Conversations With Coleman

My guest today is Nick Gillespie. Nick is a prominent libertarian journalist and commentator best known for his work at Reason Magazine, where he's been for around 30 years. In this episode, we discuss Nick's experience getting engaged at the recent Burning Man. We talk about psychedelic drugs, the promise they hold, as well as the dangers they contain. We talk about the evolution of the libertarian movement in America. We talk about how we should message about drugs to kids. We talk about the differences between MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD. We talk about why trust in government has declined, and much more.  Pre-Order my book: "The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America" - https://bit.ly/48VUw17

My guest today is Nick Gillespie. Nick is a prominent libertarian journalist and commentator best known for his work at Reason Magazine, where he's been for around 30 years.In this episode, we discuss Nick's experience getting engaged at the recent Burning Man. We talk about psychedelic drugs, the promise they hold, as well as the dangers they contain. We talk about the evolution of the libertarian movement in America. We talk about how we should message about drugs to kids. We talk about the differences between MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD. We talk about why trust in government has declined, and much more. Pre-Order my book:"The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America" - https://bit.ly/48VUw17

My guest today is Munira Mirza. Munira Mirza is a British public policy analyst and cultural commentator. She served as the Deputy Mayor for Education and Culture of London under Boris Johnson when he was mayor, and later served as director of The Number 10 Policy Unit under Johnson when he was prime minister. In this episode, we talk about Munira's early days as a Marxist, her interest in art and museums, her views on Brexit, her views on multiculturalism in the UK, the Israel-Hamas war and Jihadism in general, and much more. Pre-order my book: "The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America" - https://bit.ly/48VUw17

My guest today is Munira Mirza. Munira Mirza is a British public policy analyst and cultural commentator. She served as the Deputy Mayor for Education and Culture of London under Boris Johnson when he was mayor, and later served as director of The Number 10 Policy Unit under Johnson when he was prime minister.In this episode, we talk about Munira's early days as a Marxist, her interest in art and museums, her views on Brexit, her views on multiculturalism in the UK, the Israel-Hamas war and Jihadism in general, and much more.Pre-order my book:"The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America" - https://bit.ly/48VUw17

My guest today is Rory Stewart. Rory Stewart is a British politician, diplomat, and author who served as a member of parliament from 2010 to 2019. He held several governmental positions, notably as a Secretary of State for International Development in 2019, and was known for his extensive work in Afghanistan and Iraq. Rory has authored several books, such as "The Places In Between", about his solo walk across Afghanistan, and his new book, "Politics on the Edge", a memoir from within. Rory and I talk about what he learned by walking across Afghanistan. We talk about the war in Afghanistan and what lessons Israel might take from it. We talk about Brexit. We talk about why the Scandinavian model is not appropriate for Britain. We talk about the culture of the world of politics. And finally, we talk about why Rory is so passionate about GiveDirectly, which allows people to give cash directly to the people in the developing world. References: Haaretz article - https://bitly.ws/ZG3G Noam Dworman's tweet- https://bitly.ws/ZG3R Pre-order my book: "The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America" - https://bit.ly/48VUw17

My guest today is Rory Stewart. Rory Stewart is a British politician, diplomat, and author who served as a member of parliament from 2010 to 2019. He held several governmental positions, notably as a Secretary of State for International Development in 2019, and was known for his extensive work in Afghanistan and Iraq. Rory has authored several books, such as "The Places In Between", about his solo walk across Afghanistan, and his new book, "Politics on the Edge", a memoir from within.Rory and I talk about what he learned by walking across Afghanistan. We talk about the war in Afghanistan and what lessons Israel might take from it. We talk about Brexit. We talk about why the Scandinavian model is not appropriate for Britain. We talk about the culture of the world of politics. And finally, we talk about why Rory is so passionate about GiveDirectly, which allows people to give cash directly to the people in the developing world.References:Haaretz article - https://bitly.ws/ZG3GNoam Dworman's tweet- https://bitly.ws/ZG3R Pre-order my book:"The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America" - https://bit.ly/48VUw17

