The Aaron Renn Show

An introduction to James Burnham's concept of the managerial revolution, or how managers and bureaucrats came to dominate society (vs. old school business owners or political leaders). We discuss industrialization's revolution in scale that created the managerial class and the transformations wrought by managerialism. We also cover managerialism's limits and weaknesses, and key lessons that an understanding of the managerial nature of our regime can teach us.

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Many things in life are a product of dualisms like chaos and order, yin and yang, hot and cold, change and preservation. Unlike with good vs. evil, these are not simple opposites, but principles that need to be integrated. The right balance is not a static one for all time, but depends upon the needs of the time. I discuss this principle using immigration as a case study.  Immigration is not a matter of simply good or bad, but finding the right balance of dynamism and rootedness for the times.

Stephen B. Clark, author of the landmark book Man and Woman in Christ, joins me to talk about that work and its creation. We will also discuss the Catholic charismatic renewal movement and the Sword of the Spirit intentional communities that Clark helped create and which have informed his work.

Buy Man and Woman in Christ: https://www.amazon.com/Man-Woman-Christ-Examination-Scripture-ebook/dp/B098XQQDFW/?&_encoding=UTF8&tag=theurban-20

Sword of the Spirit Community: https://swordofthespirit.net/

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New Census Bureau population estimates for 2021 show the lowest year of population growth on record, with 3/4ths of counties having more deaths than birth, and around a third of metro areas losing population. In this podcast I discuss how the US has entered what appears to be a "demographic winter," what the drivers are, and what it means for the country.

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A reader who lives in cities and likes living in the city wrote to ask whether it is possible to be a conservative in the city given all the rhetoric about conservatives moving away from the city, homesteading, etc.  I explain why the answer is Yes, and why a rural life is not suitable for most conservatives. 

This podcast is the audio edition of the March 2022 newsletter. It is about the oft-overlooked virtue of self-mastery. We cannot allow ourselves to be enslaved to appetites, tossed here and there by the waves, or manipulated into pursuing other men's missions rather than our own.

This week's short podcast looks at one of the biggest "gotchas" people try to use in response to criticism, namely that it's impossible to know the motives of the person being criticized. I discussed why it's valid (if imperfect) to infer motives from actions, but also suggest some alternatives to avoid this common comeback.

People frequently say, obviously with hyperbole, that America is becoming a Third World country. Yet if we look at one of the stereotypes of the Third World - as places with unreliable electricity - are are indeed becoming more Third World like. Our electric grid is increasingly unreliable, and larger numbers of Americans are installing backup generators to deal with it. This episode explores the matter of the third worldization through the lens of our decaying electricity system.

WSJ: America’s Power Grid Is Increasingly Unreliable - https://www.wsj.com/articles/americas-power-grid-is-increasingly-unreliable-11645196772

WSJ: Wary of Being Left in the Dark, Americans Produce Their Own Power - https://www.wsj.com/articles/amid-power-outages-americans-buying-generators-solar-plus-battery-microgrids-11645207261

Texas Monthly: The Texas Electric Grid Failure Was a Warm-up - https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/texas-electric-grid-failure-warm-up/

David and Jason Benham, entrepreneurs and investors, join to discuss their book Expert Ownership - and their own journey to business success after being cancelled by HGTV.

Buy Expert Ownership: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1736807005/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=theurban-20

Creating community and social capital is a frequent topic of conversation in our world, one in which we sense the decline of our existing community building structures. This podcast provides practical examples that you as an individual can use to start building community where you live. It's focused around various forms of institutionalized hospitality, ranging from Sunday night dinners to porch parties to in home concerts.

My writeup on the Sunday night dinner concept: https://www.aaronrenn.com/2014/03/09/sunday-night-dinner-in-indianapolis/

This episode sponsored by Gold River Trading Co. teas: https://goldriverco.com/ (Use discount code RENN10 for 10% off your oder).

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