Uncommon Knowledge: Ross Douthat’s Decadent Society

 

In his new book, The Decadent Society, New York Times columnist Ross Douthat presents a theory: “Western society stopped advancing in the second half of the 20th century, and the combination of wealth and technological proficiency with economic stagnation, political stalemates, cultural exhaustion, and demographic decline creates a strange kind of ‘sustainable decadence,’ a civilizational languor that could endure for longer than we think.” Against this backdrop, Peter Robinson and Douthat discuss movies, TV shows, the iPhone, SpaceX, and the 747, with some detours into the COVID-19 crisis and our current political situation.

Recorded on May 28, 2020

Published in General
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  1. Bryan G. Stephens Thatcher
    Bryan G. Stephens
    @BryanGStephens

    Funny. I am posting this response on one of the advancements I guess we did not make. 

    That whole Space X thing? Nothing.

    • #1
  2. RightAngles Member
    RightAngles
    @RightAngles

    Scary.

    • #2
  3. James Gawron Inactive
    James Gawron
    @JamesGawron

    JUST KIDDING!

    Sorry, it’s late and I’m getting silly. Time to go to bed.

    OK OK Peter, alright already. “Hey, Ridley, ya got any Beeman’s.”

    Regards,

    Jim

    • #3
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