won? 19:48 How common is anti-semitism on the left? 32:40 Israel-Palestine’s destructive non-zero-sum dynamics 50:02 Meghan’s highly therapeutic Unspeakeasy retreats

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Meghan Daum (https://meghandaum.substack.com, https://aspecialplace.substack.com, https://www.theunspeakeasy.com). Recorded October 19, 2023.

Meghan's Twitter: https://twitter.com/meghan_daum

2:05 Israel’s military plans for northern Gaza 5:05 How does international law apply to Israel and Hamas? 16:15 The first casualty of war is truth 24:50 Do Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute ethnic cleansing? 32:06 The evolving definition of genocide 39:36 How the US and Israel helped Hamas seize power 50:18 America’s ill-fated push for Arab-Israeli normalization 53:17 The hazards of overreacting to Hamas’s attack 1:01:26 How western media has covered the conflict so far

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Sarah Leah Whitson (Democracy for the Arab World Now). Recorded October 16, 2023.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

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Recorded October 13, 2023.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

0:33 Paul’s humble new ventures with Substack and Nonzero 6:07 Israel-Palestine, exploitative media, and the pitfalls of empathy 19:04 Paul’s plaudits for Mickey and the Parrot Room 22:11 Elon Musk and Derek Parfit: compare and contrast 29:24 Is there a method to Musk’s mad genius? 36:01 The radical rationalism that forged SBF 43:07 How real is implicit bias? 55:48 How real is SBF? 58:25 Heading to Overtime

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded October 13, 2023.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

(Overtime segment and American Prestige discount subscription link available to paid subscribers below the paywall.)

0:33 Nonzero/American Prestige cocktail with a hybrid episode twist 2:23 Was Hamas’s attack a predictable response to conditions in Gaza? 14:43 Did Biden’s foreign policy make the attack more likely? 25:20 America’s unstrategic Middle East strategy 30:35 Can anything good come out of the current crisis? 39:56 The Nonzero/American Prestige crossover arc 42:39 How to stay sane as a critic of US foreign policy 48:13 Biden vs Trump: Who’s the lesser evil on foreign policy? 52:12 Strains within the restrainer coalition 57:37 Is there any hope left for international law? 1:07:19 Bob’s pitch for (sober) AI alarmism 1:12:20 Heading to Overtime—and a special offer for listeners!

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True), Derek Davison (Foreign Exchanges, American Prestige, Discontents), and Daniel Bessner (American Prestige, University of Washington). Recorded October 05, 2023.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

American Prestige on Substack:

1:52 Important reminder about the Friday podcast 3:33 Sam Bankman-Fried’s plan to stop Trump 8:20 Biden’s new policy: Build the wall! 17:28 Why is life expectancy dropping for some demographics in America? 20:07 Should Democrats have helped Kevin McCarthy remain speaker? 27:28 The Blob starts to think like Bob on Russia-Ukraine 34:45 Should the US impose conditions on aid to Ukraine? 45:08 What war with China over Taiwan would look like 49:12 Parrot Room preview: McCarthyism at the news outlet Semafor. Michael Lewis’s new book on Sam Bankman-Fried. Parrot reminiscing. Evolution and homosexuality. Christopher Rufo defends Nixon

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Mickey Kaus (kausfiles, The End of Equality). Recorded October 06, 2023.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Should Democrats support what's good for institutions or what's good for Democrats? ... Did Pelosi want Democrats to vote "present"? ... Why were Democrats so unified? ... Are all House Republicans equally bad? ... Who's going to be the next Speaker? ...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

(Overtime segment available to paid subscribers below the paywall.)

2:16 Has Biden abandoned longstanding US policy on Taiwan? 9:31 The sobering results of recent US-China war games 19:33 Would China ever accept defeat in Taiwan? 28:17 Why the US might bomb Taiwan’s microchip factories 34:44 How war over Taiwan could unfold 48:33 Lyle: DC think tanks are underestimating China's military 55:43 Heading to Overtime

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Lyle Goldstein (Defense Priorities, Watson Institute, Meeting China Halfway). Recorded October 02, 2023.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

0:33 Mickey, the man from the future, times out on this week’s quiz 8:00 Winners, losers, and bigger losers of the GOP debate 20:18 Semafor’s Iran influence exposé: (semi-)exposed! 28:04 How is Menendez still standing? Mickey has a theory 33:15 Bad socio-economic omens for Biden’s 2024 bid 39:05 Ukraine war update 45:47 Is elite opinion on immigration shifting? 52:23 Next week: The final Parrot Room

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Mickey Kaus (kausfiles, The End of Equality). Recorded September 29, 2023.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Sarah’s vexing exile from X/Twitter ... Sarah’s next book project ... Would dumping Biden help or harm the Dems’ 2024 chances? ... Who could bump Trump from the GOP ticket? ... Sarah: The Dems’ key to victory is… ... Will the “war on woke” be relevant in 2024? ... The thing that most worries Sarah about the election ... Heading to Overtime ...