So I've gotten criticism lately that I've created an echo chamber of pro-Israel guests, Benny Morris and Andrew Gold being the two examples. So I went on Twitter and asked who I should get to deliver the Palestinian perspective. and many people suggested my guest today, who is Yousef Munayyer. Yousef is a Palestinian-American writer and political analyst based in Washington, D.C. He was the executive director of the US campaign for Palestinian rights, and previously he directed the Jerusalem Fund for Education and Community Development.As you'll hear, this whole conversation was pretty contentious. It seemed like we disagreed about almost everything. However, Yousef was a very respectful conversation partner and those are the kinds of guests that I look for. Before you listen to this episode, I would encourage you to go back to my episode with the Israeli historian, Dr. Benny Morris, if you haven't already listened to it. It's called "The History and Ethics of the Israel-Palestine Conflict". I recommend that because at the beginning of this podcast, Yousef wanted to dive deep into the history of the conflict and our debate there won't make much sense to you if you aren't already familiar with the basics. I hope you enjoy this conversation.#AdGround News: You can use my link https://ground.news/coleman to get 30% off an unlimited access subscription before Nov 4, 2023. I'm excited to partner with Ground News at this time because it is one of the best ways to read news about politically charged issues like the Israel-Palestine conflict in a balanced way.

So I've gotten criticism lately that I've created an echo chamber of pro-Israel guests, Benny Morris and Andrew Gold being the two examples. So I went on Twitter and asked who I should get to deliver the Palestinian perspective. and many people suggested my guest today, who is Yousef Munayyer. Yousef is a Palestinian-American writer and political analyst based in Washington, D.C. He was the executive director of the US campaign for Palestinian rights, and previously he directed the Jerusalem Fund for Education and Community Development. As you'll hear, this whole conversation was pretty contentious. It seemed like we disagreed about almost everything. However, Yousef was a very respectful conversation partner and those are the kinds of guests that I look for. Before you listen to this episode, I would encourage you to go back to my episode with the Israeli historian, Dr. Benny Morris, if you haven't already listened to it. It's called "The History and Ethics of the Israel-Palestine Conflict". I recommend that because at the beginning of this podcast, Yousef wanted to dive deep into the history of the conflict and our debate there won't make much sense to you if you aren't already familiar with the basics. I hope you enjoy this conversation. #Ad Ground News: You can use my link https://ground.news/coleman to get 30% off an unlimited access subscription before Nov 4, 2023. I'm excited to partner with Ground News at this time because it is one of the best ways to read news about politically charged issues like the Israel-Palestine conflict in a balanced way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here is my final response to Chris Anderson and Adam Grant on the TED debacle.

Here is my final response to Chris Anderson and Adam Grant on the TED debacle. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So this is kind of a unique episode. Andrew Gold, who I had on this podcast earlier this year, asked me if I wanted to hop on with him and discuss the Israel-Hamas war and I said, sure. So we're airing the first half of that conversation where I do most of the talking on my podcast. But we're airing the second half of that conversation on Andrew's podcast, which is called On the Edge with Andrew Gold. So after you listen to this, you can go listen to that. We talk all about the war in Israel and Gaza. As you'll hear, Andrew and I agree that there is simply no moral equivalence between Hamas and Israel. And as you'll hear, I'm also quite sympathetic to the policies that Israel has had to take in order to protect itself from terrorism. I plan to have many more conversations about this topic and I really want to get someone on this podcast that strongly disagrees with me so I don't create an echo chamber for myself or for you guys. I hope you enjoy this conversation. Check out Part 2 of this conversation on Andrew's Podcast "On the Edge": Podcast - https://bit.ly/46BasUY YouTube Channel - https://bit.ly/3RZlq1J Andrew's Website - https://www.andrewgoldpodcast.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andrew Gold, who I had on this podcast earlier this year, asked me if I wanted to hop on with him and discuss the Israel-Hamas war and I said, sure. We talk all about the war in Israel and Gaza. As you'll hear, Andrew and I agree that there is simply no moral equivalence between Hamas and Israel. And as you'll hear, I'm also quite sympathetic to the policies that Israel has had to take in order to protect itself from terrorism. I plan to have many more conversations about this topic and I really want to get someone on this podcast that strongly disagrees with me so I don't create an echo chamber for myself or for you guys. I hope you enjoy this conversation.

My guest today is Eric Kaufmann. Eric is a political scientist who's written several great books, including "Shall the Religious Inherit the Earth?" and "Whiteshift". Eric was a professor at Birkbeck College, University of London for many years. I think he was actually the head of the department there, before he was pushed out for his political views. So we talk about that story at the top of this interview.We also talk about a whole bunch of other topics. We discuss the sociologist Daniel Bell. We talk about why birth rates are declining in the secular world and why it matters. We talk about high birth rate populations like Hasidic Jews and the Amish. We talk about the tension between liberal politics on immigration and liberal politics on LGBTQ. We talk about why Canada and Scotland are so much further to the left on gender and trans issues than America is. Finally, we talk about why it is that conservatives appear to be happier in data than liberals generally, and why religious people also tend to be happier than secular people, and what lessons, if any, we can draw from that. This was one of my favorite podcasts I've done this year, and I hope you enjoy it.

