Aufhebunga Bunga

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: Emancipation After Hegel: Achieving a Contradictory Revolution Review of book in Marx & Philosophy

On “culture”.   We discuss who produces culture and who consumes it – and what those inequalities reveal about culture today. Also, we ask what’s the ploblem with culture anyway and end up defending “low culture” from Red Hot Chili Peppers (well, sorta) to food guys.   Reading: Culture is Bad for You, Orian Brook, Dave O'Brien and Mark Taylor, Manchester UP

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.

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

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? 

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

Game writer & designer Jonas Kyratzes joins us to talk about the art of games, the culture of gaming, the gamification of society, and the identity politics of gamer culture. How far has Jonas’ own philosophy influenced his writing for games, such as “The Talos Principle”? We also talk politics in both Greece, focusing on Syriza failure. Plus, could Bunga co-host Philip Cunliffe’s book ‘Lenin Lives!’ ever be made into a game? Readings: Games & Politics, Centre for Art & Media, Karlsruhe Jonas Kyratzes website  

Full episode for subscribers only. Sign up at patreon.com/bungacast   On “culture”.   We discuss who produces culture and who consumes it – and what those inequalities reveal about culture today. Also, we ask what’s the ploblem with culture anyway and end up defending “low culture” from Red Hot Chili Peppers (well, sorta) to food guys.   Reading: Culture is Bad for You, Orian Brook, Dave O'Brien and Mark Taylor, Manchester UP

On Germany, the hegemon of Europe. We are joined by leading German public intellectual Wolfgang Streeck to discuss the role of Germany at the end of the End of History. How is it and the EU faring under the assault of Covid-19? We cover Germany’s economic miracles - postwar and post-2008 -, Merkel’s tactical brilliance and strategic ignorance, and how France retains more of a sense of history. Also: why democracy sometimes needs an AK47. Readings: Critical Encounters, Wolfgang Streeck, Verso (2020) Letters from Europe, Wolfgang Streeck (in EN & ES)   

On the US election, a huge turnout and the end of Trump. We survey the results of the presidential and legislative elections, peer through the exit polls and discuss some counterintuitive facts: Florida goes Trump but opts for a $15 minimum wage; California goes Biden while Uber gets its way; Trump did protectionism but it didn't help him win the Rustbelt; the Republicans win over more Latinos – but do Latinos even exist? And the big questions: Will Biden and the Democrats have any authority now that they don't have anti-Trumpism to drive them? Is a Biden administration to be a Silicon Valley dictatorship? And will the GOP be Trumpism without Trump? Readings: Are the Democrats losing on purpose? Amber Frost & Daniel Bessner, Jacobin

Full episode is for subscribers only. Sign up at patreon.com/bungacast  In this latest Three Articles, we discuss cosmopolitanism, the end of austerity (maybe?) and social control in the pandemic.  Readings: Is cosmopolitanism our destiny?, Aris Roussinos, Unherd Meet the Philosopher Who Is Trying to Explain the Pandemic, Christopher Caldwell, NYT Global economy: the week that austerity was officially buried, Chris Giles, FT  

On British decline. Much ink has been spilled over the Britain’s fate since the end of its empire. Could it be that decline has been overstated? And what will happen to Britain as it leaves the European Union? We discuss how the history of the Industrial Revolution and Cold War militarism still shapes British politics today, as David Edgerton joins us to talk about the his latest book, 'The Rise and Fall of the British Nation'. Readings: A misremembered empire, David Edgerton, Tortoise Britain’s 20th-century industrial revolution, Colin Kidd, New Statesman (review of Edgerton's book) Britain's persistent racism cannot simply be explained by its imperial history, David Edgerton, The Guardian

On The Economist and the contradictions of global liberalism. Alexander Zevin joins us to discuss his work on the 176 year history of the magazine that has accompanied liberalism's global expansion. Has it just reflected the world or has it actually influenced politics? How has The Economist balanced democracy against the interests of finance and the needs of empire? And is the magazine suffering from N.O.B.S.?  Subscribe: patreon.com/BungaCast Running order: (06:02) Overview & early days (29:52) 19th century & empire (34:18) 20th century, esp 1930s and '40s (48:08) End of the Cold War and NOBS (01:02:19) Liberalism & its enemies  

On the 30 years since 1989. For our 100th episode, we invited our favourite guests to reflect on the question: “What one event, personal or political, most captures for you the past thirty years, since 1989?”  Are we still living in the death throes of the 20th century, or is something new emerging? Guests: (00:07:42) - Maren Thom (00:14:14) - David Broder (00:21:33) - Ashley Frawley (00:26:11) - Catherine Liu (00:33:05) - Angela Nagle (00:40:49) - Benjamin Fogel (00:46:25) - Alex Gourevitch  (00:51:31) - BungaCast hosts (00:59:22) - David Adler (01:04:05) - Amber A’Lee Frost (01:08:48) - James Heartfield (01:16:17) - Anton Jaeger (01:23:24) - Leigh Phillips (01:30:25) - Lee Jones (01:36:03) - Karl Sharro Subscribe: patreon.com/BungaCast

On the unexpected origins of neoliberalism. We talk to Quinn Slobodian, author of Globalists, about how neoliberals look back to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the League of Nations. Why does neoliberalism talk about freedom, but promote order? Is neoliberalism about more or less state - or is it about what kind of state? Plus why the genuine neoliberals didn’t care about the Cold War and how Murray Rothbard laid the ground for Trump. Readings: Globalists, Quinn Slobodian Neoliberalism’s World Order, Adam Tooze Why I am not a conservative, F.A. von Hayek The EU is a betrayal of Europe’s exceptionalism, Douglas Carswell Subscribe for access to the Synthesis Session, where the guys discuss the broader implications: patreon.com/bungacast