Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share The Fourth Turning Review — What They Got Right (and Wrong) | Episode 520
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
The Fourth Turning Review — What They Got Right (and Wrong) | Episode 520
Fourth turning
The Fourth Turning Review — What They Got Right (and Wrong) | Episode 520
History Doesn’t Repeat, But It Rhymes
Hey, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com. Today we’re diving into The Fourth Turning by William Strauss and Neil Howe — a book that’s been floating around prepper circles for decades. Written in the late ’90s, it predicted that by the mid-2020s America would face a massive, generation-defining crisis — something on par with the Great Depression or World War II.
Spoiler: we’re here, and it hasn’t quite played out that way.
The Big Idea: Four Cycles of History
Strauss and Howe proposed that history runs in 80- to 100-year cycles, divided into four “turnings”:
Each turning shapes generations — prophets, nomads, heroes, and artists — that repeat like clockwork, passing the same archetypes down the line.
Where They Went Wrong
We’ve had crises — 9/11, the 2008 financial crash, COVID, endless wars — but none reshaped the nation. Each one looked like the big one, but fizzled out.
Our “crisis” years came in bursts, venting pressure without forcing a true reset. Instead of a unifying cataclysm, we got constant low-grade chaos.
Maybe the authors weren’t wrong — maybe the timeline just stretched. The more we delay a real collapse, the worse it’s likely to be when it finally hits.
Why Millennials Never Became the Hero Generation
According to the book, Millennials were supposed to be the next “hero archetype” — rebuilding after collapse like the WWII generation did. But without a real crisis, we became a generation adrift.
We got debt, disillusionment, and memes instead of purpose. Gen X never stepped up as the generals, and Gen Z seems more doom-scrolling than doing.
If a true Fourth Turning is still ahead, Gen Alpha might be the ones who rise to the occasion — the feral little kids who’ll inherit this mess.
Are We in a Fifth Turning?
Here’s a wild theory: maybe we broke the cycle.
With technology, disinformation, and global interconnection, the old rhythm of 80-year patterns doesn’t hold up. Maybe we’re in something new — a fifth turning — where chaos is permanent and the reset never comes.
Or maybe the storm just hasn’t hit yet, and this calm is the eye before it.
Final Thoughts
The book is worth reading, but its predictions about the future haven’t aged well. History’s still cyclical — it’s just messier now.
Don’t prep to “time the cycle.” Prep because resilience always wins. When the next big reset comes, you want to be one of the builders — not one of the victims.
Amazon Item OF The Day
The Fourth Turning: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny
Think this post was worth 20 cents? Consider joining
The Survivalpunk Army and get access to exclusive
content and discounts!
Don’t forget to join in on the road to 1k! Help James Survivalpunk Beat Couch Potato Mike to 1k subscribers on Youtube
Want To help make sure there is a podcast Each and every week? Join us on Patreon
Subscribe to the Survival Punk Survival Podcast. The most electrifying podcast on survival entertainment.
Like this post? Consider signing up for my email list here > Subscribe
Join Our Exciting Facebook Group and get involved Survival Punk Punk’s
The post The Fourth Turning Review — What They Got Right (and Wrong) | Episode 520 appeared first on Survivalpunk.
View all episodes
By Survival Punk
4.4
2727 ratings
Fourth turning
The Fourth Turning Review — What They Got Right (and Wrong) | Episode 520
History Doesn’t Repeat, But It Rhymes
Hey, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com. Today we’re diving into The Fourth Turning by William Strauss and Neil Howe — a book that’s been floating around prepper circles for decades. Written in the late ’90s, it predicted that by the mid-2020s America would face a massive, generation-defining crisis — something on par with the Great Depression or World War II.
Spoiler: we’re here, and it hasn’t quite played out that way.
The Big Idea: Four Cycles of History
Strauss and Howe proposed that history runs in 80- to 100-year cycles, divided into four “turnings”:
Each turning shapes generations — prophets, nomads, heroes, and artists — that repeat like clockwork, passing the same archetypes down the line.
Where They Went Wrong
We’ve had crises — 9/11, the 2008 financial crash, COVID, endless wars — but none reshaped the nation. Each one looked like the big one, but fizzled out.
Our “crisis” years came in bursts, venting pressure without forcing a true reset. Instead of a unifying cataclysm, we got constant low-grade chaos.
Maybe the authors weren’t wrong — maybe the timeline just stretched. The more we delay a real collapse, the worse it’s likely to be when it finally hits.
Why Millennials Never Became the Hero Generation
According to the book, Millennials were supposed to be the next “hero archetype” — rebuilding after collapse like the WWII generation did. But without a real crisis, we became a generation adrift.
We got debt, disillusionment, and memes instead of purpose. Gen X never stepped up as the generals, and Gen Z seems more doom-scrolling than doing.
If a true Fourth Turning is still ahead, Gen Alpha might be the ones who rise to the occasion — the feral little kids who’ll inherit this mess.
Are We in a Fifth Turning?
Here’s a wild theory: maybe we broke the cycle.
With technology, disinformation, and global interconnection, the old rhythm of 80-year patterns doesn’t hold up. Maybe we’re in something new — a fifth turning — where chaos is permanent and the reset never comes.
Or maybe the storm just hasn’t hit yet, and this calm is the eye before it.
Final Thoughts
The book is worth reading, but its predictions about the future haven’t aged well. History’s still cyclical — it’s just messier now.
Don’t prep to “time the cycle.” Prep because resilience always wins. When the next big reset comes, you want to be one of the builders — not one of the victims.
Amazon Item OF The Day
The Fourth Turning: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny
Think this post was worth 20 cents? Consider joining
The Survivalpunk Army and get access to exclusive
content and discounts!
Don’t forget to join in on the road to 1k! Help James Survivalpunk Beat Couch Potato Mike to 1k subscribers on Youtube
Want To help make sure there is a podcast Each and every week? Join us on Patreon
Subscribe to the Survival Punk Survival Podcast. The most electrifying podcast on survival entertainment.
Like this post? Consider signing up for my email list here > Subscribe
Join Our Exciting Facebook Group and get involved Survival Punk Punk’s
The post The Fourth Turning Review — What They Got Right (and Wrong) | Episode 520 appeared first on Survivalpunk.
More shows like The Survival Punk Podcast
View all
The Survival Podcast
1,777 Listeners
Casual Preppers Podcast - Prepping, Survival, Entertainment.
1,013 Listeners
Raised by VHS
86 Listeners