My guest today is Eric Kaufmann. Eric is a political scientist who's written several great books, including "Shall the Religious Inherit the Earth?" and "Whiteshift". Eric was a professor at Birkbeck College, University of London for many years. I think he was actually the head of the department there, before he was pushed out for his political views. So we talk about that story at the top of this interview. We also talk about a whole bunch of other topics. We discuss the sociologist Daniel Bell. We talk about why birth rates are declining in the secular world and why it matters. We talk about high birth rate populations like Hasidic Jews and the Amish. We talk about the tension between liberal politics on immigration and liberal politics on LGBTQ. We talk about why Canada and Scotland are so much further to the left on gender and trans issues than America is. Finally, we talk about why it is that conservatives appear to be happier in data than liberals generally, and why religious people also tend to be happier than secular people, and what lessons, if any, we can draw from that. This was one of my favorite podcasts I've done this year, and I hope you enjoy it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Yascha Mounk. Yascha is a German born political scientist, author, and lecturer known for his research on the rise of populism and the challenges to liberal democracy. He has authored several influential books, including "Stranger in My Own Country", "The People vs. Democracy", and his new book, "The Identity Trap: A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time"A few episodes ago, I had Christopher Rufo on the podcast to discuss his analysis of why wokeness came to dominate so many institutions. Yascha's asking the same question in this book, but he's coming to a different answer. Yascha focuses less on people like Herbert Marcuse and more on intellectuals like Michel Foucault, Edward Said, Derrick Bell, and Kimberlé Crenshaw. We also talk about why there are so many former Marxists in the writing world, but so few people who convert into Marxism later in life. We talk about how Foucault's critique of language differs from George Orwell's critique of language, and much more. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

My guest today is Yascha Mounk. Yascha is a German born political scientist, author, and lecturer known for his research on the rise of populism and the challenges to liberal democracy. He has authored several influential books, including "Stranger in My Own Country", "The People vs. Democracy", and his new book, "The Identity Trap: A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time" A few episodes ago, I had Christopher Rufo on the podcast to discuss his analysis of why wokeness came to dominate so many institutions. Yascha's asking the same question in this book, but he's coming to a different answer. Yascha focuses less on people like Herbert Marcuse and more on intellectuals like Michel Foucault, Edward Said, Derrick Bell, and Kimberlé Crenshaw. We also talk about why there are so many former Marxists in the writing world, but so few people who convert into Marxism later in life. We talk about how Foucault's critique of language differs from George Orwell's critique of language, and much more. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The organization's tagline is “ideas worth spreading.” But they attempted to suppress mine.

The organization's tagline is “ideas worth spreading.” But they attempted to suppress mine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guests today are Scott Adams and Noam Dworman. Scott Adams is an American writer, commentator, and cartoonist best known for creating the comic strip Dilbert. In addition to his cartooning work, Adams has authored several books and frequently comments on a range of topics from media bias to psychology to the mechanics of persuasion. Noam Dworman is the owner of the Comedy Cellar in New York and is a good personal friend of mine who has his own podcast called "Live From the Table", which is actually one of my favorite podcasts. I'm co-releasing this episode with Noam, so check out his podcast as well.Now there is an interesting backstory to this conversation surrounding Scott's recent controversial comments and I go into the details of this in the intro to the episode. In this episode, we also address Scott's comments, we talk about mainstream media bias, we discuss Trump's efforts to overturn the election, where Scott has a very different view than myself and Noam. We talk about racism and also double standards around the kind of speech that's acceptable, given your race. Finally, we go on to discuss Scott's recent self-help book called "Reframe Your Brain: The User Interface for Happiness and Success"

