Bungacast

/316/ From Emergency to Emergency: 2022 Review, ft. Ashley Frawley

On the key events and developments in 2022.

 

We look back at how the world transitioned from the pandemic to war over the past year, and what the socio-political fallouts have been. Is everything "better than expected"? Has managerial technocracy been rejuvenated? 

 

We discuss whether we're in a Third World War, how the US empire is strengthening its grip on Europe, and how cultural populists are taking over from economic populists.

 

Part two is available at patreon.com/bungacast

Excerpt: /307/ Aufhebonus Bonus (Dec 2022)

On your questions & criticisms.

[Patreon Exclusive]

We debate what kind of work 'shared-labour socialism' would involve in a complex society, and what role 'dispossession' or 'expropriation' has in the contemporary economy. Plus: strategies on Ukraine – backing independence, guerilla warfare, and what an 'anti-NATO' stance actually looks like; and whether the forces exist for exiting the EU.

Fill out our 2022 Listener Survey! https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/XNLTVLB 

Excerpt: /302/ Aufhebonus Bonus (Nov 2022)

On your questions & criticisms.

[Patreon Exclusive]

 

The weakness of anti-EU forces; the implications of defending Ukrainian sovereignty; what should we call the new far-right and what does it *do* in power? And the gravity of nuclear war

 

Also, is Phil okay?

Excerpt: /295/ Aufhebonus Bonus: October

On who's responsible for prolonging the Ukraine War + your questions & criticisms.

 

[Patreon Exclusive]

 

We start off by discussing whether the Zelensky tail is wagging the NATO dog, and what possible exits to conflict there might be. 

 

Then, in the main section, we respond to listener comments: we talk about the possibility of a "Chinese Dream", what the point of economic growth is, the monarchy and modernisation, and whether 'fascism' is an appropriate term for the far right today.

Excerpt: /289/ Aufhebonus Bonus (September)

On your questions and criticisms.

[Patreon Exclusive]

We discuss the Chinese Dream, speculation and horizontal politics, foreign fighters and spies, Dune, and killing Phil.

Excerpt: /275/ Our Reply to Critics: Review of Reviews

On reviews of our book, The End of the End of History

 

[Patreon Exclusive]

 

A year since the book came out, and two years since we finished writing it, we take a look at published reviews the book has received and respond to them.

 

Questions addressed include: have we overstated our case? Do we ignore the importance of the 1970s in favour of the 1990s? Might war matter more than class struggle? Is it useful to understood History in the metaphysical/Hegelian sense? Should we be less modernist and dispense with the politics inherited from 1848-1980s? And are we too critical of left-populism?

 

Reviews

• War at the End of History, Adam Tooze, Chartbook 109
• The End of the End of the End, Sam Kriss, First Things
• Book Review: The End of the End of History, Jason C. Mueller, Critical Sociology
• How long is the end of history?, Connor Harney, Platypus
• Beginning of the End, or End of the Beginning?, Park McDougald, American Affairs
• Book Review: The End of the End of History, Dan Taylor, Marx & Philosophy Review of Books
• Certainly the End of Something or Other, Joseph Keegin, The Bellow
• New Perspectives journal roundtable (forthcoming) on The End of the End of History: Daniel Zamora, Anton Jäger, Richard Sakwa, Nicholas Kiersey 

Excerpt: /274/ Aufhebonus Bonus: July 2022

[Patreon Exclusive]

On your questions & criticisms.

We discuss the link between Covid and war in Ukraine and return to the question of who exactly is the ruling class. Plus: inflation, what actually happened in the 1990s, contemporary art, and the politics of abortion.  

Excerpt: /264/ Aufhebonus Bonus

[Patreon Exclusive]

On your comments & criticisms.

We tackle ideological realignments over the use of history; conspiracy theorising; a game-show called The Last True Marxist; whether we've had any progress over the last 50 years; and much more. 

Excerpt: /248/ Aufhebonus Bonus

In which we respond to listener questions & criticisms.

A bumper episode, featuring plenty on Canadian truckers, Swedish populists, ideas of justice, hyperpolitics and much more. 

The full episode is for subscribers only. Sign up at patreon.com/bungacast

/244/ Bunga NYC: Live Debate ft. Adam Tooze

On The End of the End of History

On 22 February 2022, at The People's Forum in Manhattan, Alex Hochuli and Adam Tooze were in conversation on the themes of the Bunga book and what comes next. The event was moderated by Christie Offenbacher (Damage Magazine).

Buy the book: linktr.ee/bungacast

Excerpt: /233/ Aufhebonus Bonus

For the last time in 2021, we take your questions, comments and criticisms.

 

As always, lots of debate about Covid - and we start by remarking upon a possible u-turn on the issue on the British left.

 

Answer the Bungacast Listeners' Survey: surveymonkey.com/r/NN6SPD9

 

Buy the Bunga book: linktr.ee/bungacast

 

This is a sample. For the full episode, subscribe at patreon.com/bungacast

Excerpt: /220/ Aufhebonus Bonus

Responding to your questions, comments & criticisms.

 

It's a big mailbag this time round, including plenty on Covid (lockdowns, vaccines, etc), incels and dating culture, breaking out of neoliberalism's clutches, and much much more.

––

Bungacast will be live in New York on 19 November. Come see Alex Hochuli in conversation with Adam Tooze & Amber A'Lee Frost. Tickets at Eventbrite

––

The full episode is for subscribers only. Sign up at patreon.com/bungacast 

Excerpt: /209/ Aufhebonus Bonus + Kabul Falls

On the Fall of Kabul, plus responding to your questions & comments.

On this Aufhebonus Bonus, we take your critical comments on 'positive biopolitics' and authoritarian responses to Covid. Plus, whether neoliberalism is really ending, the usefulness of using 'PMC' or 'clerisy', and much more. 

We start by discussing what's happening in Afghanistan, the 20 years of failure, and what happens next.  

The full episode is for subscribers only. Sign up at pateron.com/bungacast for access. 

Excerpt: /202/ 3 Articles: Clerisy, War, Football

In our latest 3A, we discuss "the clerisy" and how it relates to the PMC; how the EU is doing forever war just as much as the US; and the hyper-commodification of football.

The full episode is for subscribers only. Sign up at patreon.com/bungacast

Articles:

• Did Populism Start A 21st Century Anti-Clerical Revolution?, Angela Nagle, Substack
• Interview with Wolfgang Streeck: The EU’s war in Africa, Jonas Elvander, Brave New Europe
• Cursed and compromised but Euro 2020’s irresistible circus rolls on, Barney Ronay, The Guardian

/200/ The World In One Country ft. Many Guests

On world history, 1900-2020.

For our 200th episode special, we pose the question: "If you had to study the history of only one country from 1900-2020, and thereby understand the history of the whole world, which would you pick?"

We invited 10 contributors to each pitch one country, whose particularities capture the universal sweep of world history from the start of the 20th century till now.

Vote for which you think is best, and we'll have the top 3 back on to discuss in more depth: Link to voting page

Running order:

• (18:20) Germany - Dominik Leusder
• (23:02) Greece - Jonas Kyratzes
• (27:57) India - David Adler
• (33:46) Indonesia - Vincent Bevins
• (38:25) Iraq - Liam Meissner
• (44:03) Italy - David Broder
• (49:19) Mexico - Roger Lancaster
• (54:01) Taiwan - Nic Johnson
• (59:44) Turkey - Arash Azizi
• (01:04:32) Yugoslavia - Lily Lynch

Buy our book! Links to retailers

Come to our London book launch! Event link