Something's Off With Andrew Heaton

Jason Feifer is the host of "Build for Tomorrow" (formerly "The Pessimist Archives") and joins the show to discuss why we needlessly react to new technologies with fear.   Did you know that society once balked at the dangerous technologies of radios, novels, and teddy bears? We get into all of them on today's show!   SUPPORT THE SHOW: www.patreon.com/andrewheaton

This week bonus episodes are going on the main feed, past the paywall! Here's a rerun from last year, about Napoleon Bonaparte, and the pitfalls of "liberating" other nations. To support the show, go to www.patreon.com/andrewheaton

The default position for politics is advocacy—promoting our team and opposing the other. Julia Galef proposes an alternate mindset, where we try to determine the reality of a situation even if it’s uncomfortable. She is the author of “The Scout Mindset: Why Some People See Things Clearly and Others Don’t.” Book at www.mightyheaton.com/featured

The Khmer Rouge was a brutal communist regime that ruled Cambodia for only four years, but in that brief period entirely destroyed its economy, wiped out its intellectual class, and horribly murdered a quarter of its population. In this history episode we investigate one of the world's worst regimes, the depths of its depravity, and how it explains a specific type of terror present in other countries today. 

Joe Biden's Child Tax Credit sends direct money to families, no strings attached. Is it cutting down on wasteful bureaucracy and reducing hurdles to financial aid, or enabling a culture of joblessness? The World's Smartest Podcast Network rejoins to discuss, as well as: Rich People Island, the future of remote work, and Soviet Space dogs.

Friday Release Valve (where we kick around the best, underserved headlines of the week) is returning--but moving to its own podcast. New episodes will appear on the new show titled "Friday Release Valve," along with a backlog of old episodes, funny commercials, and sketches. To find the new show, go to www.mightyheaton.com/frv or search for "Friday Release Valve" on your podcast player of choice.

Housing regulations have resulted in widespread urban sprawl, ethnic redlining, multi-generational poverty, and all manner of other ills.  Jeff Maurer of "I Might Be Wrong" on Substack and Jeremiah Johnson of The Neoliberal Podcast join to discuss how zoning laws have hurt America, and ways to rectify them. This episode is sponsored by Ground News - The world's first news comparison platform. Download Ground News for free here: https://ground.news/orphanage

Winston Churchill dealt with evil by confrontation. What's his opposite? This is a bonus history episode from July of last year, in the context of the forthcoming 2020 election and the George Floyd protests.  Bonus episodes come out ever week on top of the regular show. To access them, head to patreon.com/andrewheaton

Could we have fixed things if we stayed? Kabul fell to the Taliban on Sunday, which is quickly reorganizing their regime after getting ousted twenty years ago by the United States.   Was nation building an incomplete but worthwhile pursuit, or a never-ending fools errand?   Jason Buttrill served as an intelligence analyst in the invasion of Afghanistan, and discusses the nature of the country and what will happen to it.

Andrew Sullivan is an author and blogger best-known for his substack The Weekly Dish.   His new book is "Out On a Limb: Selected Writing, 1989-2021" chronicling sexuality, politics, and religion from his position as a gay Catholic conservative.   Get "Out On a Limb" at www.mightyheaton.com/featured

Affirmative Action is potentially one Supreme Court case away from going extinct. When is racial prioritizing constitutional? Is it ever a good policy idea? Anastasia Boden is a senior attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, and the co-host of "Dissed," a podcast focused on important Supreme Court dissents.

Dan Kovalik is the author of "Cancel This Book: The Progressive Case Against Cancel Culture." Kovalik, a long-time labor activist, union attorney, and human rights lawyer, joins the show to talk about the classist and elitist elements of Woke excess, and why it's a dismal long-term strategy for the Democratic Party.   "Cancel This Book" https://www.amazon.com/dp/1510764984?tag=mightyheaton-20&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1   Standup New York tickets: https://www.standupny.com/shows/the-worlds-smartest-podcast/

Over a hundred thousand people signed a petition calling to ban the world's richest man from returning to Earth: "billionaires shouldn't exist." In this episode we explore the difference between relative growth and actual growth. And determine if liquidating the rich would solve the world's economic problems.

Are late night comedy and political satire as free wheeling and funny as they used to be? Or has comedy become simultaneously tame yet partisan?   Jeff Maurer is former senior writer for "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver." He joins to discuss how fear and groupthink have defanged comedy, and why nuance is always a harder prospect than reflexive teamsiness.   Jeff's newsletter can be found at https://imightbewrong.substack.com/

I have a new book out! Los Angeles is Hideous: Poems About An Ugly City. Arguably the funniest book ever written about the horribleness which is LA. Here are two quick readings from what is about to become your new favorite coffee table book. You can find "Los Angeles is Hideous: Poems About An Ugly City" at www.LAisUgly.com

Michael Malice is the best-selling author of "The Anarchist Handbook". He joins to discuss the legitimacy of government action, and what society might look like in the absence of a state. "The Anarchist Handbook" by Michael Malice https://amzn.to/3dS402h On North Korea https://apple.co/36iKQi8 On the New Right https://bit.ly/2Utllb0

Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Anne Applebaum is the author of "Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism." She joins the show to discuss the rise of authoritarianism around the world, and the origins of the impulse. Related episode: “You’re Doing the Culture War Wrong” https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/youre-doing-the-culture-war-wrong/id1439837349?i=1000485699778

Brian Brushwood joins the show to discuss why people get their jollies from political bullying, and how to sidestep fruitless fights instead of getting drawn into them.  Past bonus episodes: "How to Avoid Awkward Political Conversations" "Advice from Brian Brushwood and Me"

What if instead of one vote per person, you had a whole bag of votes to distribute however you liked along the ballot? What if all property was up for auction, permanently? Glen Weyl is the author of "Radical Markets: Uprooting Capitalism and Democracy for A Just Society." He joins the show to discuss where markets work well and where they do not, and how we could rethink society from the ground up to better utilize them.

Adam Gopnik is the author of "A Thousand Points of Sanity: The Moral Adventure of Liberalism" and joins the show to discuss what constitutes the temperament and foundations of liberalism.  Want to discuss the episode with fellow orphans? Head to www.mightyheaton.com/discord This episode is sponsored by Ground News - The world's first news comparison platform. Download Ground News for free here: https://ground.news/orphanage