My guests today are Scott Adams and Noam Dworman. Scott Adams is an American writer, commentator, and cartoonist best known for creating the comic strip Dilbert. In addition to his cartooning work, Adams has authored several books and frequently comments on a range of topics from media bias to psychology to the mechanics of persuasion. Noam Dworman is the owner of the Comedy Cellar in New York and is a good personal friend of mine who has his own podcast called "Live From the Table", which is actually one of my favorite podcasts. I'm co-releasing this episode with Noam, so check out his podcast as well. Now there is an interesting backstory to this conversation surrounding Scott's recent controversial comments and I go into the details of this in the intro to the episode. In this episode, we also address Scott's comments, we talk about mainstream media bias, we discuss Trump's efforts to overturn the election, where Scott has a very different view than myself and Noam. We talk about racism and also double standards around the kind of speech that's acceptable, given your race. Finally, we go on to discuss Scott's recent self-help book called "Reframe Your Brain: The User Interface for Happiness and Success" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Christopher Rufo. Christopher is a political activist and filmmaker known for his opposition to Critical Race Theory or CRT. He's a senior fellow and director of the Initiative on Critical Race Theory at the Manhattan Institute and he's the author of a new book called "America's Cultural Revolution: How the Radical Left Conquered Everything" In this episode, we talk about the German philosopher Herbert Marcuse and the role he played in popularizing critical theory. We talk about the legacy of the weather underground. We talk about the admiration that left-wing intellectuals in the 20th century had for Mao and Stalin. We discuss the relationship between Critical Theory and Marxism. We talk about the psychological and emotional appeal of communism. We discuss the effect of the collapse of the Soviet Union on the Western left. We disagree somewhat about the legacy of McCarthyism. We talk about the political leanings of public school teachers today. We talk about the strengths and weaknesses of classical liberalism as a philosophy. We also go on to talk about the teaching of CRT in public schools and much more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Christopher Rufo. Christopher is a political activist and filmmaker known for his opposition to Critical Race Theory or CRT. He's a senior fellow and director of the Initiative on Critical Race Theory at the Manhattan Institute and he's the author of a new book called "America's Cultural Revolution: How the Radical Left Conquered Everything"In this episode, we talk about the German philosopher Herbert Marcuse and the role he played in popularizing critical theory. We talk about the legacy of the weather underground. We talk about the admiration that left-wing intellectuals in the 20th century had for Mao and Stalin. We discuss the relationship between Critical Theory and Marxism. We talk about the psychological and emotional appeal of communism. We discuss the effect of the collapse of the Soviet Union on the Western left. We disagree somewhat about the legacy of McCarthyism. We talk about the political leanings of public school teachers today. We talk about the strengths and weaknesses of classical liberalism as a philosophy. We also go on to talk about the teaching of CRT in public schools and much more. 

My guest today is Jens Heycke. Jens is a researcher, writer, and competitive cyclist. He studied economics and Near East Studies at U. Chicago, the London School of Economics, and Princeton. His book is called "Out of the Melting Pot, Into the Fire: Multiculturalism in the World's Past and America's Future"In this episode, we talk about the origin of the term "melting pot", as well as the origin of the concept of multiculturalism. We talk about the goal of cultural assimilation. We talk about how ancient Rome tackled the issue of cultural diversity among its subjects. We discuss the early Islamic empires; modern-day Sri Lanka; Rwanda and Botswana; the Ottoman Empire; the French color-blind system; Singapore; and much more. This conversation is basically a survey of how all of these different societies have tackled the issue of cultural diversity and what lessons we can draw from their successes and failures. I enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too.

My guest today is Jens Heycke. Jens is a researcher, writer, and competitive cyclist. He studied economics and Near East Studies at U. Chicago, the London School of Economics, and Princeton. His book is called "Out of the Melting Pot, Into the Fire: Multiculturalism in the World's Past and America's Future" In this episode, we talk about the origin of the term "melting pot", as well as the origin of the concept of multiculturalism. We talk about the goal of cultural assimilation. We talk about how ancient Rome tackled the issue of cultural diversity among its subjects. We discuss the early Islamic empires; modern-day Sri Lanka; Rwanda and Botswana; the Ottoman Empire; the French color-blind system; Singapore; and much more. This conversation is basically a survey of how all of these different societies have tackled the issue of cultural diversity and what lessons we can draw from their successes and failures. I enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Garett Jones. Garett is an associate professor of economics at George Mason University. His interests include macroeconomics, the micro foundations of economic growth, IQ, the power of culture, and public choice economics. The books we focus on in this episode are "10% Less Democracy: Why You Should Trust Elites a Little More and the Masses a Little Less" and "The Culture Transplant: How Migrants Make the Economies They Move To a Lot Like the Ones They Left"We talk about the intellectual environment of George Mason University. We talk about about UAPs. We discuss the benefits and drawbacks of democracy. We discuss the possibility of so-called benign dictatorships. We talk about the crisis of expertise, the Electoral College and then we move on to the topic of immigration. We talk about whether and in what ways immigrants assimilate. We talk about the idea of the melting pot. We discuss high trust versus low trust cultures and much more. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

