The Daily Dialectic: Recent Episodes
Ted Metrakas
The Daily Dialectic is a philosophy podcast about history, politics, art, and culture, with a focus on revolution.
In this episode of the Daily Dialectic I talk about why Brooklyn sucks, Kevin Durant staying in Brooklyn, Kobe Bryant, the 1980s Boston Celtics and racism, and lame progressive politics.
In this episode of the Daily Dialectic, I analyze some ideas from Nietzsche on women and connect them to his larger philosophy. I also discuss a recent article in Psychology Today about dating in modern society, and then I critique an article in the New York Times business section.
In this episode I start off talking about how basketball has changed from the early 80s to today, and then branch off into a lot of other stuff
In this episode I talk about the repeal of Roe v Wade by the Supreme Court, and how this seemingly out of nowhere extreme right wing shift became inevitable once the Democratic Party made certain choices in 2016. I also talk about how identity politics is used by the bourgeoisie in ways that are increasingly absurd to everyone except them, and at the end of the episode I give a bit of history about the bourgeoisie and how they conceive of themselves, and how Wokeness and identity politics relates to that.
In this episode of the Daily Dialectic, I talk about the Boston Celtics, Elon Musk buying Twitter, and the significance of the recent French presidential election.
In this episode I talk about a new article in Vanity Fair which promotes the idea of a “dissident populist new right.” I talk about why this movement is not dissident, new, or populist…
In this episode I talk about the new movie from Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza…and other things…
In this episode I discuss Will Smith slapping Chris rock, the ongoing war in Europe, and some other stuff.
I am back, talking about the year that is about to end. I talk about lots of things like Covid World, Ghislaine Maxwell, Spider-Man, Biden, Trump, VICE propaganda, love, Elvis, hopelessness, the Great Resignation, MasterClass, Amazon, strikes, and more.
I interviewed Mike Watt (the bass player of The Minutemen, among many other things) about history, revisionism, 70s culture, 90s culture; his career in music; the influence of Walt Whitman and James Joyce, and a lot more.
In this episode, I am joined for a third time by artist Tai Lee. We talk about a wide range of topics: how revolutionary artists should use the void creatively; how bourgeois artists use nothingness to serve the status quo, rather than subvert it; how artists should use surfaces, rather than depths; the fake radicalism of liberal feminism; the dialectical homofascism of baseball; and more.
In this episode, I cover a range of topics: the dialectics of black iced coffee; Mexican Independence Day; the ideological function of AOC's fake “populism”; and a bit about Australia and China.
In this episode, I start off by answering some listener questions about random topics, like the cultural and economic politics of fast food, why The Matrix movies suck, 90s nostalgia, and why car society is bad. Then I move onto a longer discussion about the significance of the 20th anniversary of 9/11, how the world changed, its impact on culture, and how it’s happening again with Covid World.
In this episode I talk about the ending of America’s longest war in total failure, and how liberals seem to be the only ones who are mad about it. I talk about what the ending of the Afghanistan war can mean for the future of America and the world.
I talked about the news that NYC will require vaccine passports to enter businesses, have a job, or do anything really. Recorded while walking through Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn, NY.
Tai Lee and I talked to Leonel Manzanares de la Rosa about liberation theology and Latin American resistance to colonialism. Leonel is the producer of the upcoming podcast “Lin Bao Power Hour” and editor of the Spanish version of Cosmonaut Magazine. Note: due to technical difficulties, the recording cuts off at the end so there isn’t a neat conclusion.
In this episode, I talked with Professor Ronald Beiner about his book Dangerous Minds: Nietzsche, Heidegger, and the Return of the Far Right. We talked about how his book was received by white nationalists, why he felt he had to write the book, the extent to which Nietzsche can be used by left-liberals, the emptiness of liberal theory, and more.
In this episode, I talked with artist Tai Lee about the problems with universalism, human nature, and populism. We also talked about revolution, politics, art, basketball, and a lot more.
In this episode, I talk about a variety of topics, including: vaccines as mitigation tactics; why Gilles Deleuze (and most French theory) is bad; the propaganda effect of how the Israeli regime is covered and how the Cuban regime is covered; mustaches; the digitalization of social life; the ideological function of pointless jobs; and a few other things.
In this episode, I talk to Ben (@notbenfish on Twitter), who takes a dialectical, unique approach to his critique of sports, neoliberalism, culture, politics, and everything else.
In this episode I talk to artist Tai Lee about dialectics, revolution, Maoism, art, and many other things.
In this episode I talk about why Larry Bird is a very dialectical basketball player. I also talk about what Social Democracy is and why it should be viewed as the enemy. And I briefly mention Jordan Peterson versus Elvis, Lana Del Rey versus Katy Perry, and the actor John Cazale.
I discuss why Elvis is one of the most dialectical and materialist figures in American cultural history. I talk about how he represents the antidote to neoliberal subjectivity, and why we need him now more than ever. I also bring in the philosophers Soren Kierkegaard and Alexander Garcia Düttmann, as well as Lana Del Rey. I play a lot of Elvis songs in this episode too: Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right Love Me Don’t Be Cruel Burning Love All Shook Up Never Been To Spain Reach Out To Jesus If I Can Dream Bridge Over Troubled Water Can’t Help Falling In Love
In this episode I expand on my thoughts about how Jesus can be seen as a materialist, misanthrope, and a revolutionary, by comparing him to Nietzsche’s Jesus figure: Zarathustra. Through contempt, and worldliness, Jesus and Zarathustra show how men become gods—how men already are gods.
On this episode of the Daily Dialectic, I talk to Nathanael Haun, who is a communist and a farmer in rural Indiana. We talk about how revolutionary agriculture must be hostile to the status quo, Indiana history, dialectics, and a lot more.
Why Jesus was a misanthropic materialist, the revolting power of silence, and how Jesus is the opposite of Socrates (and more interesting).
In this episode of the Daily Dialectic, I give a materialist case for why Socrates deserved to die
What is wokeness? Is it a new state religion? Why are people saying it is? What might be behind all this?
In this episode, I talk about how the French Marxist philosopher Louis Althusser shows how to separate idealism from materialism.
In this episode, I talk a bit about populism, why the 1970s are back, and liberal hegemony.
In this episode, I go over some of my favorite memories of the Trump era; I talk about a good movie I saw recently; and I talk about what Defunding the Police means.
On this episode, I discuss why Robert Musil's novel The Man without Qualities sheds light on the modern Democratic Party; I talk about the dialectics of wokeness and anti-wokeness; and I talk about why poetry is mostly bad.
In this episode, I discuss the appeal of Greek Orthodox Christianity as opposed to other religions. I discuss Marjorie Taylor Greene and how she represents the future of the Republican Party. Then I talk about the professional managerial class (PMCs) and the Trotskyite to Neoconservative pipeline.
I discuss the rising trend of Left Catholics and the trad lifestyle, and the relationship between neoliberalism and fascism.
In this episode, I discuss why AOC is bad, and why everyone is so focused on her. I also talk about how the right wing, conservative brain works, and the Zack Snyder cut of his bad 2017 Justice League movie that is coming out soon.
In this episode, I talk about the petty bourgeois character of the Capitol rioters, and talk about populism in contrast to democracy.
In this episode of the Daily Dialectic, I discuss why style and identity are often opposed, and the differences between a patriotic and materialist politics.