Episodes
Monday Dec 21, 2020
/167/ The Kingdom of God Is on Main Street ft. Todd McGowan
Monday Dec 21, 2020
Monday Dec 21, 2020
On freedom, authority and responsibility.
Theorist Todd McGowan joins us to talk about the End of History, what Hegel can teach us about emancipation, and why Slavoj Zizek’s reinterpretation of Hegel is so important. If contradiction is the basis of modern politics, what is its link to freedom? And what is the connection between freedom and authority? Are stable sources of authority even possible in modernity? We also put some listener questions to Todd, as we learn that the Right, just as much as the Left, evades authority and is unwilling to take responsibility.
Readings:
Friday Dec 18, 2020
/161/ Culture is Bad for You ft. Mark Taylor (UNLOCKED)
Friday Dec 18, 2020
Friday Dec 18, 2020
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
Excerpt: /166/ Aufhebonus Bonus (December)
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
This episode is for subscribers only. Sign up at patreon.com/bungacast
We round off the year by previewing The End of the End of History and responding to your questions and criticisms, including Strasserism or left-conservatism, revolutionary memories, more on Covid and lockdowns, and other bits.
Tuesday Dec 08, 2020
/165/ Black Spartacus ft. Sudhir Hazareesingh
Tuesday Dec 08, 2020
Tuesday Dec 08, 2020
CLR James’s electrifying 1938 history of the 1791-1804 Haitian Revolution, The Black Jacobins, has long been a staple of many radicals’ libraries. But we now know a lot more about the life of the Haitian revolutionary leader Toussaint L’Ouverture. How does this new knowledge impact our understanding of the Haitian Revolution, and on revolution in general? Sudhir Hazeeresingh, the author of a gripping new biography based on new archival research, ‘Black Spartacus: The Epic Life of Toussaint L’Ouverture, talks with us about about revolutionary leadership and Atlantic history.
Reading:
- Black Spartacus: The Epic Life of Toussaint L’Ouverture
- ‘You never know when it is going to explode’, interview with CLR James, Marxist Internet Archive
Friday Dec 04, 2020
Excerpt: /164/ Reading Club: Culture of Narcissism
Friday Dec 04, 2020
Friday Dec 04, 2020
This is a short sample. Full episode is available for subscribers at patreon.com/bungacast
We re-evaluate Christopher Lasch's hugely influential and prescient The Culture of Narcissism. What conjunctural factors led Lasch to his insights, and to what extent are those still present? Lasch wrote during the collapse of postwar Fordist-Keynesian model – is it the collapse of neoliberalism today that makes the book so evocative? And if narcissism has only increased, does the book suggest any political ways-out?
Tuesday Dec 01, 2020
/163/ Three Articles + Censorship ft. Douglas Lain
Tuesday Dec 01, 2020
Tuesday Dec 01, 2020
On censorship, platform capitalism and the Left.
We talk to Douglas Lain of Zer0 Books about YouTube taking down their video as a result of the algorithm flagging its content – and what this means for free speech.
Then, this month's Three Articles on war, conspiracy theory, and Covid (patrons only - sign up at patreon.com/bungacast)
Links for part 1:
- Why Did YouTube censor us? Doug Lain's blog post
- Censored YouTube video: Christopher Lasch, Paul Sweezy, and the Great RESET
- Bungacast ep 103 on ethical capitalism
- Bungacast ep 112 on ideology of Silicon Valley
- Alex Hochuli on Zer0 Books podcast
Part 2: Three Articles
- Azerbaijan’s drones owned the battlefield in Nagorno-Karabakh — and showed future of warfare, Robyn Dixon, WaPo
- How can Big Tech best tackle conspiracy theories?, Gillian Tett, FT
- The Covid-19 blunders drive home a harsh truth: the state has failed us, Larry Elliott, The Guardian