My guest today is Garett Jones. Garett is an associate professor of economics at George Mason University. His interests include macroeconomics, the micro foundations of economic growth, IQ, the power of culture, and public choice economics. The books we focus on in this episode are "10% Less Democracy: Why You Should Trust Elites a Little More and the Masses a Little Less" and "The Culture Transplant: How Migrants Make the Economies They Move To a Lot Like the Ones They Left" We talk about the intellectual environment of George Mason University. We talk about about UAPs. We discuss the benefits and drawbacks of democracy. We discuss the possibility of so-called benign dictatorships. We talk about the crisis of expertise, the Electoral College and then we move on to the topic of immigration. We talk about whether and in what ways immigrants assimilate. We talk about the idea of the melting pot. We discuss high trust versus low trust cultures and much more. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guests today are Hyram and Verlan Lewis. Hyram and Verlan are brothers. Hyram is an associate professor of history at Brigham Young University, Idaho, and Verlan is a political scientist at Harvard Center for American Political Studies. Together, Hyram and Verlan have written a very interesting new book called "The Myth of Left and Right: How the Political Spectrum Misleads and Harms America"​​​​​​​In this book, they challenge the widely held belief that the political left and right represent two distinct philosophies, liberalism or progressivism on one end and conservatism on the other. Instead, they argue that people on the left and the right are more like sports fans. They are born into a particular tribe and then they adopt the random assortment of beliefs that tribe currently holds. Now they acknowledge that there are such things as political philosophies, like libertarianism, for example. They just think those philosophies have nothing to do with what we call the left and the right in everyday speech. In other words, the words left and right do not name philosophies. They name arbitrary tribes that then invent convenient, but false stories about what their philosophies are. That thesis is the topic of this conversation and I think it's very interesting. I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too.

My guests today are Hyram and Verlan Lewis. Hyram and Verlan are brothers. Hyram is an associate professor of history at Brigham Young University, Idaho, and Verlan is a political scientist at Harvard Center for American Political Studies. Together, Hyram and Verlan have written a very interesting new book called "The Myth of Left and Right: How the Political Spectrum Misleads and Harms America" ​​​​​​​In this book, they challenge the widely held belief that the political left and right represent two distinct philosophies, liberalism or progressivism on one end and conservatism on the other. Instead, they argue that people on the left and the right are more like sports fans. They are born into a particular tribe and then they adopt the random assortment of beliefs that tribe currently holds. Now they acknowledge that there are such things as political philosophies, like libertarianism, for example. They just think those philosophies have nothing to do with what we call the left and the right in everyday speech. In other words, the words left and right do not name philosophies. They name arbitrary tribes that then invent convenient, but false stories about what their philosophies are. That thesis is the topic of this conversation and I think it's very interesting. I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today's episode is a recording of a debate that occurred a few weeks ago between me and Jamelle Bouie, who is a columnist for the New York Times. This debate was hosted by TED as well as Open to Debate, formerly known as Intelligence Squared. The motion was, "Does Colorblindness Perpetuate Racism?" Jamelle took the affirmative and I took the negative.Now there's a long backstory to this debate surrounding my recent TED Talk on color blindness and and I go into the details of this in the intro to the episode.I really recommend that you listen to the whole debate and do share your thoughts in the comments.

Today's episode is a recording of a debate that occurred a few weeks ago between me and Jamelle Bouie, who is a columnist for the New York Times. This debate was hosted by TED as well as Open to Debate, formerly known as Intelligence Squared. The motion was, "Does Colorblindness Perpetuate Racism?" Jamelle took the affirmative and I took the negative. Now there's a long backstory to this debate surrounding my recent TED Talk on color blindness and and I go into the details of this in the intro to the episode. I really recommend that you listen to the whole debate and do share your thoughts in the comments. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Philip Goff. Phillip is a philosopher known for his work on consciousness and the philosophy of mind, particularly for his defense of panpsychism, the view that consciousness is a fundamental feature of the universe. He's an associate professor at Durham University in the UK. His books include "Galileo's Error: Foundations for a New Science of Consciousness", and "Consciousness and Fundamental Reality".Phillip is an advocate of a controversial but very interesting theory of consciousness known as panpsychism, and he defends it as well as I have ever heard it defended. However, before we get there in this conversation, we rehearse what may be familiar ground to some listeners. We talk about the hard problem of consciousness as opposed to the easy problems of consciousness. We talk about the problem with materialist explanations of consciousness. We talk about the problem with dualist explanations of consciousness. Phillip challenges my narrative about scientific progress in a really interesting way. We talk about the global workspace and integrated information theories of consciousness. We talk about the principle of parsimony in science and how it relates to rival theories of consciousness. And finally, we get to Phillip's case for panpsychism. I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too.

