Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Spectacles Out Loud
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Spectacles Out Loud
Spectacles Out Loud episodes
- The Disease of Medical Lobbying | Insight
America doesn’t have enough doctors, but it doesn’t do us any good to point and stare without getting to the root of the problem.
-Important References-
Derek Thompson's Atlantic Article
Listen to our discussion of this piece!
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
5 min - Curtains for Tunisian Democracy | Insight
The president of Tunisia is cementing his hold on authoritarian power. It’s worth considering what happens when the response to anti-democratic action is sluggish.
-Important References-
Our previous coverage of Tunisia:
July 26, 2021 - The first signs of collapse
August 30, 2021 - Considering our options
October 1, 2021 - Asking how this happened
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
4 min - The Boris Bet | Insight
Boris Johnson remains in a state of perma-crisis, but it could cost his party dearly to turn on him now.
-Important References-
Philip's last check-in on Boris
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
4 min - Cougars or Duplexes: Which Are Scarier? | Insight
Last year, we thought California had killed single-family zoning. But this Bay Area enclave would rather have mountain lions than new homes.
Don't miss the extra discussion of this topic and the legal claims here, from Spectacles In Conversation!
Correction: Woodside has dropped this claim to a wildlife habitat to prevent SB9, though I would still predict other communities making other legal attempts to exempt themselves, and legal battles will probably follow.
-Important References-
Harry's previous Insight on SB9 and 10
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
5 min - Capital on the Hill | Insight
As congressional staffers vent about poor wages and working conditions, it’s worth considering what happens when public servants are poorly compensated.
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
4 min - When in Rome? | Focus
HBO’s Rome offers a peek into BC-era political dilemmas not unlike our own. The lesson, it seems, is not to do as the Romans did.
-Important References-
If you're curious to learn more about this period of Roman history and what we might be able to learn from it and apply to our challenges today, Plutarch's biographies are a great insight into the lives of important Romans at any time. This collection is a good one for the period in question. From a more modern voice, Mike Duncan is an excellent and accessible presenter of Roman history, both through his podcast, and his book on this period.
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
20 min - It’s Global Trade, Stupid | Insight
A lot of people want to increase industry at home to prevent future shortages. It sounds nice, but it doesn’t work like that.
-Important References-
Philip explains the supply chain crunch and what to do
Harry points to how actions usually thought to increase inflation could reduce it
Harry discusses how inflation has been unequally distributed
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
5 min - Ukraine and the Tragedy of Geopolitics | Guest Insight
Today, guest writer Christopher Healey -
How much does Ukraine's location on a map reveal about its present crisis? The answer shows just how complicated democratization can be.
Christopher Healey holds a BS in Political Science from Kenyon College, where he also studied Religion and French. He works on the communications team of a foreign policy think tank in Washington, D.C., though the views in this article are his own, and he is writing in an entirely independent capacity.
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
6 min - The Rules of Law | Insight
The January 6th convictions aren’t quite on target yet. But by going for symbols of the insurrection, they’re on the right track.
-Important References-
Jacob Chansley interview
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
4 min - A Democracy of the Deserving | Focus
It’s taken for granted that meritocracy makes sense. But could it actually damage democracy in the long term?
-Further Reading-
- The Tyranny of Merit, by Michael Sandel.
- Democracy in America, by Alexis de Tocqueville
- The Red and the Black, by Stendhal
-Usual Links-
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Read or comment on this article!
Listen to Spectacles In Conversation!
Follow our Twitter! // Follow our TikTok!
17 min
About Spectacles Out Loud
From the publisher's feed
Join Spectacles editors Harry and Philip for Insight and Focus as they go beyond headlines to explore the news. We won't just explain a headline to you, but we'll try to help you make the connections…
between today's stories and what they all mean for democracy.