My guest today is Philip Goff. Phillip is a philosopher known for his work on consciousness and the philosophy of mind, particularly for his defense of panpsychism, the view that consciousness is a fundamental feature of the universe. He's an associate professor at Durham University in the UK. His books include "Galileo's Error: Foundations for a New Science of Consciousness", and "Consciousness and Fundamental Reality". Phillip is an advocate of a controversial but very interesting theory of consciousness known as panpsychism, and he defends it as well as I have ever heard it defended. However, before we get there in this conversation, we rehearse what may be familiar ground to some listeners. We talk about the hard problem of consciousness as opposed to the easy problems of consciousness. We talk about the problem with materialist explanations of consciousness. We talk about the problem with dualist explanations of consciousness. Phillip challenges my narrative about scientific progress in a really interesting way. We talk about the global workspace and integrated information theories of consciousness. We talk about the principle of parsimony in science and how it relates to rival theories of consciousness. And finally, we get to Phillip's case for panpsychism. I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today's episode is a roundtable discussion about AI safety with Eliezer Yudkowsky, Gary Marcus, and Scott Aaronson. Eliezer Yudkowsky is a prominent AI researcher and writer known for co-founding the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, where he spearheaded research on AI safety. He's also widely recognized for his influential writings on the topic of rationality. Scott Aaronson is a theoretical computer scientist and author, celebrated for his pioneering work in the field of quantum computation. He's also the chair of COMSI at U of T Austin, but is currently taking a leave of absence to work at OpenAI. Gary Marcus is a cognitive scientist, author, and entrepreneur known for his work at the intersection of psychology, linguistics, and AI. He's also authored several books, including "Kluge" and "Rebooting AI: Building Artificial Intelligence We Can Trust".This episode is all about AI safety. We talk about the alignment problem. We talk about the possibility of human extinction due to AI. We talk about what intelligence actually is. We talk about the notion of a singularity or an AI takeoff event and much more.It was really great to get these three guys in the same virtual room and I think you'll find that this conversation brings something a bit fresh to a topic that has admittedly been beaten to death on certain corners of the internet.

Today's episode is a roundtable discussion about AI safety with Eliezer Yudkowsky, Gary Marcus, and Scott Aaronson. Eliezer Yudkowsky is a prominent AI researcher and writer known for co-founding the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, where he spearheaded research on AI safety. He's also widely recognized for his influential writings on the topic of rationality. Scott Aaronson is a theoretical computer scientist and author, celebrated for his pioneering work in the field of quantum computation. He's also the chair of COMSI at U of T Austin, but is currently taking a leave of absence to work at OpenAI. Gary Marcus is a cognitive scientist, author, and entrepreneur known for his work at the intersection of psychology, linguistics, and AI. He's also authored several books, including "Kluge" and "Rebooting AI: Building Artificial Intelligence We Can Trust". This episode is all about AI safety. We talk about the alignment problem. We talk about the possibility of human extinction due to AI. We talk about what intelligence actually is. We talk about the notion of a singularity or an AI takeoff event and much more. It was really great to get these three guys in the same virtual room and I think you'll find that this conversation brings something a bit fresh to a topic that has admittedly been beaten to death on certain corners of the internet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Lee Fang. Lee Fang is an investigative reporter, formerly of The Intercept and The Nation. His writing is focused on the influence of money in politics, security state overreach, and civil liberties. He was also responsible for releasing part of the Twitter files many months ago.In this episode, we talk about the wide breadth of Lee's work, including his early reporting about the Koch brothers. We talk about whether there is a deep state, we talk about the collusion between Twitter and the US security state that was revealed in the Twitter files, and much more.

My guest today is Lee Fang. Lee Fang is an investigative reporter, formerly of The Intercept and The Nation. His writing is focused on the influence of money in politics, security state overreach, and civil liberties. He was also responsible for releasing part of the Twitter files many months ago. In this episode, we talk about the wide breadth of Lee's work, including his early reporting about the Koch brothers. We talk about whether there is a deep state, we talk about the collusion between Twitter and the US security state that was revealed in the Twitter files, and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Jeannie Fontana. Jeannie is the CEO of the TREAT California Initiative. TREAT is a statewide initiative that would create a $5 billion funding agency for psychedelic research, which has proven highly effective for conditions like PTSD and Depression. Jeannie was a founding member of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, which performs stem cell research. She has also advocated on behalf of patients with Lou Gehrig's disease.  Jeannie and I talk about her background in medicine, toxicology and biochemistry. We talk about how she got into psychedelic research and doing psychedelics herself. I talk about my own experiences with psychedelic drugs, and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Jeannie Fontana. Jeannie is the CEO of the TREAT California Initiative. TREAT is a statewide initiative that would create a $5 billion funding agency for psychedelic research, which has proven highly effective for conditions like PTSD and Depression. Jeannie was a founding member of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, which performs stem cell research. She has also advocated on behalf of patients with Lou Gehrig's disease. Jeannie and I talk about her background in medicine, toxicology and biochemistry. We talk about how she got into psychedelic research and doing psychedelics herself. I talk about my own experiences with psychedelic drugs, and much more.

My guest today is Jean Twenge. Jean is a psychologist, author, and professor of psychology at San Diego State University. She's best known for her research on generational differences. Her book, "Generation Me", dealt with millennials. Her book, "iGen", which is how I first encountered her, deals with Gen Z. Now she's back with a massive new book called "Generations: The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents―and What They Mean for America's Future"In this episode, we talk about all the differences between the various generations - differences in happiness, suicide rates, drinking behavior, personality traits like narcissism, attitudes towards love and marriage and more. We also talk about the technological and cultural trends that caused these generational changes. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

My guest today is Jean Twenge. Jean is a psychologist, author, and professor of psychology at San Diego State University. She's best known for her research on generational differences. Her book, "Generation Me", dealt with millennials. Her book, "iGen", which is how I first encountered her, deals with Gen Z. Now she's back with a massive new book called "Generations: The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents―and What They Mean for America's Future" In this episode, we talk about all the differences between the various generations - differences in happiness, suicide rates, drinking behavior, personality traits like narcissism, attitudes towards love and marriage and more. We also talk about the technological and cultural trends that caused these generational changes. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is John Wood Jr. John is a national leader at Braver Angels, which is a grassroots organization dedicated to the work of political depolarization. He's also a writer for USA Today. He's a former vice chairman of the Republican Party of LA County and a former nominee for Congress. John is also the host of the podcast "Uniting America with John Wood Jr." John and I talk about 2020 and the legacy of BLM. We talk about the emotional and psychological pull of wokeness. We talk about the status of the American dream. I talk about my experience as a kid switching from public school to private school. We talk about the cultural barriers to success for Black and Hispanic kids. We talk about the similarities between original sin and white privilege and much more. I really enjoy this conversation and I hope you do too. #Ad Factor: Head to factormeals.com/coleman50 and use code coleman50 to get 50% off your first box! Rhone: Upgrade your closet with Rhone and use COLEMAN to save 20% at https://www.rhone.com/COLEMAN Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is John Wood Jr. John is a national leader at Braver Angels, which is a grassroots organization dedicated to the work of political depolarization. He's also a writer for USA Today. He's a former vice chairman of the Republican Party of LA County and a former nominee for Congress. John is also the host of the podcast "Uniting America with John Wood Jr."John and I talk about 2020 and the legacy of BLM. We talk about the emotional and psychological pull of wokeness. We talk about the status of the American dream. I talk about my experience as a kid switching from public school to private school. We talk about the cultural barriers to success for Black and Hispanic kids. We talk about the similarities between original sin and white privilege and much more. I really enjoy this conversation and I hope you do too.#AdFactor: Head to factormeals.com/coleman50 and use code coleman50 to get 50% off your first box!Rhone: Upgrade your closet with Rhone and use COLEMAN to save 20% at https://www.rhone.com/COLEMAN

My guest today is Peter Singer. Peter Singer is a renowned Australian moral philosopher best known for his work in applied ethics, particularly regarding animal rights and global poverty. He's considered a leader in the development of the modern animal rights movement, which was hugely influenced by his 1975 book, "Animal Liberation". He's just released a new version of the book called "Animal Liberation Now", which we discussed today.We talk about what has changed since he wrote the original book in the 70s. We talk about lab-grown meat, which seemed to be right around the corner, but still hasn't arrived on the shelves. We discuss the ethical status of capitalism. We talk about the ethical arguments for and against veganism. We discuss the ethics of abortion. We talk about the effective altruism movement and Sam Bankman-Fried. We also talk about the ethics of lying to children and much more.

My guest today is Peter Singer. Peter Singer is a renowned Australian moral philosopher best known for his work in applied ethics, particularly regarding animal rights and global poverty. He's considered a leader in the development of the modern animal rights movement, which was hugely influenced by his 1975 book, "Animal Liberation". He's just released a new version of the book called "Animal Liberation Now", which we discussed today. We talk about what has changed since he wrote the original book in the 70s. We talk about lab-grown meat, which seemed to be right around the corner, but still hasn't arrived on the shelves. We discuss the ethical status of capitalism. We talk about the ethical arguments for and against veganism. We discuss the ethics of abortion. We talk about the effective altruism movement and Sam Bankman-Fried. We also talk about the ethics of lying to children and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Thomas Chatterton Williams. Thomas is a great writer whose books include "Losing My Cool" and "Self-Portrait in Black and White", both of which I highly recommend.Thomas and I talk about a host of subjects here, but we pay special attention to the legacy of the Black Lives Matter movement, and 2020 in particular.I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

My guest today is Thomas Chatterton Williams. Thomas is a great writer whose books include "Losing My Cool" and "Self-Portrait in Black and White", both of which I highly recommend. Thomas and I talk about a host of subjects here, but we pay special attention to the legacy of the Black Lives Matter movement, and 2020 in particular. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Keyu Jin. Keyu Jin is a Chinese economist currently teaching at the London School of Economics, and she just published a book called "The New China Playbook". Keyu gave a TED Talk about a month ago, the same week that I did, and that's how I became aware of her.​​​​​​​So Keyu has an unorthodox stance on China, at least to a Western audience. It's now a bipartisan consensus that China is our main geopolitical rival and that we ought to treat China as if not an outright enemy than at least a major adversary. From trade wars to theft of our intellectual property to spy balloons, most American politicians would endorse a tough on China stance, at least in principle. Keyu Jin believes that this is the wrong approach. She thinks that America and the West have misunderstood and unfairly villainized China.As you'll hear in our conversation, I don't share her view, but I'm always interested to hear the arguments of the lone voice willing to buck a consensus. So we talk about China's economy, its strengths and its weaknesses. We discuss China's political system and why it differs from countries like South Korea and Japan. We talk about China's declining birth rate. We talk about the problem of brain drain from China. We talk about China's current human rights record, including its detention of around a million Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in Xinjiang. We talk about China's aspirations to annex Taiwan and much more.

My guest today is Keyu Jin. Keyu Jin is a Chinese economist currently teaching at the London School of Economics, and she just published a book called "The New China Playbook". Keyu gave a TED Talk about a month ago, the same week that I did, and that's how I became aware of her. ​​​​​​​So Keyu has an unorthodox stance on China, at least to a Western audience. It's now a bipartisan consensus that China is our main geopolitical rival and that we ought to treat China as if not an outright enemy than at least a major adversary. From trade wars to theft of our intellectual property to spy balloons, most American politicians would endorse a tough on China stance, at least in principle. Keyu Jin believes that this is the wrong approach. She thinks that America and the West have misunderstood and unfairly villainized China. As you'll hear in our conversation, I don't share her view, but I'm always interested to hear the arguments of the lone voice willing to buck a consensus. So we talk about China's economy, its strengths and its weaknesses. We discuss China's political system and why it differs from countries like South Korea and Japan. We talk about China's declining birth rate. We talk about the problem of brain drain from China. We talk about China's current human rights record, including its detention of around a million Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in Xinjiang. We talk about China's aspirations to annex Taiwan and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest today is Razib Khan. Razib is a population geneticist, writer, and entrepreneur. He is a prominent voice in the realm of genetic genealogy, where he illuminates the interplay of genes, history, and culture. His writing has been featured in the New York Times, India Today, the National Review, and his scholarly work is cited in many scientific journals. Razib also has a very interesting Substack called "Unsupervised Learning".In this episode, we talk about commercial genetic testing companies like 23andMe. We talk about the genetic histories of regions like Russia, China, Ashkenazis and Madagasy. We also talk about the Indo-Aryan connection. We talk about whether race is a social construct. We discuss the concept of epigenetics and so-called inherited trauma. We talk about what Cleopatra really looked like and more. I hope you all enjoyed this conversation as much as I did.

My guest today is Razib Khan. Razib is a population geneticist, writer, and entrepreneur. He is a prominent voice in the realm of genetic genealogy, where he illuminates the interplay of genes, history, and culture. His writing has been featured in the New York Times, India Today, the National Review, and his scholarly work is cited in many scientific journals. Razib also has a very interesting Substack called "Unsupervised Learning". In this episode, we talk about commercial genetic testing companies like 23andMe. We talk about the genetic histories of regions like Russia, China, Ashkenazis and Madagasy. We also talk about the Indo-Aryan connection. We talk about whether race is a social construct. We discuss the concept of epigenetics and so-called inherited trauma. We talk about what Cleopatra really looked like and more. I hope you all enjoyed this conversation as much as I did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is actually my appearance on the Goodfellows podcast, which is run by the Hoover Institution. They asked me about the reparations proposal that was recently put forward in California. They also asked me about the legacy of Black Lives Matter. We talk about the 1619 Project. We talk about color blindness and a post-racial society. Finally, they went on to ask me what advice I would give to young black kids today.I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.